The Myth of Stress

Your crazy relatives don't just bring gifts for the holidays. They ARE the gifts.

Stress

Of Mice and Men

Andrew Bernstein on May 1, 2014

Pain researchers at McGill University noticed that sometimes their mice experienced less pain during experiments. They didn't understand why, until they checked to see whether the researcher was a man or a woman...

Pain researchers at McGill University noticed that sometimes their mice experienced less pain during experiments. They didn't understand why, until they checked to see whether the researcher was a man or a woman...

Stress

Where There's Smoke…

Andrew Bernstein on March 24, 2014

Firefighters don't practice smoke management. They put out fires. The stress management industry can learn from this.

Firefighters don't practice smoke management. They put out fires. The stress management industry can learn from this.

Leadership

Chris Christie, What Got You Here Won't Get You There

Andrew Bernstein on January 10, 2014

Chris Christie is in the national spotlight again for having very visible strengths and weaknesses. What if these are actually two sides of the same coin?

Chris Christie is in the national spotlight again for having very visible strengths and weaknesses. What if these are actually two sides of the same coin?

Resilience in the physical sciences is the ability of an object to recover its form and bounce back from compression. When we assume that the dynamics of the psychological sciences work the same way, we make a huge mistake.

Anger

JetBlue and The Final Straw

Andrew Bernstein on August 11, 2010

On August 9th, a female passenger hit JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater in the head with an overhead compartment door, then instead of apologizing, cursed Slater out. Slater used the plane's PA system to curse back at the woman, popped the emergency slide, grabbed a few beers, and walked (actually, slid) off the job. For some people, Slater is a hero for doing what many of us imagine doing but don't act on. For others, he is culpable for exactly the same reason.

On August 9th, a female passenger hit JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater in the head with an overhead compartment door, then instead of apologizing, cursed Slater out. Slater used the plane's PA system to curse back at the woman, popped the emergency slide, grabbed a few beers, and walked (actually, slid) off the job. For some people, Slater is a hero for doing what many of us imagine doing but don't act on. For others, he is culpable for exactly the same reason.

People often say that stress is a motivator. What we're referring to when we say this is really better described as stimulation and engagement. Take the example of goal-setting. We set goals because they give us something to aim for and keep us feeling engaged. Stimulation and engagement are good.But that's not stress.

Stress

8 Deadly Myths About Stress

Andrew Bernstein on May 25, 2010

Stress is a motivator. Stress is inevitable. Some stress is good for you. These are just some of the many myths surrounding stress in our society today. Only by recognizing these myths as false can we begin to live truly stress-free lives.

Stress is a motivator. Stress is inevitable. Some stress is good for you. These are just some of the many myths surrounding stress in our society today. Only by recognizing these myths as false can we begin to live truly stress-free lives.

For millions, worry is a sign of love. It says that, even though I am okay, I am selfless enough to suffer vicariously for you. And isn't that the definition of love? No.

People frequently say that some stress is good for you, that it's a motivator, and that without it we would be bored. This notion of "good stress" was first proposed by stress research pioneer Hans Selye in 1976, and it was an attempt to paint himself out of a corner.

Since the 1960's, social psychologists have tried measuring stress in people's lives by using Stressful Life Events scales. These surveys ask you to check off which events you've experienced: a move, a death in the family, divorce, etc. By adding up your check marks, they calculate how much stress you experience. This is both inaccurate and misleading, and I think it's important to understand why.

Stress

The Transformational Power of Insight

Andrew Bernstein on May 3, 2010

We're all familiar with tools like motivation, positive thinking, and analysis. We're less familiar with insight. Insight transforms stressful beliefs into deeper understanding and clearer action. This post describes how and why it works.

We're all familiar with tools like motivation, positive thinking, and analysis. We're less familiar with insight. Insight transforms stressful beliefs into deeper understanding and clearer action. This post describes how and why it works.

Stress

The Myth of Stress Revealed - Part 3

Andrew Bernstein on April 26, 2010

Over the course of human evolution, our brains became far more capable of abstract thinking. The positive side of this is that we developed language, story, numbers, and art. All these things require an abstract mind. The negative side is that we developed stress.

Over the course of human evolution, our brains became far more capable of abstract thinking. The positive side of this is that we developed language, story, numbers, and art. All these things require an abstract mind. The negative side is that we developed stress.

There's no such thing as a stressor. Here's why.

Stress

The Myth of Stress Revealed

Andrew Bernstein on April 22, 2010

Where does stress come from? That's easy. It comes from stressors like traffic jams, angry bosses, and screaming children.But why? Why do stressors provoke stress in us? The answer, which is repeated in practically every article and book on stress (and which is disastrously wrong, as you'll see in a moment) involves human evolution. 

Where does stress come from? That's easy. It comes from stressors like traffic jams, angry bosses, and screaming children.But why? Why do stressors provoke stress in us? The answer, which is repeated in practically every article and book on stress (and which is disastrously wrong, as you'll see in a moment) involves human evolution.