Performing Under Pressure PDF

PATRICK FORSYTH
PERFORMING
UNDER PRESSURE
TECHNIQUES TO AVOID
IT OR SURVIVE IT AND
DELIVER RESULTS
2
Performing under Pressure: Techniques to Avoid it or Survive it and Deliver Results
1st edition
© 2019 Patrick Forsyth & bookboon.com
ISBN 978-87-403-3219-3
3
PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE Contents
CONTENTS
1 Introduction: the need for a considered approach 5
2 Keep calm 8
3 Work Efficiently 12
4 Time management 14
5 Dealing with problem people 19
6 Communications techniques to prompt change 25
7 The value of support 37
8 Afterword: you can make a difference 42
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PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE Introduction: the need for a considered approach
1 INTRODUCTION: THE NEED FOR

A CONSIDERED APPROACH
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot
change, the courage to change the things I can, and the
wisdom to know the difference.
– Reinhold Niebuhr
Help! I have a book to write, albeit a short one, though that’s still a good many words. I
must think about what to write, how to arrange it and how to express it and I must do
all this with a tight deadline in mind, other deadlines looming and a seemingly endless
parade of people and events that constantly conspire to make doing it difficult. It could be
a chaotic and unpleasant experience. Is it too early in the process to break off and make a
cup of tea? Help.
But I want to write this book, it’s an important topic, and I will do so while working at
making the process possible and making it as hassle free an experience as possible. The
fact that sometimes (often?) you have to work under pressure may be externally prompted,
but the first thing to accept and resolve to use is the fact that, even if you cannot remove
everything that puts pressure on you completely, you can avoid some of the causes, reduce
others and act to make any that remain tolerable. I certainly don’t promise a complete
solution but I would start by promising that approaching things in the right way can help;
like so much in the work place you have to understand what is happening and work at it.
My first paragraph may elicit little sympathy, if you are reading this then doubtless your
situation is much worse. Fair enough. Let’s see what causes people to work under pressure.
One thing predominates: people.
Interruptions are made by people, the culture of a workplace is created by people – and
can be distracting, rife with politics and rivalry, and sometimes just plain toxic. “People”
involves many different individuals: peers, those you work with closely in a team, and those
to whom you report. Of course the people and culture can be constructive and supportive,
but when it is not it can cause problems and pressure.
A second thing that seems obvious to list is time.
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This can be in terms of deadlines (often set by those more senior to you), and also in terms
of the amount of time available, which brings up the clash of different things to be done
in parallel and even ultimately the question of work/life balance.
When you think about it most, if not all of the pressures of time are caused by, yes, people.
There is a final factor that needs raising early on that also comes under the heading of
people: you.
There is a very real danger that those under pressure make things worse for themselves,
for instance by overreacting, panicking even, and by flailing about as it were in a way that
does not help. Only rarely will losing your temper and shouting at the boss actually change
anything for the better.
So what might make a difference? Several things:
• Keeping calm so that you give yourself a chance to change things

• Working efficiently (anything else can take longer and compound the problem)
• Planning and managing your time in a way that helps fit everything you have to
do in
• Dealing with people creating problems (though think about how to do so
acceptably)
• Seeking support from those who can, or may be able to help
• Considering your own role in the situation and resolve to change that if
necessary (this could be no more than going back to the first point here: keep
calm).
Overall the first step may be to recognise that this is a practical issue.
Managers should recognise that, while some pressure may be inevitable at least sometimes,
making or allowing people to work under too much pressure is wholly counter-productive.
It will reduce productivity, quality and motivation (and thus staff retention) and can lead
to mistakes, missed deadlines and contribute to all the downsides of failing to achieve
results – ultimately in a commercial organisation that means loss of profit. Furthermore
pressure dilutes such matters as creativity and anything else that needs calm, considered
attention. An organisation where unwarranted pressure means that no new ideas are possible
will never thrive and prosper as markets and environment may necessitate.
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While undue pressure may be undesirable for many reasons, and managers recognising that
could stop much of it, sometimes emergency action is necessary and no one should expect
that they will never be under any pressure. If circumstances of inevitability are recognisable
then it may need accepting, though not for too long, and the best way to survive it may
be simply to keep calm and get through it.
Note: Some things that create a situation in which people must work under undue pressure
are avoidable. Either things are done inadvertently or, less often hopefully in the cynical
knowledge that pressure will result. The latter should clearly be avoided (except perhaps in
emergencies when short term working under pressure may be necessary; in which case it
should always be explained). Thus there an important criteria in planning initiatives and
projects should be ensuring the manageability of the work that will have to take place to
make it happen. This is perhaps a principle that managers especially should take on board.
Here we are concerned with what to do when the pressure is avoidable or can be reduced,
including times when it is unrecognised by management, and needs sorting not just for the
individual’s peace of mind but because better results will be achieved without it. And that,
as I say is a practical matter, so let’s move on and see what can be done.
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PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE Keep calm
2 KEEP CALM
Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world.
Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.
– Rami
Maybe this runs throughout the piece, but let’s take it first. In some ways the question of
keeping calm should go without saying. But it is all too easy to overreact, lose your temper
or simply succumb to ongoing despair – quiet or otherwise – so logically a word or two
about this should come first.
Sometimes pressure appears unexpectedly, in which case the advice which famously appeared
on the cover of The Hitchhikers’ Guide to the Galaxy – Don’t Panic! is spot on. Sometimes
the ability to cope effectively is gradually affected over time as undue pressure of work
continues.
In either case, the fact is that you are far less likely to make things better if you are in any
way distraught. Before addressing how to achieve a considered reaction we will focus on a
vital preliminary:
Discovering the cause

The first question to be asked is what’s causing the pressure? And deciding whether it is
necessary or not? Additionally it may be relevant to ask who is causing it. Even if it is
necessary the effect may be something that can be reduced. You need to be realistic, if
someone suddenly leaves (unexpectedly) then others may need to take up the slack for a while.
But if your boss is simply imposing one unrealistic deadline on top of another then that
may need to be addressed (and we will come to that).
Whatever the circumstances you may need some research to discover what is going on, and
if it becomes clear that your boss has imposed an unreasonable deadline, it is sensible to
ask why? Perhaps you do not know someone else has left and the boss did not mention it.
It could be that all that is necessary is just to ask: getting that finished by then will be a
real problem, why is it necessary? Sometimes a simple answer shows a transient reason that
you can accept and live with. Or a discussion ensues that leads to a compromise. Neither
scenario is likely to pan out well if you start with a reflex: How the hell am I supposed to
do that? It’s totally unreasonable! Especially if you shout.
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A calm, considered approach is necessary.
Be realistic
The fact is that few jobs, certainly amongst the kind of people likely to read this, allow
you to go home at the end of the day with everything finished satisfactorily. It is just not
possible. So, I for one am not prepared to worry about it. If I am content that I have done
as much as possible at this stage and that I have in mind how to proceed on the next
day, then matters can be left, even forgotten, fretting about it unconstructively achieves
nothing and is just upsetting. Tomorrow is another day. In my experience an awful lot of
unconstructive worrying takes place. Of course, some things are unclear, they need working
out, but constructively, and perhaps creatively, working out.
Sometimes when people say – I’m under such pressure – they mean only that they are consumed
by worrying about things that cannot be changed and which, again, from experience, have
a way or working out in the end.
Sometimes things just need to be parked, as it were. For a moment. Not everything can be
and some things causing pressure are really serious problems, of course, but this is a habit
to get into. I bet most readers can think of things fretted about where the period of fretting
contributed absolutely nothing to the ultimate solution. We will get to more serious things,
but first let’s consider the seemingly simple premise of keeping calm.
Finding a state of calmness

Right from the start let’s be clear: staying calm helps and reduces stress, anxiety and worry.
It is worth aiming at and acquiring an ability to remain calm is like a habit – one worth
acquiring. Sometimes a major thing prompts improvement. I well remember once sitting
back in the throes of some upset (the details do not matter) and saying to myself: I am
just not prepared to let this take over all my mental space. I forced myself to think about it
in a practical way until I had worked my way out of it. That was many years ago, and I
resolved to try to stick with that way of thinking about things and have been much more
laid back since.
At the risk of repeating myself (and because many people seem to think that they are a
born worrier and that nothing can be done about it) let me emphasise this: it was Abraham
Lincoln who said: Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be. I do believe that
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there is a truism encapsulated there – and the same is true for our reaction to adverse things.
To a considerable degree we allow ourselves to be upset – to panic – and just resolving
to stamp on an over emotional reaction and redirecting your focus onto how, practically,
something can be sorted is good practice. It works. Sorry, I am in danger of preaching, but
I believe, and know from personal experience, that this is sound advice.
All that may be easy to say, but what helps make such a resolve successful?
Techniques to reach and enhance calm

There may be no magic formula, you cannot just punch the air and shout “Relax!” But
many things can help and together can make a real difference, for example:
• Resist anger: the world is not perfect, the fact that you are under pressure goes
with the territory so to speak and is something that happens sometimes and
must be coped with pragmatically
• Be patient: take time to understand what is going on, who’s involved and what
practical steps can help
• Be optimistic: are you a glass half full or glass half empty person? (Or do you
share my view that the glass is just the wrong size?) – think of things that have
worked out and see if there is in fact no reason to despair
• Pause: if possible, remove yourself from the situation for a while or even for a
moment (remember the age old principle of counting to ten) to get over the
anger and concentrate on a practical approach and response. Note too that
the final straw – the trigger if you like – that gets you really struggling over a
situation may not be at the core of the problem and you may need to broaden
your thinking
• Analyse the situation: you want things to change, but precisely how? You cannot
have more time, we are all stuck with the 24 hour day, so what exactly do you
want to be different: less to do? Better ways of doing things? Or whatever –
check particularly the question of how different things are prioritised. Note:
try to keep the working day to a reasonable length, an extra hour or two may
help occasionally, but excessive hours actually quickly reduce productivity (and
motivation, of course)
• Do not miss significant details: under pressure everything has a tendency to
amalgamate into untidy mess of problem (when, say, there are four different
things all of which need individual attention)
• Rephrase things to avoid the negative: a boss, for instance, may be more
receptive to the thought of a different, improved way of doing something
than to a strident demand for a problem (maybe implied as being of their
creation) to be removed
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• Recognise and avoid negative “self-talk”: this is a phrase psychologists use. For
example, what do people say to themselves when they hate the thought of
making a presentation: I can’t do it, people will hate it, no one is interested, I don’t
have enough material, I’ll dry up, lose my place… and more. Such is seemingly an
instinctive reaction and recognising this is the first step to avoiding it
• You are not alone: support may be at hand, do not brood and agonise alone, seek
it out (see Chapters 5 and 7)
• Plan for stress: lastly in this list, work to anticipate things that can be forecast –
early action will often improve things more than what is possible when things
are left to fester.
All these, and more no doubt, relate to a moment, when pressure descends or when you
can put up with it no longer. However it may be useful to think longer-term about the
creation of a calm environment. For instance:
• Address the problem together and regular: for example by discussing particular
issues at department meetings at which, not least, comment can be made on a
planned and considered basis
• Create a calming work routine: various techniques help here: mixing the nature
of tasks, taking a break (even the time it takes to make a cuppa, may be enough
to allow you to start again more relaxed, and focus more constructively -
some organisations have rest areas designed to help this) and a bit of informal
discussion with others may help too
• Breathe: if you get really overwrought, calm your breathing (there are exercises
that can help here)
• Make sure you are eating properly and getting sufficient sleep: faults here are almost
guaranteed to increase feelings of stress
• Campaign: it may be that the only solution is a number of people working in
concert; this will need setting up, organising and leading. Indeed having such a
campaign on the go may be a comfort, especially as it begins to produce results.
There is a good deal to think about here and some areas such as improving your sleep may
well need checking out beyond this text. Overall, monitor how everything you do works.
You need to discover what does increase calm and what does not, where to spend time, what
to focus on and in turn to enjoy the fact that as you do so you can take some satisfaction
from achievements along the way.
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PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE Work Efficiently
3 WORK EFFICIENTLY
Never confuse activity with achievement.
– Traditional business maxim
To work effectively, to achieve targeted results needs you to be well equipped for the job
you do. Your competencies must match the tasks.
This is a major area in terms of productivity and the avoidance of becoming overworked –
pressurised. For some the only pressure is self-generated. It is also beyond the brief here to
go into every detail, hence this brief chapter. Suffice to say that your knowledge and skill
must be fit for purpose.
Consider a couple of examples:
• If you struggle to write a report, and if so such can seem a chore as you draft
and redraft to try to get it right, then it will take much longer than it should,
time will be wasted and pressure mounts
• Similarly, you may feel that making presentations is not your forte, preparation
then takes longer and again pressure mounts.
Further, struggling to do something that you are, to say the least, uncomfortable with is
itself likely to put you under pressure, especially if you know that if it does not go well
still more problems appear. For example, a lack lustre presentation that fails to achieve its
purpose and get agreement, say, may necessitate going back to the drawing board and even
more time is taken up.
All this means that you must take steps to get on top of the job in terms of skills. You
should take a serious interest in:
• Appraisals: which should help you monitor your level of skills and link to
training and development
• Self-development: because not everything you need may be done by
your employer and other action may be sensible (just reading this book
is a simple example)
• Training: go for everything offered and take an initiative if possible to get a
focus on your priorities sooner rather than later.
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PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE Work Efficiently
Note: clearly these issues raise wholly separate areas of consideration and such may be worthy
of further study. Certainly any shortfall in competencies will always cause an element of
pressure (if only because things take longer) and, left unaddressed, will reduce your ability
to get on top of things.
Overwork defined
Let us be clear: working under pressure implies you have:
• Too much to do
• Too little time to do what you are charged with
• To do things against too short a deadline
• Conflicting priorities
• Insufficient support (where support is necessary)
• Active dilution of your effectiveness (for example by inefficiencies in systems,
bureaucracy or other matters outside of your control).
Some of this is down to you, as with the situation of suitable competencies mentioned earlier.
Some needs liaison with others (see Chapter 5 and 7). Still more may be outside anyone’s
influence, at least for a moment. Events in markets (changes and action by customers and
competition), economies and so on may need an organisational response and it helps to
work for an organisation that rises quickly to new challenges. Maybe you can play a part
in anticipating any such changes – and in the creative process of developing the way a
department or organisation responds and works.
The main areas addressed here are time management – how you work to fit in as much
as possible and yet make what you do effective – and the people area: how you deal with
those, including your boss, who may be causing problems and whose input is necessary to
change things for the better.
These are the topics we turn to next, first considering the way you manage time and work
in the next chapter.
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PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE Time management
4 TIME MANAGEMENT
The only person who ever got everything done by Friday
was Robinson Crusoe.
– Anon
Having raised the issue of working effectively in the last chapter and found it takes us into
many different areas (some beyond the brief here) this chapter focusses on one that has a very
direct bearing on the pressure you work under. Unless you manage your time effectively you
are always likely to be under pressure as you fail to fit everything in as well as you might.
It was Henry Kissinger who said, “Next week there can’t be any crisis. My schedule is already
full”. Time is more valuable than money: you may be able to get more money but time is
finite and fixed. Time management is a crucial skill. It can enhance productivity, allow you
to focus on priorities and ultimately act directly to improve the effectiveness of individuals
and organisations – it allows you to work effectively and minimise pressure.
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The inherent difficulties

So, if time management is so much common sense and so useful, why is not everyone a
time management expert? Sadly the bad news is that time management is difficult (but there
is good news to come). The classic author G. K. Chesterton once wrote that the reason
Christianity was declining was “not because it has been tried and found wanting, but because
it has been found difficult and therefore not tried”. So too with time management. There
is no magic formula and circumstances – and interruptions – often seem to conspire to
prevent the best intentions from working out. Some people, perhaps failing to achieve what
they want, despair and give up, continuing to work under more pressure than is necessary.
That said, you must not allow perfection to be the enemy of the good. Few, if any of us,
organise our time perfectly, but some are manifestly better at it than others. Why? Those
who are more successful simply have a different attitude to the process: seeing it as something
to work at. They recognise that the details matter. They consider the time implications of
everything, and they work to get as close to their ideal of work/time arrangement as they can.
They invest a little time up front to sort the future to a greater extent than will ever be the
case with a more ad hoc approach.
Little things do mount up. Saving five minutes may sound insignificant, however do so
every working day in the year (some 230 days) and you save nearly two and a half days!
I could certainly utilise an extra couple of days, no problem. If time can be saved across
a range of tasks, and for most people it can, then the overall gain may well be significant.
The best basis for making this happen, and the good news factor I promised was to come,
is to make consideration of time and its management a habit.
Now, habits are powerful. Ones than need changing may take some effort to shift, but once
new ones are established, then they make the approaches they prompt at least semi-automatic.
Getting to grips with managing your time effectively may well take a conscious effort, but
by establishing good working habits the process gets easier as you go on. To illustrate let’s
consider one specific area that most are involved in; nothing makes a better example.
The ubiquitous meeting

Perhaps nothing makes a better example of time wasted in a way that just increases pressure
than that of business meetings, especially internal ones. Which of us cannot remember a
meeting that we emerged from recently saying: What a waste of time!? First there is the
question of the time it takes most meetings to get underway. Scheduled for 2-00 pm people
dribble in over the ensuing ten minutes, then a start is made only to be interrupted five
minutes later by a late arrival. There is a pause, a recap and the meeting begins again. We
all know the feeling, and we may sometimes be the cause (be honest!).
15
Yet there is surely no reason for it to be like this. Some meetings can and do start on time.
An effort is usually made for customer meetings, for instance. So why not always? It is only
a question of someone setting an example and insisting that good habits develop and are
maintained. It makes a difference if such things are done right, but someone has to believe
it and act accordingly.
This is a very good example of the effect of culture and habit within an organisation
combining to save people significant time. For the record, meetings need:
• A starting time
• A finishing time (so people can plan what they can do afterwards and when)
• A clear agenda (maybe with timing for different topics and certainly circulated
in advance)
• Good chairmanship (to keep discussion on track)
• No distractions (to allow concentration – so organise refreshments beforehand
and switch off telephones).
And, above all, meetings need clear objectives. Ban any meeting with a time in its title –
The monthly administration review meeting – they can become dangerously time wasting
routines. Never have a meeting just about something, so you can convene a meeting to
explore ways of increasing revenue earning capacity by 5% in the last quarter of the year,
but not one just to: discuss productivity. With clear intentions, good time keeping and a
firm hand on the tiller, most meetings can be productive.
This attitude and approach can be taken in many areas of your work: respecting how things
must be done if they are to be effective and organising so that the best way of working
becomes a habit for everyone. The foundation to all this is commented on next.
Plan the work and work the plan

If things are to be done well, then an appropriate amount of time must be allocated to
them. In the hectic modern workplace the pressure always seems to push you more towards
speed than excellence; something that prompted author Robert Heimleur to observe: They
didn’t want it right, they wanted it Wednesday.
The principles of good time management are not complex. Overall they can be summarised
in three principles:
• List the tasks you have to perform

• Assign them priorities
• Do what the plan says
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It is the last, and to some extent the second too, that causes problems, and it is all too easy
to put something off or procrastinate, so some other thoughts here may help.
It may be useful to categorise tasks, putting everything that must be dealt with on the
telephone, say, together. It is certainly useful to plan time for tasks as specifically as you
schedule appointments. For example, in conducting training on presentational skills I am
regularly told by participants that there is never enough time to prepare. Yet this is a key
task. Skimp the preparation, make a lacklustre presentation and weeks of time and work
may go down the drain. Putting the preparation time in the diary, setting aside the clear
couple of hours or whatever it takes and sticking to that in a way that avoids interruptions
must be worthwhile. Yes, this demands some discipline – more so if it is a team presentation
and colleagues must clear time to be together – but it can be done, and it pays dividends.
As was said, it is a prime principle of time management that some time must be invested
to save time in the future. Sound preparation of a presentation may take two hours, but
how long is involved in replacing a prospect if a customer sales presentation goes wrong?
No contest. And the same principle applies to systems; sorting something out so that it
works well on a regular basis is also likely to be time well spent. Ditto planning and the
organization of many tasks and projects, for example, marketing activity: the effectiveness
of marketing activity can be diluted just by not spending sufficient time on its inception.
The last of the three main principles above is the one that needs most effort.
Staying “on plan”

There are two main influences that combine to keep you from completing planned tasks.
They are other people and events, and you. You first: you may, for example, put off things
because you are:
• Unsure what to do
• Dislike the task
• Prefer another task (despite the clear priority)
• Fear the consequences.
Or more, and time can be wasted in the reverse way. What tasks do you spend too long
on (or resist delegating) because you like them? Be honest. Often this is a major cause of
wasted time, as is flattering yourself that no one else can do something as well as you can
(perhaps you do not delegate in case someone proves more able than you at it! It’s a thought
worth pondering). Such things may be one off or, worse in their potential for wasting time,
17
regular. Certainly there are principles to be noted in this area: a main one is the fallacy that
things get easier if left. Virtually always the reverse is true. Note: I reviewed the problem of
tackling inherently difficult tasks in another title in this series: Tough Decisions.
The second area of problems that keep you from key tasks are the classic interruption. We
all have some colleagues who, when they stick their heads round the door and say “Got a
minute?” mean half an hour minimum is about to vanish unconstructively.
Saying no is an inherent part of good time management, though with bigger issues the way
this is done is more complex (see later).
Telephones can also be the bane of our lives (though think carefully about how voicemail
in all its forms can dilute customer service and relationships). But there are moments to
be unavailable – some tasks can be completed in a quiet hour, yet take much longer if
you are constantly interrupted. This applies especially to anything that requires some real
thought or creativity. Indeed creativity is a key casualty of poor time management and the
increased pressure under which it makes us work; many people deplore the lack of time to
think, yet do little about it.
A major asset
I cannot emphasise enough how much good time management is a real asset to the quality
of anyone’s work, making what you do manageable and reducing any tendency to pressure.
Perhaps I may reinforce this by saying that my book Successful Time Management (Kogan
Page) was republished in its fifth edition in 2019. This is a perennial issue, something that
improves productivity, effectiveness – and acts, regularly, to reduce pressure. It is worth
exploring the possibilities, instilling the right habits and avoiding any dilution of your firm
intentions; and it all works best in an organisation where everyone is similarly motivated
(maybe you can influence that too).
The details of time management may stand more investigation by anyone under pressure,
after all it covers a whole lot of things all of which you can influence for the better. It’s worth
experimenting with, many surveys show that real efforts here can improve the amount you
do by as much as 20% - another route to less pressure. Note: Another title in this series,
“Urgent versus Important” may be worth a look.
One more thing… Brrr, Brrr. So sorry, I’ll end this section here. The telephone is ringing.
18
PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE Dealing with problem people
5 DEALING WITH PROBLEM PEOPLE

If I am getting ready to reason with a man, I spend one
third of my time thinking about what I am going to say; and
two thirds thinking about him and what he is going to say.
– Abraham Lincoln
As has been said people are a prime cause of your working under unreasonable pressure.
Here let’s focus on two key areas: peers, and senior people (including your line manager)
whose instructions can wittingly or unwittingly increase the pressure you are under, and
thus the need to influence them.
Dealing with your peers

Hopefully teams are assembled and managed in a way that has people working well together.
That said, things are never perfect and you will always get on better with some people
than others. Nevertheless this is an area in which it should not be too difficult to influence
matters. It is mostly a question of resolve and thus of being well regarded and confident.
It is said that if you look like a doormat people will tend to walk all over you. That said
you need to consider your profile. How are you seen? As efficient, competent and a source
of help or inspiration for others? Or as a soft touch?
What is being said here is that this is something you should spell out to yourself. What
qualities must be in evidence before you are seen as “professional”? You can probably
make a list (approachable, competent, confident, good at detail and so on). Certainly you
should personalise it; and maybe prioritise it too, so that you focus on those characteristics
that are most important in your particular job and with your colleagues, rather than those
making up some general list. Keep the organisational culture in mind as you consider this.
This may dictate that factors such as being respectful or ethical are important. To take a
simple example, consider dress codes. You may work in an environment where a range of
formality is acceptable; but you still need to decide where on such a scale you feel you
should be seen to be.
You should be clear what is right for you and, to make analysis more manageable, it may
help to see your list grouped into three categories:
19
• Your inherent qualities: those that shine through and need no great attention
(such may be an ongoing part of your work and always in evidence)
• Qualities that do need acquiring or could use some strengthening (for example, if
being a good communicator is important, maybe a useful first step might be to
improve your report writing style)
• Qualities that can benefit from some, what is the right word? – Exaggeration. This
last – exaggeration – is a valid technique, but should not be overdone. In some
professions extreme exaggeration is endemic: for instance many an actor has rued
the day they listed an ability to ride a horse or motorcycle on their resumes, and
have the bruises to remind them.
Making people aware of how you operate and what you have to offer is an active ongoing
process.
Three additional points may be useful:
• First, one caveat: do not overdo things here. You do not want a reputation of
being unpleasantly “pushy”. But this is not what is meant here. For example,
you might decide that being seen as someone who gives attention to detail
is important (maybe with certain people or projects). The way to do this,
or anything else for that matter, is not to say so, it is to show it. If this goes
beyond your natural tendencies then you may need to enhance the ability
and exaggerate it somewhat
• Secondly, you might also list and work on in a similar way characteristics that
you should avoid and be seen not to embrace. For example, few people appreciate
time wasters, whingers or people who spend half their office life engaged in
office politics or conducting private business on the Internet.
• Last, explaining what you are doing may avoid negative impressions or enhance
positive ones. For example, you might be noted as, Wasting time on the Internet
or you might explain that you are using your lunchtime to do some research
(valid research that is, the Internet contains many unsuitable distractions – some
of which have cost people their jobs).
Overall managing the necessary working relationships with anyone with whom you liaise
or collaborate, is something that takes place largely through other things that are going on
rather than primarily being an activity in its own right.
20
For example, in communications, projects and meetings you may need not only to do these
things, but also to add an element of activity into the process that manages relationships
as well as the circumstance.
All of this is perhaps a lengthy way of saying that any influence you want to bring to bear
on your peers will be more likely to be accepted when you are well regarded. Consider
some examples of things you might want to change to reduce pressure, and start with
something simple:
• Interruptions: you want to be able to say the equivalent of: Back off and let me
get on and for the interrupter to understand
• Deadlines: when what you have to do is dependent on others doing their bit
first, or alongside you, when you chase they must feel that you are not someone
they can easily let down
• Cooperation: two heads are often better than one and a joint, or multiple,
approach to reducing pressure may be useful.
Dealing with bosses

Dealing with your line manager, and others more senior than you, is also varied by their
impression of you. The detail of this is perhaps more important than that with your peers
and again stands some analysis.
There is no better way of getting on with your boss than being effective, and practices
which indicate that this is likely and that you are a force to be reckoned with rather than
a mere minion, help make the process work well. The following list is typical of the kinds
of thing you can do to create a position from which you can best influence things and
where you are least likely to be put under unfair pressure. It is no doubt incomplete and
could be added to. What you need to do is decide upon the specific approaches that are
most likely to help you in the situation in which you work: adopting, adapting or adding
ideas and methodology to produce a mix that works for you. For example:
• Make yourself indispensable: especially by doing what other people do poorly or

dislike and avoid (this refers to meaningful tasks, do not characterise yourself as
the departmental skivvy)
• Make your boss look good: do some public relations for them and the department,
it will be appreciated and they may feel they owe you a favour
• Go the extra mile: do more than you are asked and always be willing to help in a
crisis
21
• Keep your ear to the ground and be a useful source of information: this can begin
to work in the reverse direction: your boss asks you what you know about
something or starts to regard, and describe you as, an expert on something
• Work effectively when you are not supervised: if the boss is away or just leaving
you alone for a while, make sure that things go well, deadlines are met and
nothing creates problems for their return
• Reflect your boss’s goals: your work should complement, and extend, their own
• Note extensions to your work: when you go further than your job description,
make a note, if things take you into new and desirable areas then they may
be topics worth discussing at your next appraisal. Job descriptions should not
be written in tablets of stone, they can be amended and your job can grow
with them. Equally do not refuse or kick up a fuss about anything that has the
temerity to go over the edge of your prescribed list of responsibilities; some
flexibility is appreciated
• Volunteer: both for things that your boss or others are seeking to allocate, but do
so carefully – there are what I call black hole jobs that are simply guaranteed to
cause you grief. For example, volunteer to organise the firm’s annual Christmas
party and, however you do it, you will never please everyone
• Be a team player: that means both playing your part and working well with
others and, if necessary, encouraging them to do the same
• Avoid office politics: well, by all means keep your ear to the ground and tap
in to the office grapevine – but it is dangerous to be seen as the originator or
propagator of rumours, especially if they prove unfounded
• Be honest: white lies are accepted sometimes, otherwise there are no grades of
honesty – you can find yourself honest or fired (and the latter would certainly
put you under pressure)
• Be a good collaborator: your work may involve you with many other people in
ways that are easy or anything but easy (you may also like them or not), but it
is sensible to make the best of it and useful to be known as one who does so
• Match your way of working to job and career: you have to keep an eye on what
you need to do to be effective in your current job and link to your private career
plan too (see the book Detox your career also in this series). Sometimes objectives
will clash and you need to watch the balance carefully
• Be positive: even in dealing with problems the best approach is usually one of
optimism; doomsayers are not usually appreciated and you rarely get any thanks
or kudos for saying, I told you so
• Watch the big picture: this is prime characteristic of senior people; do not get
swamped by and lost in details to the exclusion of all else
• Watch what works and who succeeds in your organisation: and learn from it
22
• Develop your skills: always push for the training you think you deserve and
which will be useful, even if it is difficult to get, the new or improved skills
you ultimately acquire will be appreciated and make you better able to
take on new things
• Be generous to others: sharing knowledge and passing on skills will do you more
good than the reverse, even though this may seem to produce some momentary
advantage. Returned favours may help reduce pressure
• Look the part: corporate culture affects what this means; always look efficient
• Deliver: hit deadlines, keep promises and do what you say you will do.
Never agree a deadline you know you cannot meet; nothing is more
guaranteed to put you under pressure. Most people will, if they are honest,
admit to doing this. Avoid
• Make suggestions: especially those that positively affect costs, profits or improve
operations in some way (but do not, of course, expect them all to be taken up)
• Break bad news sooner rather than later: if you have to tell the boss something
that makes for difficulties, do not compound the problem by delay, which may
just increase the pressure and make a resolution more difficult and be another
direct route to pressure
• Keep any information you use (or supply to others) up to date: any shortfall here
can quickly make you look inefficient
• Ask for feedback: from anyone and everyone whose opinion might help you, and
do not reject it out of hand if it is not what you want
• Be courteous where appropriate: if things are done which do help you, thank
people and do so sincerely
• Do not make enemies: it may be unavoidable occasionally, but remember that you
never know when a good relationship with someone may be useful in the future;
if you burn your bridges in unthinking temper you may rue the day later
• Take initiatives: if you never stick your neck out you remove the possibility of
chances to shine
• Be enthusiastic: if you want to push a line, an idea or whatever you must have
the courage of your convictions. If you clearly believe it is important it is easier
to persuade others to share your view; enthusiasm is infectious
• Be responsible: for everything you do (including occasionally what you do that is
wrong).
All the above, and more no doubt, have a real practical edge. If all your efforts to succeed
are seen as toadying or as attempts simply to curry favour, and thus as being for your own
purposes rather than to help overall departmental or corporate success, then they are apt to
backfire, but handle all this right and when you want to counter undue pressure you will
be listened to and taken seriously.
23
But there is one more thing to note here. The best route to change is not to complain. This
may well be the instinct but usually just makes matters worse, rather you need to persuade.
Having a good boss is something as much created by you as it is simply a fact of life. And
make no mistake, a good boss is probably the most positively influential resource anyone can
have. Getting the relationship with your boss right can make the difference between having
just a job, and a career that rewards and satisfies; further, of course, the right relationship
can ultimately benefit your boss too, improving both how they feel about their job and
what they can achieve overall. The process of creating a good relationship is not always easy,
though it repays the effort it takes.
All this helps create an environment in which you are unlikely to be treated like a doormat
and in which your views and ideas are likely to be taken seriously.
Next we move on and look in some detail at how best to communicate in a way that is
well designed to prompt action and change and thus allow you to reduce work pressure.
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24
PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE Communications techniques to prompt change
6 COMMUNICATIONS TECHNIQUES
TO PROMPT CHANGE
I am not arguing with you – I am telling you.
– James Whistler
I like the quotation above, but it is not a literal guide here, rather indicating what not to
do; telling people, particularly people in authority that you want less pressure is unlikely
to be enough. Changing things to reduce undue pressure is partly, as has been said, down
to you, and you may need to tell yourself to change the way you work. Telling others may
not work so well, especially if those that need to make changes are senior to you. You need
to persuade, you may need to negotiate and you almost certainly need to be persistent as
many such changes will not be made instantly. You also need to start the process in good
time, waiting until the pressure is a real threat to results may mean it is too late for a
solution that you will really feel is better. Here we review these three practical routes to
lowering the pressure.
Being persuasive
Let us see what communications techniques help with this sort of thing. Two things are
important here:
• Do not just ask, persuade

• Do not give up, persist
Persuasion requires particular skills and we are all only too aware sometimes that we have
deployed them inadequately. As Olin Miller said: When a person says “I’ll think it over and
let you know” – you know. Persuasive techniques are investigated over the next few pages,
then we consider persistence.
What happens when you ask your manager to agree to, say, push a deadline back? Assuming
they consider it at all then it helps in deciding how to put the case if you understand
something of the way their mind works. The psychology here is well understood, and the
following paraphrases approaches originally set out by psychologists in the United States.
In making a decision, everyone effectively moves through several stages of thinking, which
broadly runs as follows, people say to themselves:
25
• I matter most. Whatever you want me to do, I expect you to worry about how
I feel about it, respect me and consider my needs and how it will affect me
• What are the merits and implications of the case you make? Tell me what
you suggest and why it makes sense (the plusses) and whether it has any snags
(the minuses) so that I can weigh it up; bearing in mind that few, if any,
propositions are perfect and that I have to weigh the merits of competing ideas
• How will it work? Here people additionally want to assess the details not so
much about the proposition itself but about other areas associated with it. For
example, you might want agreement to prioritise a project with which you are
involved, allowing it to be completed well despite side-lining something else for
a while. The importance of the project might appeal, but when the timing is
coincident with something else, then if this is important also the clash might
appear to be a minus and, if the case is finely balanced, it could be rejected
despite the pressure of progressing both projects in parallel
• What do I do? In other words what action - exactly - is now necessary? This
too forms part of the balance. If something seen describing this book persuaded
you that it might help you, you may have bought it. In doing so you recognised
(and accepted) that you would have to read it and that doing so would take
a little time. The action – reading – is inherent in the proposition and, if you
were not prepared to take time to do so, this might have changed your decision.
It is after this thinking is complete that people will feel they have sufficient evidence on
which to make a decision. They have the balance of plusses and minuses in mind, can
weigh up the merits of the case and they can also compare it with that of any other options
they are considering.
Thinking of an old fashioned balance with plus and minus signs, of different weights, piled
on either side is a useful image to keep in mind. If you imagine two cases being compared
in this way – say postponing one deadline or maintaining two in parallel - it is perfectly
possible that both are good in terms of their plusses and minuses, but that one option just
beats the other when they are compared alongside each other. This emphasises the need to
put over every detail right and make sure you do not sell something short; one more, or
less, positive detail can sometimes tip the scales one way or the other.
Remember your suggestions often relate to other things; if a cost is involved, for instance,
on what else might the money be spent? And where will it come from? Remember too,
some choices are close run with one option only just coming out ahead of others.
26
It is this thinking that enables a decision to be made; and for someone to feel they have made
a sensible decision, and done so on a considered basis.
That said, what can you say about your plan or idea that will make it irresistible? The
details matter, but one technique is more useful than any other and is at the heart of the
persuasion process.
Persuasion’s magic formula

People do not agree to ideas or plans in a vacuum or just for the sake of it (and even more
rarely just because they like you), they sign up to the results of actions or ideas.
The key concept to use here, one taken directly from sales techniques, differentiates between
what are called features and benefits. These we can define as follows:
• Features are the factual elements of something

• Benefits are what it does for or means to someone.
Thus a crucial factor in achieving agreement is in talking benefits. You need to spell out the
advantages in specific terms, leading with benefits, describing and stressing those benefits
that make the strongest case, and then using features to back up the argument in a way
where they demonstrate how it is possible for there to be the stated benefits.
Because this concept is so important, let us examine an example:
Example: Imagine wanting to change a system of some sort (the details of it do not matter).
You are sure what you have planned is an improvement. It is less complicated, it can be
computerised (rather than being done manually), it is flexible and simple to administer.
Above all it is faster and will reduce the pressure of the total workload.
As you think it through, ask yourself: Are these factors features or benefits?
In this example, things like “being able to be computerised” are features; in fact they are
all features. What does “being less complicated” mean? It might mean less thorough. How
does running the system on a computer help? What does flexible mean for goodness sake?
It is a useful umbrella term perhaps, but what it implies needs spelling out to give the case
weight. It is always dangerous to assume that people will read between the lines inferring
exactly the same as you do from a brief description; they are unlikely to do so and the
case can be stillborn as a result. Even good sounding words like simple can fail to do a case
27
justice. If simple means that it can be implemented at lower cost by a lower level of staff,
saving money and freeing up other people for more important tasks – that needs saying,
and doing so is far more powerful, certainly than just saying in some way that it will “be
easier for me”.
As a simple way of ensuring that you are focusing on the real benefit when you describe
something, always pose a question after it: asking what can follow the phrase “which means
that…” Thus if you are being too simplistic and saying something, as above, like “simple”
adding “which means that” and completing the thought tends to take you to a better, and
more persuasive, description.
Using this concept systematically can pay dividends. In fact what it means is that rather
than simply setting out what you want, which is a one way process, you are approaching it
in a way that is structured to assist the other person’s decision making. Being persuasive can
be defined literally as: Helping someone to make a decision. Indeed this is a good way of
looking at it. Such an approach is less likely to appear pushy, more likely to be felt to be
sensitive to their situation – and thus more likely to get agreement.
Benefits, which should come first and lead the argument, come in various forms, so in
searching for points to strengthen a case look for benefits:
• To your manager in their work capacity: for example a benefit that means
that adopting your idea will improve the quality of the work done in their
department
• To your manager as an individual: here a benefit might be something that makes
their life easier, reduces worry, or gives them more time personally (as having
well-motivated staff does)
• To other people (with whom your manager is concerned): this might mean
something that affects their own boss or others in the immediate department or
around the organisation – and certainly, in this context, includes you and any
colleagues that are under pressure.
These are not mutually exclusive. You can look for and use a “package” of benefits from all
the above categories to make a case; bear in mind the analogy of the balance. Every case
you make needs to be both:
• Sufficiently comprehensively described to have weight and credibility; so the detail

is important (especially, as has been said, if you are putting something up that
may compete with other ideas and suggestions)
28
• Manageable in the sense that it can be presented succinctly in a reasonable

amount of time, and so that making a decision does not become
overcomplicated (and likely to be put off) because of the sheer amount of facts
to be considered. Note: As a rule of thumb, this implies making five or six main
points about something. Each may have an amount to be said about it, but
the overall number seems manageable; too few will seem to make the case lack
substance, too many can overpower and confuse.
Senior people expect no less if they are to judge something presented to them. Select the right
benefits, describe them clearly and you have the basis of a strong case and make agreement more
likely. But even the right, well-described benefits may not do the job; other elements are
also important. Two further factors can be used to add additional weight to your argument:
1. Proof: that is any evidence other than or as well as what you say (after all your
view might just prompt the feeling that, being in favour of something, you are
bound to push it). Thus proof might be someone else’s opinion, the results of
a test or trial, facts and figures from past experience and so on. Think in terms
of sales and how different it is if a car salesman tells you: This model will do 50
miles per gallon, rather than: The test conducted by “What Car” magazine showed
that this model will do 50 miles per gallon. The latter is surely always going to
be more credible. Adding proof, even just a reminder of a previous change that
went well, boosts the credibility of a case, and also shows that you have taken
trouble to assemble the case. Again much here is preventing what you ask from
sounding only like a complaint
2. Thoroughness: and this is meant is the broadest sense. An argument carries
more weight when your manner is appropriate. When manifestly you have done
your home-work, when accompanying facts and figures are well explained and
may be well documented, and when the way you put over your case clearly
involves good preparation and presentation – all this helps. For example, the
poor quality of a presentation or report, memo or whatever may condition the
response. A reaction may begin and end as: What a rotten case/presentation, I
bet it was a stupid idea anyway. It is unpleasant to be left in a position where a
negative response has been prompted and where you can only sadly conclude
that you allowed it to go by default by failing to present it in the way needed
to make it successful. More so if you admit doing so was unnecessary. Even
when you are under pressure and time is of the essence always do justice to your
requests, and give all your arguments suitable weight.
Even the best assembled case may be side-lined, or at least put on hold. In that event you
need to recognise that some things cannot be achieved – agreed – in a moment, they need
an element of campaign to them. Furthermore pressure of work may prompt you to give
up too easily; don’t.
29
The power of persistence

Persistence at least should be easy (though do not become a complete bore by deploying
too many approaches), and it should never be underrated - as just one more attempt to get
agreement may be the successful one. It is an important technique. So, think about being
persistent, go on think about it, I really want you to, go on do it – read the next section
(then I’ll stop insisting). Enough.
The difficulties here are largely psychological. It is difficult when you have been put off
several times (Leave it for the moment – I can’t do anything until after the budget period
ends – He’s in a meeting) to raise something yet again. You find yourself wondering what
on earth you can do next; devoid of a good idea and wanting (if you are honest) to avoid
further rejection, it is all too easy to put off further contact until the moment has past
and it really is difficult, or even impossible, to do more. It is worth accepting that often
the only problem is the hectic nature of someone else’s schedule – you may not be the
only one under pressure! Your manager, or whoever, may not in fact be putting you off in
any permanent way, they are just putting off dealing with something now in face of other
priorities. So, if you have a case to make always:
• Continue contact until you are firmly told: No, and take everything else at face
value (so, if you are told – after the month end – assume it means just that and
plan to raise it again at the right time, better still getting agreement in advance
that you can do so)
• Ring the changes on method – e.g. send a note or e-mail, then telephone, then
raise it at a meeting
• Remember that some methods are better reminders than others (a telephone can
be forgotten in a short time and an e-mail can be deleted in a split-second)
• Find a creative approach if possible by making what you do unusual, unexpected
and thus more likely to be memorable.
Whilst too gimmicky an approach may be rejected, often a creative idea works well. So get
into the habit of exploring what you might do. As an example of persistence from my own
work, consider this incident. Following writing a short book for a specialist publisher, I
was keen to undertake another topic for them in the same format. I proposed the idea and
got a generally good reaction - but no confirmation. I wrote and telephoned a number of
times. Nothing. Always I received a delay or a put off (you may know the feeling!). Finally,
when a reminder of the possibility came up yet again from my follow up system, I felt I
had exhausted all the conventional possibilities, so I sat down and wrote the following in
“lonely hearts” style:
30
Struggling author, patient, reliable (non-smoker), seeks

commission on business topics. Novel formats preferred, but
anything considered within reason - ideally 100 or so pages,
on a topic like sales excellence sounds good, maybe with
some illustrations. Delivery of the right quantity of material  -
on time - guaranteed. Contact me at the above address/
telephone number or meet on neutral ground, carrying a
copy of Publishing News and wearing a carnation.
I must confess I hesitated over it a little (this was someone I had only met once), but I
signed and posted it. Gratifyingly the confirmation landed on my desk the following day (and
you can now read the result - The Sales Excellence Pocketbook: Management Pocketbooks).
Doing this linked to how I managed my time made completing the writing much easier.
Sometimes a slightly less conventional approach can work well, even with a boss. You should
not reject anything other than the conventional approach; try a little experiment and see
what it can do for you.
Some things need multiple contacts over a comparatively short time, while others need patience
and a resolution to raise something at the right moment. Persistence is a powerful ally.
Persuasion and then persistence make powerful allies. This approach needs a moment’s
thought, but is far more likely to achieve what you want than an outraged outburst, which
is much less likely to contain any logic. Achievement is its own reward: an arrangement
you suggest is accepted – and pressure reduces. Even as you go about this you can take
some satisfaction from knowing you are maximising your chances of success. The old saying
about battles and wars has relevance here: sometimes you need overlapping campaigns with
each victory making things a little better, even if there is always something else to go for.
You need to give yourself clear objectives too. A revised way of doing something may help
a bit, recruiting an extra person may do even more, sometimes you need a “first one thing,
then another” approach.
At the end of the day making a case in this sort of way must be done in parallel with
the job of doing your job, and getting the results you want (and that your boss wants). It
requires – necessitates – a range of skills, particularly in various forms of communication.
31
It also demands patience, persistence and assertiveness; and it needs some real care and
consideration.
Ultimately your objectives here are essentially twofold (and they overlap) to:
• Ensure you can do your job effectively – with excellence – and achieve, or
exceed, your targets
• Enhance your satisfaction from the job and the career progress you want to
make towards new challenges.
Doing a deal
Sometimes doing a deal is the only way forward, you cannot just ask for one thing to be
changed, more radical rejigging is necessary and both sides may have to compromise. Let
us be clear. Negotiation and persuasion are different things. They are certainly interrelated:
successful persuasion gains agreement to action (to buy perhaps), negotiation is concerned
with identifying, arranging and agreeing the terms and conditions that accompany agreement.
Agreement must logically come first. People do not waste time negotiating something in
which they have no interest.
The nature of negotiation

First, negotiation is complex. The complexity comes from the need to orchestrate a many
faceted process rather than because of anything individually intellectually taxing. But you
need to be quick on your feet to keep all the necessary balls in the air, and always see the
broad picture while concentrating on individual details.
Secondly, negotiation must not become an argument (or, an impasse usually results). But
it is adversarial. Both parties want the best deal possible. Yet compromise is essential: stick
out for the perfect deal and the other party may walk away. Give way too easily and you
will regret what is then agreed. What is sought is the so called win-win outcome, where
both parties are satisfied and, while neither may have their ideal “best deal”, they each have
an agreement about which they feel comfortable.
Thirdly, negotiation has a ritual aspect. A process needs to be gone through. It takes time
(which you may not have, but this is a classic case of investing some time to save more).
There is to and fro debate, and it must be seen that a mutually agreeable solution is being
sought. Too much haste, a rush for agreement or a take it or leave it approach can fail simply
32
because the other party does not feel that the process is being taken sufficiently seriously.
They look for hidden meaning, believe that something better must be possible and again
the outcome can be stalemate.
Because of these factors the best negotiators are careful to take the broad view, to understand
the other person’s viewpoint and what they are trying to achieve and why. Because the issues
and motivations of negotiation are complex, the way it is handled is important. In addition,
the negotiator who seems confident, dealing with all the issues logically and managing the
overall process as well as picking up the detail, commands respect. How do you get on top
of it all to this extent? Well, beyond having a clear understanding of the process, the key
is preparation. You cannot wing it.
First things first

The rule about preparation is simple. Do it. Preparation may only be a grand term for the
age-old advice that it is best to engage the brain before the mouth, and it may take only
a few moments so don’t skimp it – a temptation when you are busy and under pressure.
Whatever is necessary, it should always happen.
Clear objectives are vital. Simply saying, “I want the best deal possible” provides nothing
tangible with which to work. There is all the difference in the world between my saying
“let’s see if the editor will pay me more for my next article” and aiming “to obtain a ten
per cent fee increase”. Planning should be designed to produce the equivalent of a route
map, something that helps shape the meeting. With people it is just not possible to predict
everything exactly as it will happen. However, your plan should provide both an ideal route
forward and a basis to help if things do not go exactly to plan.
A final point may also encourage you to spend time preparing. You must appear well
prepared. If it seems obvious you are unfamiliar with the issues – more so if this is so –
then it is more likely someone will run rings round you. Preparation is the foundation to
success and insurance against being outclassed.
The core element

The core of the negotiation process revolves around what are called variables: factors that
can be dealt with in different ways to create various deals. Thus in negotiating a deadline
change say, the time itself is clearly a variable, but discussion may involve associated matters
such as timing, staffing; and more.
33
The overall rules here include:
• Aiming high, going for the best arrangement possible

• Discovering the full list of variables the other person has in mind
• Treating everything as a potential variable
• Dealing with detail within the total picture (rather than one point at a time
without reference to others)
Various ways of using variables can increase the power from which you deal. For instance,
you can prompt attention by offering reward: something you are prepared to give. Conversely
you can offer punishment: by flagging your intention to withhold something. Your case is
strengthened, given legitimacy in the jargon, by being supported by factual evidence, or by
the use of bogeys, peripheral factors included only to distract or seek sympathy.
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You have to rank the variables, in preparation and in fine-tuning as you go, identifying
things that are:
• Essential: you cannot agree any deal without these points being part of it
• Ideal: what you intend to achieve (and the priorities, because there may be more
of these than it is realistic to achieve)
• Tradable: in other words those things that you are prepared to give away to help
create a workable deal.
The concept of trading variables is key to negotiation. Aim never to give anything away.
Concessions (variables given away) must be traded – I can certainly make sure that you have
a first stage finished by then, but we do need to add a little to the costs if the whole project
is to be completed on time. In trading, the value of every concession must be maximised
when you give it – and minimised when you accept it. Thus saying: I suppose I could do
that, though it will make more work, but okay, makes it seem that what you are agreeing is
worth more than perhaps it is. While saying: I would never normally do this implies you are
making an exception in their favour. And saying: Well, I suppose if I do that you won’t need
to …, exemplifies the effect that the concession has for them. Clearly how such things are
said, perhaps incorporating some exaggeration, affects their reception.
Similarly in minimising the other parties’ concessions. These can be dismissed – Fine, now
next … ; belittled – Well, that’s a small point out of the way; amortised – I suppose that saves a
little time each month; taken for granted – I would certainly expect that; or otherwise reduced
in power by the way they are accepted and referred to during the discussion.
So, discussion has to be planned, directed and controlled. The confidence displayed during
it is significant (and links back to preparation). You must be clear about what you want
to achieve. If you utilise every possible aspect of the discussion and treat it as a variable,
and deploy appropriate techniques to balance the whole picture and arrive at where you
want to be (or somewhere close) - then you can achieve a reasonable outcome. Remember
the win-win scenario. The job is not to take people to the cleaners. Only being prepared
to agree something that is weighted heavily in your favour means negotiation may break
down, no agreement at all may result and pressure continues. Indeed, you must recognise
that sometimes walking away rather than agreeing something you cannot live with, is the
right decision. Even with someone over the proverbial barrel a widely skewed deal often
makes no sense. You need to think long term. How will screwing them into the ground
make you look? What are the future consequences? What may happen next time if your
case is weaker?
35
Added power
Do not underestimate the individual techniques that can be deployed. A confident negotiator
may use many different ploys to enhance their case. Some are simple. One example
illustrates: the use of silence, which many find embarrassing, to make a point or prompt
a response. Too often someone will ask something like how important is this to you? They
wait a moment and then continue – well, I’m sure it must be an important factor, now let’s
…. Such produces no real impact and, more important, no information. Wait, wait a long
time if necessary (try counting to yourself, a pause that seems long and unsustainable, may
be only a few seconds). But using – really using - silence is one significant ploy that can
help the negotiating process.
If you negotiate well you can have a considerable effect on your work load and time
utilisation. But negotiating needs care and consideration. Thinking about it seriously is the
first step to making a good deal. Okay?
36
PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE The value of support
7 THE VALUE OF SUPPORT

I’ll get by with a little help from my friends.
– Lennon - McCartney
People characterise the workplace and you can usefully think about who’s who and how
they can help (or hinder) as the advice and encouragement of others can certainly help you
reduce pressure. They can do so in three ways, by:
• Just being a shoulder to cry on, someone who can help calm you down
• Adding to your creativity: that is helping you decide what might help solve or
reduce a problem
• Sharing the load.
Essentially the categories of people that matter here are:
• Colleagues
• Your line manager
• Other managers
Let’s take these in turn.
Colleagues
Let’s get the bad news out of the way first. Some people will never help you. Remember (it
links to our theme) that the workplace is hectic (so they may not have time) and competitive
(so they may not want to help you, at worst they see themselves better off if you fail).
This needs saying, yet actually because most people need help to some degree sometimes,
and you are all thus as it were in the same boat, collaboration and good will are often in
evidence in plenty. First, consider practical and tangible help.
The key is in the fact that you are not alone and it may be that you can prompt individual
initiatives by offering help. Maybe someone is struggling with something that you regard
as entirely straightforward. Offer help, and perhaps even arrange it as a swap: “One gets so
close to these things you can’t see the wood for the trees, if I check over that report for you,
perhaps you could spend five minutes making some suggestions about the presentation I’m
preparing”. Even if you are terrified of making the presentation, you don’t need to say that
(though if you know the person well you might), but just when you are convinced that your
every planned word is useless it may be a boost to your confidence to have someone else
critique it and find it mostly fine. If they can help improve aspects of it, then better still.
37
This sort of collaboration is especially good for saving time (you can prepare that presentation
faster – and the next, having thought about it) and that, in turn, reduces pressure. Note:
your taking the initiative sometimes and offering help sets the scene for occasions when it
is you who need support and makes it more likely to be forthcoming.
Relationships with colleagues may just sort of develop: but can usefully be guided so that
they foster mutual support. Sometimes this may be practical, as with offering a better way
of starting a presentation, one that you find yourself feeling more confident you can make
go well. Alternatively it may be simply a morale booster. For example, in the film “The
Lady” which tells the story of the Burmese pro-democracy leader, Aung Suan Suu Kye
and her husband, as she is sucked into taking a public stand she must make a speech; her
first. Tens of thousands attend and, as she mounts the steps to the platform she hesitates,
pointing out to her husband that she has never spoken in public before. He directs her
up the steps with a firm “You’ll be fine”. And of course she was, though I bet those three
words were a powerful help.
Assistance of this sort, either just an encouraging word or sound advice that makes things
seem more possible and less worrying, works well. When it does it is easily recognised as
such and can become a useful routine, one encouraged by both parties. It is wise to regard
such things as two-way, which is why a swap arrangement is good, as you do not want to
become known as a nuisance: someone always wanting help, and perhaps help others feel
should not be necessary.
Secondly, whilst I prefer the practical approach I know that some people find there is
merit in just talking about things; being able to let out your frustrations as it were. Having
colleagues with whom this is possible can clearly make you feel better, though if it achieves
little else and takes time it can in fact increase the work pressure you are under. On the
other hand such chats can morph into something more practical, and if someone says: Have
you tried… then you may find you are on the verge of a solution.
Your line manager

While we have already seen that a many a manager is amongst those who need persuading,
there is more to say. Remember that mangers are responsible for ensuring that members of
their team perform satisfactorily. Part of that may be a checking on progress, but it should
also involve other things, primarily here motivating people so that they want to perform
well and developing them so that they can. Both imply ensuring that they are not under
unwarranted pressure.
38
A good relationship with a good manager is invaluable to your job satisfaction and ability
to work effectively; I would go so far as to say that if you work for the boss from hell work
may always be difficult, if not impossible. At worst you may resolve to move away from
such a boss. That said, for most people, it is worth taking an initiative to create the kind
of relationship with your boss that will be supportive and allow you together to create a
reasonable way of working.
There needs to be a sound basis – a routine and a structure – if such a relationship is going
to be constructive. This premise is easy to adopt, but then, unless your boss does all the
work and creates exactly what you want, it demands two things of you:
1. That you think the relationship through. You need to take the initiative and think
about what factors constitute a sound working arrangement. You can do worse
than list them.
2. That you make it happen. Again where necessary that you take the initiative
for creating and agreeing the appropriate basis, albeit step by step –
and making it stick.
Any shortfall here will dilute your ability to succeed; if you cannot get precisely the
arrangement you want first time (and this may well be the case), then you need to keep
on working at it.
Amongst the things that help this process are to:
• Adopt a day to day routine, especially with regard to how you communicate and
how and when you have meetings; this is an element of good time management
(something already reviewed as it does not help your confidence if you are
forever struggling to keep up)
• Ensure regular communication (of all sorts, but especially meetings) and ensure
you have sufficient time together to agree matters between you
• Make sure that project timing is agreed, and particularly that check points or
progress meetings are scheduled in advance (by stage if not by date)
• Agree also the nature and style of all the above: for example what exactly is a
progress meeting? How long is it likely to take, should it be preceded by a
written document of some sort and if so what level of detail is involved?
• Make sure that such practice relates appropriately to tasks (that it is what is needed
to get the job done) and to the people (so that both parties feel comfortable
with it)
• Address both long and short-term issues. Think about what is needed day-to-day,
right through to annual matters (like planning or regular job appraisal meetings).
39
It is important to relate all this to the nature of work and tasks. A progress meeting on
an essentially routine matter may not take long or involve anything complicated; though
it may still be vital to keep things on track. At the other end of the scale, a meeting that
is designed to be creative – discussion that aims to identify new ideas or methods – will
take longer and is also more likely to be squeezed out by pressure of time on matters that
somehow demand more urgent attention. The routine should help make things right along
this scale happen effectively.
Describing such a good working methodology is one thing, achieving it may well be another.
Certainly it will not just happen (unless you have an exceptional manager), or will not
happen consistently. So you need to be prepared to think it through, and see organising
how you work with your boss as something else on which you must be prepared to take
an initiative. Thus:
• Ask: ask that is for the opportunity to discuss things and have some
ideas ready (either this can be approached overall, or – better with a less
approachable manager – over one issue, a project perhaps, initially as a way of
creating good practice)
• Suggest: put forward ideas, offer suggestions, and use what other people (chosen
because they will be respected) do to exemplify your case. Discuss, negotiate,
request a test (plead?) – but get something agreed, even if it is at first a starting
point that you return to and refine later to move nearer to the ideal
• Action: take the initiative and act assumptively. In other words just do it. For
example, as a project starts set out a timetable in writing scheduling progress
meetings and send it without comment, put (or through a secretary get put) the
date in the diary, send an agenda ahead of the due date and appear ready for the
meeting. Taking such action assuming it is sensible and will be approved makes
sense, your boss may actually find it useful (maybe to the surprise of you both!)
and not only react positively, but also react well to similar things in future
• Match their style: finally, as you approach all this, bear in mind the kind of
person they are. What will suit them? Aim high by all means, but, if ultimately
some compromise is likely to be necessary, plan what you might do. For
example, attitude to detail is important here. Your manager may be a “put it
on one page” kind of person, or want every i dotted, and every t crossed. You
cannot just ignore such characteristics; a well-matched case has the best chance
both of being agreed – and of working.
Start as you mean to go on, suggest something practical, act to get it agreed and make it
work so that your boss will want it to continue. Success breeds success, and confidence is
fuelled by seeing the results.
40
Much here can be focused on reducing pressure, for example embarking on a project when
you have arranged some checks and opportunities to discuss it along the way is very different
to seeing the whole thing stretching in front of you and feeling uncertainty about it. All
the occasions when you cross paths will present opportunities for you to seek information
or simple encouragement. But remember that bosses want staff to be pretty self-sufficient.
Saying “I don’t know what to do about X” and asking for help may not go down very
well. Rather make suggestions: “I think the best way for me to do this is X” followed by
checking to see if they agree, asking for advice about one aspect of the approach, or both.
Make no mistake, a good on-going working relationship with your boss can act regularly
and in many ways to improve both how you work and how much confidence you have in
what you do.
Other managers
Similarly it is worth thinking about other people around the organisation with whom it
might be helpful – because they could provide help, advice or encouragement - to have good
and regular relations. Who is appropriate will depend on the position you have and the sort
of organisation for which you work, but some staff managers, a training manager is a good
example, are commonly useful. Again position what you do appropriately and so that you
are not seen as inadequate, but rather keen to learn, develop, get on and do a good job.
It can be useful here to make a list of all those you want to explore or maintain contact
with, testing out who proves useful and keeping a simple record of contacts so that you
establish a useful frequency (one that’s not too much for others) and know when to make
contact again. Regular assistance may be possible in this way, and if this becomes regular
it may also become more formal, as with mentoring (a concept perhaps worth exploring
separately – certainly if you have a mentor they should be a prime asset in reducing pressure).
41
PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE Afterword: you can make a difference
8 AFTERWORD: YOU CAN

MAKE A DIFFERENCE
The most successful people are those that are good at Plan B.
– James Yorke
Undue pressure in the workplace helps no one and nothing; indeed it can negatively affect
results.
It reduces quality, negatively impacts motivation, which in turn can make matters worse. It
has broader impacts too, for instance stifling the creativity that should help an organisation
thrive rather than survive. It is a matter people at all levels should be aware of and address.
Certainly if you are personally under undue pressure, just accepting it (except perhaps for
a short, emergency period) should simply not be an option. There may, sadly, be no magic
instant cure but I hope at this stage you see that there are ways of approaching the matter
that help. As keeping calm, resolving to make change – either to the way yourself or others
think and act – is so important, yet sometimes so difficult, let me conclude with an old
and traditional anecdote that I find contains a calming message as well as pointing to the
practical possibilities.
Dressed in traditional orange robes, two Buddhist monks are seated by a lake. The elder of the two
is on the receiving end of an outpouring of discontent from the younger one (the details of which
do not matter here). Pausing finally for breath, the younger ends with an exasperated comment:
“It’s hopeless, and I can’t seem to change anything”. His more experienced colleague asks him to
copy him. Slowly he leans forward, takes a stone from the water in front of him and balances
it on a rock at his side. His young colleague does similarly and looks quizzically at his elder.
“You see” says the older monk “what we have just done has made the whole universe different –
and if you can change the universe, then in addressing lesser problems you can certainly affect
change”.
One hopes that the moral was sufficiently strong for the problem then to be worked on
constructively and that change did follow.
Certainly in context here, constructively addressing the situation of working under pressure
rarely finds it intractable, at the very least pressure can often be reduced, but it does need
a calm, considered approach and a dose of realism as well, as it is practical approaches that
make the greatest difference.
42
PERFORMING UNDER PRESSURE Afterword: you can make a difference
So, whatever the pressure you are under resolve that you can make a change, approach the
situation systematically and pragmatically and, when you do, you will find not only that
you do make a difference – a reduction of pressure - but that results will be the better for
it as a consequence. So too will your state of mind and that alone should be enough to
make you address the problem.
And you know what? Though I did need to make some adjustment along the way, I
completed this text without great hassle and it was delivered on time. Phew!
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5 Dealing with problem people 19

6 Communications techniques to prompt change 25

7 The value of support 37

8 Afterword: you can make a difference 42

1 INTRODUCTION: THE NEED FOR

One thing predominates: people.

A second thing that seems obvious to list is time.

So what might make a difference? Several things:

• Keeping calm so that you give yourself a chance to change things

Discovering the cause

A calm, considered approach is necessary.

Finding a state of calmness

Techniques to reach and enhance calm

– Traditional business maxim

Consider a couple of examples:

The inherent difficulties

The ubiquitous meeting

Plan the work and work the plan

• List the tasks you have to perform

Staying “on plan”

5 DEALING WITH PROBLEM PEOPLE

Dealing with your peers

Three additional points may be useful:

Dealing with bosses

• Make yourself indispensable: especially by doing what other people do poorly or

• Do not just ask, persuade

Persuasion’s magic formula

• Features are the factual elements of something

Because this concept is so important, let us examine an example:

• Sufficiently comprehensively described to have weight and credibility; so the detail

• Manageable in the sense that it can be presented succinctly in a reasonable

The power of persistence

Struggling author, patient, reliable (non-smoker), seeks

The nature of negotiation

First things first

The core element

The overall rules here include:

• Aiming high, going for the best arrangement possible

7 THE VALUE OF SUPPORT

Essentially the categories of people that matter here are:

Let’s take these in turn.

Your line manager

Amongst the things that help this process are to:

8 AFTERWORD: YOU CAN

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