Hendrie Weisinger > Quotes

“I’ve done it before. I can do it again” is the mantra of this pressure solution.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“There’s no pressure. It is going to be fun, a great game, and I look forward to meeting the challenge.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Testosterone has another important effect: It increases levels of dopamine, the feel-good chemical in the brain that mediates the reward network. Pay raises, compliments, sex, experiencing any kind of success—all result in increased levels of dopamine in the brain.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Feeling challenged is an inherent performance steroid—your body releases more adrenaline than noradrenaline, which means the smooth muscle in your blood vessels dilate, as do your your lungs, and now you have more oxygenated blood going to the tissues that need it. Your body has more energy and your brain can think more clearly.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“These small wins matter more because they are so much more likely to occur compared to the big break-throughs in the world. If we only waited for the big wins, we would be waiting a long time. And we would probably quit long before we saw anything tangible come to fruition. What you need instead of big wins is simply the forward momentum that small wins bring.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“The philosopher Epictetus said more than two thousand years ago, “Man is not troubled by events but rather how he interprets them.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“But we now know that even small victories, or micro-successes—a productive conversation with your boss, or a positive phone call with a client, a compliment from a colleague or friend—can have the same impact. They stimulate the winner effect, causing the release of testosterone and dopamine, which in turn build confidence.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Next, think about likely questions or interruptions, and rehearse your responses. Then think of additional questions or interruptions, and how you would handle them.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“SHRINK THE IMPORTANCE OF THE PRESSURE MOMENT”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Individuals who can perform under pressure appraise the criticism as information that can help them. In”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Whether you come in first or last, you’re still my horse!”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“you believe that the only way to be successful in a pressure situation is to perform better than you ever have performed before—that is, to be perfect—you stop trusting your capabilities, and worse, you start doing things that do not help you succeed. You”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Time pressure may drive people to get more done, but it causes them to think less creatively.” This same effect can be seen in teams.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“By achieving these small goals you can use the winner effect to gain momentum on achieving bigger goals. Essentially you feel more confident.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Magnification often comes into our thinking when we become too attached to the outcome. While emphasizing the importance of a test or task might increase our effort, the extra pressure we put on ourselves typically downgrades our performance.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Your natural tools are your thoughts, physiological responses, body movements, voice, and senses. They determine how you handle pressure, regardless of your level of expertise, abilities, or good intentions. People”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Think of the high-pressure situations you’ve been in, and the times you’ve performed well. You were probably enjoying the moment despite the pressure,”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Rework the basics. Your initial presentation will result in a sequence or series of steps: To really know your stuff, change the order. Start with step 5 and work backward. Skip a couple of steps. Rehearsing the material in a different order helps to reinforce your knowledge of the material.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Acknowledging the experience, skills, and other positive qualities you possess is an effective way to buffer yourself from the pressure you face.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“When we engage in what she terms a “high-power pose” where our bodies are more open and expansive—arms open as opposed to closed across our chest, standing straight with shoulders back as opposed to hunched with shoulders folded forward, occupying more space versus less—our brain and body respond by increasing testosterone and decreasing cortisol. Testosterone levels go up by 20 to 25 percent, and cortisol goes down by 20 to 25 percent.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“To counter and prevent primal pressure thinking, you need to underexaggerate or generate thoughts that minimize the significance of the pressure moment.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“individuals who perceive a task or situation not as a threat but instead as a challenge, an opportunity, or fun are far more likely to perform up to the level of their ability, increasing their chances for success.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“teams facing significant performance pressure tend to default to high-status members at the expense of the most knowledgeable of the team members.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Ed Catmull says, “Toy Story 2 was the defining moment for our studio.… People and how they work together is more important than ideas. They [other companies] could copy our technology but they couldn’t copy our team.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“The fact is we each get multiple chances over and over again in life. Keep this in mind, and you will find your life less pressured.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“Like a beta-blocker, confidence acts as a neurochemical antidote that allows them—allows each of us—to move forward even when we are feeling the physical and psychological manifestations of pressure.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“In effect, higher testosterone and lower cortisol allow them to be the “calm person in the boat.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“time (and other) pressure might make you feel more creative, but it does not help you do higher-quality work. In”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“THINK OF PRESSURE MOMENTS AS A CHALLENGE OR OPPORTUNITY/FUN”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most

“In essence, Ian is flooding his brain (and his body) with chemicals; as Cuddy’s research at Harvard found, he is increasing his level of testosterone and decreasing his level of cortisol.”
― Hendrie Weisinger, Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most