Managing Your Anxiety

by Harvard Business Review

Make anxiety work for you. Work is We race to meet deadlines. We extend ourselves to return favors for colleagues. We set ambitious goals for ourselves and our teams. We measure ourselves against metrics, our competitors, and sometimes, our colleagues. Some of us even go beyond tangible metrics to internalize stress and fear of missing the mark—ruminating over presentations that didn't go according to plan, imagining worst-case scenarios, or standing frozen, paralyzed by perfectionism. In fact, anxiety is the most prevalent mental disorder worldwide, existing at different levels and in different ways, depending on your genes, chemistry, background, environment, social network, and so on. But hypervigilance, worry, and catastrophizing don't have to hold you back at work. When channeled thoughtfully, anxiety can motivate us to be more resourceful, productive, and creative. It can break down barriers and create new bonds with our colleagues. Managing Your Anxiety will help you distinguish stress from anxiety, learn what anxiety looks like for you, understand it, and respond to it with self-compassion at work. With the latest psychological research and practical advice from leading experts, you'll learn how to recognize how your anxiety manifests itself; manage it in small, day-to-day moments and in more challenging times; experiment and find a mindfulness practice that works for you; and build a support infrastructure to help you manage your anxiety over the long term. How to be human at work. The HBR Emotional Intelligence Series features smart, essential reading on the human side of professional life from the pages of Harvard Business Review . Each book in the series offers proven research showing how our emotions impact our work lives, practical advice for managing difficult people and situations, and inspiring essays on what it means to tend to our emotional well-being at work. Uplifting and practical, these books describe the social skills that are critical for ambitious professionals to master.

Genres: Nonfiction, Psychology, Self Help

160 pages, Hardcover

Published April 23, 2024

Reviews

[Iciar Lopez]

Buenos tips, aunque un poco repetitivo. Lo recomendaría para quien no haya tenido contacto con la gestión de la ansiedad y mindfulness previamente.

[mars]

3.5 stars.
Hmmm seems very surface level advice but is definitely helpful if you’ve never heard of these techniques before. I saw this in the bookstore with a friend and it seemed like a great read as medical students hahahah I think it definitely works better as a hard copy rather than audiobook, and would be beneficial to reread every now and then.

[Akshay]

Managing Your Anxiety from the HBR Emotional Intelligence Series

“You can’t eliminate anxiety — but you can manage it so it doesn’t manage you.”

Managing Your Anxiety, curated by the Harvard Business Review, is a concise yet powerful addition to the HBR Emotional Intelligence Series. It gathers evidence-based articles from psychological and workplace thought leaders to offer real-world advice on how to recognize, understand, and productively manage anxiety — especially in high-stress professional environments.

Structure and Approach

The book is structured as a collection of essays, each offering a different lens on anxiety — from the physiological roots of the emotion to strategic coping mechanisms that can be practiced daily. The diversity of voices — psychologists, executive coaches, researchers — adds richness to the conversation and ensures that the advice is actionable and backed by science.

Core Topics Covered Understanding the Science: Essays explain the biological origins of anxiety and how it affects decision-making and leadership. Personal Coping Strategies: Simple practices like deep breathing, cognitive reframing, mindfulness, and sleep hygiene are explored in-depth. Workplace Integration: Several chapters focus on managing anxiety in professional settings — such as before giving presentations, navigating uncertainty, or managing team conflicts. Major Takeaway

The central message of the book is this:
“Anxiety is not the enemy — avoidance is.”
Suppressing or ignoring anxiety only strengthens it. The key lies in acknowledging your emotions without letting them control your actions. Through awareness and routine self-care, anxiety can be transformed from a paralyzing force into a signal for growth, preparation, and change.

Accessibility and Tone

The tone of the book is professional yet approachable. It avoids jargon and remains focused on practicality. Whether you're a team leader, entrepreneur, or early-career professional, this book is meant to be applied, not just read. It is also brief enough to serve as a reference you can revisit in times of stress.

Comparison to Similar Works

Managing Your Anxiety stands apart from more therapeutic or clinical anxiety texts (such as those by Dr. Judson Brewer or Dr. Claire Weekes) by staying rooted in organizational life. Compared to books like Dare to Lead by Brené Brown, it is more tool-driven and less anecdotal.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (4 out of 5 glowing stars)

Recommended for:

Leaders and managers under pressure Anyone seeking daily anxiety management strategies

[Shruti Chhabra]

I picked up this book at Bengaluru airport after dropping my daughter off at college. Far, far away from home for the first time, I was grappling with a mix of emotions-happiness for her new journey and overwhelming concern for her well-being. I opened the book on the plane, hoping to find some solace, but the turbulence only added to my anxiety, forcing me to close it after just 25 pages.
I totally forgot about the book once I was home, only to find it on the long weekend.
This book helps you use self-compassion and mindfulness to fight the symptoms. It also helps to distinguish stress from anxiety. It allows you to find your path through life's surroundings, enabling you to move forward more comfortably and confidently.
This volume comprises the work of:
Alice Boyes
Judson Brewer
Rasmus Hougaard
Jacqueline Carter
It is a small book that I found rather interesting, as it offers practical tips for day-to-day use. The book doesn't provide theoretical concepts, but practical strategies that can be easily implemented in life. There are a few takeaways I found from the book that I would like to share with you.

*Stress most of the time is the response to an external trigger, whether acute or chronic.

*An optimal amount of stress is needed for peak performance. Too little stress can be a reason for low performance, while too much stress will cause the fight or flight response.

*Anxiety is triggered by the internal, whether it be excessive thoughts about judgments of the past, worries of the future, and so on.

Personally, I found that when I listened to my anxiety instead of trying to suppress it, I was able to break the vicious cycle of pain and move towards a more peaceful state of mind.

*When someone you know is anxious, it's crucial to validate and listen instead of dismissing or offering a solution. This act of validation can make a significant difference in their experience of anxiety, and it's a powerful way to show your support.

*Anxiety is driven by uncertainty.

*When you are uncertain or fearful, imagine the best-case scenario instead of the worst-case scenario. What would be the positive possibilities and outcome?

*Indulging in physical activities is an excellent distraction from anxiety.

*It is proven in the research that worrying and narrowing the focus make it difficult to find a solution.

*Worrying not only burns us out but also makes us feel more anxious.

*Use gratitude as a powerful tool to offset uncertainty and anxiety. When you focus on the things you can be grateful for, the perspective shifts and helps cultivate a more positive mindset.

*Gratitude is an emotion that grounds us and drowns out the negative mindset that anxiety engenders.

*Those with high levels of gratitude have low levels of resentment and envy.
We should all read this book at least once.

[Jeffrey Bush]

I enjoyed this because it was concise and offered some good thoughts. Below are some of my personal takeaways:



Stress is a response to an external trigger, whether acute or chronic.

An optimal amount of stress is needed for peak performance. Too little stress can be reason for low performance while too much stress will cause fight or flight.

Anxiety is triggered by the internal, whether it be excessive thoughts about judgments of the past, worries of the future, and so on.

If we listen to our anxiety instead of shut it up, we can break the vicious cycle of pain.

When someone you know is anxious, validate and listen instead of dismissing or offering a solution.

Anxiety is driven by uncertainty.

When you are uncertain or fearful, imagine the best case scenario instead of the worst case scenario. What would be the positive possibilities and outcome?

Physical activities can distract you from anxiety.

Research has proven that when we worry, we narrow our focus, making it unlikely to find a solution.

Worrying burns us out and makes us feel more anxious.

Use gratitude to offset uncertainty and anxiety.

Gratitude is an emotion that grounds us and drowns out the negative mindset that anxiety engenders.

Research has proven that those who practice gratitude are happier, healthier, and have better relationships.

Those with high levels of gratitude have low levels of resentment and envy.

[Destiny Obasun]

Managing Your Anxiety by Harvard Business Review is a short, practical read that focuses on something a lot of us deal with, especially at work: overthinking, pressure, uncertainty, and the fear of not doing enough.

What I liked most is that the book doesn’t treat anxiety as something you can simply switch off. Instead, it encourages you to understand where it comes from and learn how to respond to it better. The advice around mindfulness, self-compassion, gratitude, and recognizing the difference between stress and anxiety felt useful and easy to apply.

It is also very easy to read, which makes it a good book to pick up when you don’t want something overly technical or heavy. At the same time, I did feel that some of the advice was a little basic, especially if you’ve already read several books about anxiety or mindfulness. I would have liked more real-life examples and deeper discussion in some areas.

Overall, this is a helpful book for anyone who wants a simple introduction to managing anxiety, particularly in a workplace setting. It’s the kind of book you can finish quickly and come back to when you need a reminder of the tools it offers.

[Kelevilin Kimathi]

Managing your anxiety w

In this fast paced and always changing world anxiety is the constant..worried you will not be able to cope..Additionally ruminating about the past also haunts us ..could I have done better..this manual provides a blue print on how to cope

[Lilia]

Komplexe Handlungen einfach und verständlich beschrieben. Um die Dinge so umzusetzen, wie es im Buch geraten wird, sollte man es sich häufiger durchlesen. Einfach nur um den Grundgedanken dahinter zu manifestieren.

[Anni]

While the topic is undoubtedly important and the content is clear, the advice remains foundational rather than in-depth, offering little in the way of new or practical utility for those already familiar with the subject.

[Sriram]

Was ok but was expecting more examples

[Jennifer Stansbury]

Standard anxiety helper. Good if you want cliff notes before diving in further

[Audrée]

Assez sommaire, mais tout de moins utile dans la vie de tous les jours.

[Stacie]

Quick listen. Great tips! Hello anxiety. Goodbye anxiety.

[Mahdi Rahimizadeh]

Human, inspiring, well and easy written.

[Czytane przeze mnie]

Ta część podobała mi się najbardziej, po prostu trafiła do mnie
[współpraca z Wydawnictwem OnePress]

[Alyx W.]

Yet another HBR thing aimed at neurotypicals who feel anxious sometimes. Full of the classic sort of "helpful advice" the worst roommate you've ever had would give you.

[Ayush]

An extremely generous 4 stars.

The chapters felt either unrelatable or that they ended right when they were beginning. I wish they were bigger.

[Sofía González]

Abran la página del HBR con navegación privada y lean todos los artículos relacionados a ansiedad que consigan. No need to comprar esto.