What if the greatest leadership edge today isn’t speed, decisiveness, or charisma—but calm?
In a time when change is constant and uncertainty feels relentless, calm has become one of the most underutilized leadership skills. In our webinar, Calm in the Chaos: 5 Science-Based Strategies to Stress Less & Lead Better, Executive and Peak Performance Coach Jerry Anathan shared transformative tools to help leaders stay centered, present, and effective—even when the world feels anything but.
This blog explores five science-backed strategies every leader can use to navigate stress, restore focus, and lead with greater clarity and intention. Whether you’re managing a team through uncertainty, juggling competing priorities, or simply striving to stay grounded amid constant change, these tools will help you strengthen your inner calm and elevate your leadership presence.
To go deeper, you can download the full Calm in the Chaos Leadership Playbook here for guided exercises, reflection prompts, and practical tools.
1. Name It to Tame It
“Awareness breaks the cycle.”
When stress strikes, your brain’s amygdala—the emotional processing center—fires up, triggering fight-or-flight reactions. This short-circuits the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for decision-making and problem-solving.
The fastest way to regain control? Label what you’re feeling. This process—supported by studies in affect labeling (Lieberman et al., 2007)—reduces amygdala activity and restores access to rational thought.
Try This:
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Pause and ask: What emotion am I feeling right now?
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Name it out loud or write it down: “I feel frustrated because I expected something different.”
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Identify the mental story driving the emotion: Is it true? Helpful? Kind?
Why It Works:
Naming emotions builds emotional agility, boosts cognitive control, and promotes psychological safety in teams. It’s not about suppressing how you feel—it’s about noticing and choosing how to respond. A coach can help you unpack the narrative and rehearse thoughtful responses for high-stakes moments.
2. Shrink the Cognitive Load
“Your brain needs space to think clearly.”
According to Harvard Business Review, we make over 35,000 decisions per day. Add in pings, meetings, and social noise, and your brain becomes a browser with too many tabs open. This leads to decision fatigue, diminished memory, and emotional reactivity.
The antidote? Simplify your mental environment.
Try This:
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Ask daily: What can I defer, delegate, or delete?
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Batch similar tasks to reduce task-switching.
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Schedule “white space” between meetings to process and recover.
The Eisenhower Matrix:
When everything feels urgent, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and reactive. The Eisenhower Matrix—a classic decision-making tool—helps you cut through the noise by distinguishing between what’s urgent and what’s important. Your brain can only process so much at once. The Eisenhower Matrix helps you reduce cognitive load by organizing tasks based on their true impact, not just their immediacy. This allows you to lead with focus, clarity, and intention.
Draw a simple grid with four quadrants labeled as follows:
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Brain Dump – List everything on your mind or to-do list.
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Sort – Categorize each item into one of the four quadrants.
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Act – Focus first on “Do” items, then plan “Decide” tasks.
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Clear – Let go of “Delete” tasks and delegate where appropriate.
Pro Tip: Make this a 5-minute daily or weekly ritual—especially during transitions or high-stress periods. The more regularly you use it, the clearer and calmer your leadership becomes.
3. Create Micro-Recoveries
“Recovery is where resilience is built.”
In a high-output culture, many leaders skip recovery and glorify hustle. But neuroscience tells a different story. The 4-Stage Flow Cycle—Struggle, Release, Flow, Recovery—shows that sustained peak performance depends on periodic resets.
Micro-recoveries are brief, intentional pauses that regulate your nervous system and restore energy.
Try This:
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Set a Cue: Identify moments of fatigue (e.g., after meetings).
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Pause for 60–120 seconds.
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Choose a recovery practice:
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Box Breathing: Inhale 4, hold 4, exhale 4, hold 4.
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Sensory Reset: Hold a warm mug, feel cool water, or tune into sound.
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Grounding Exercise: Name 5 things you see, 4 you feel, 3 you hear, 2 you smell, 1 you taste.
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Note: Scrolling social media or answering emails ≠ recovery.
Why It Matters:
Without recovery, the brain stays stuck in the Struggle stage, limiting focus and innovation. Just a few short resets a day can dramatically improve your clarity, creativity, and presence.
4. Anchor Yourself
“Focus your energy where it makes a difference.”
When the world feels chaotic, the brain tends to fixate on what’s outside our control—global news, other people’s behavior, or organizational change. This fosters helplessness and anxiety.
Instead, strategy #4 is about returning to your Leadership Anchor Triad: Environment, Mindset, Actions.
️ Try This:
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Environment: Adjust your workspace, turn off notifications, limit distractions.
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Mindset: Reframe stories—“This is hard” becomes “This is a growth opportunity.”
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Actions: Take one clear step aligned with your values.
Why It Works:
Anchoring to influence zones enhances mental boundaries, resilient thinking, and empowered presence. Coaching can help you identify where you’re leaking energy and build habits that align with your leadership identity.
5. Lead from Your Inner Calm
“Calm is not the absence of pressure—it’s the mastery of presence.”
In the heat of pressure, most leaders either over-control or emotionally shut down. But the most effective leaders activate their inner calm—a centered, emotionally-regulated state grounded in intention.
This isn’t passive—it’s powerful. Calm leaders enhance trust, foster clarity, and elevate team performance.
Try This:
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Ask: What would the wisest version of me do right now?
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Anchor to values when triggered.
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Use reflective questions like:
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“What energy do I want to bring?”
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“What matters most in this moment?”
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Why It Matters:
Calm boosts executive function, supports emotional regulation, and improves team trust. It’s not something you’re born with—it’s a trainable mindset. Coaching provides structure to help you embody calm consistently.
Webinar Recap: Calm in the Chaos
In this dynamic session, Geraldine “Jerry” Anathan redefined calm leadership with empathy, humor, and evidence-based coaching tools. After a brief centering exercise, Jerry guided viewers through the five signature strategies. Highlights included:
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A relatable story about how a concussion became an unexpected masterclass in mindful leadership
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Live coaching moments exploring practical ways to name emotions, use recovery techniques, and shift from reactivity to clarity
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Practical takeaways like anchoring your energy to values and controlling your inner narrative
One standout takeaway? Calm isn’t the absence of stress—it’s your power to choose how you respond. And that response is contagious.
Participants were invited to reflect, apply what they learned, and even schedule a complimentary coaching session with Jerry to go deeper.
Missed the session? Watch the full webinar below!
We Are Your Partner for Leadership Growth
At the Leadership Coach Group, we are committed to empowering individuals and organizations with the tools and insights needed to thrive in leadership roles. We offer a range of services designed to support your growth and development:
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One-on-One Executive Coaching – Personalized guidance to help leaders refine their personal brand and maximize their leadership potential.
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Team Coaching – Strengthen collaboration, communication, and alignment within teams to drive collective success.
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Leadership Training – Develop essential leadership skills through workshops and interactive learning experiences.
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Leadership Assessments – Gain clarity on strengths and areas for growth through proven assessment tools.
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Inspirational Speakers – Engage your teams with expert insights and motivation from experienced leadership coaches.
