The CEO's Guide to Stress

I've coached dozens of CEOs and been in the position myself 9x over.

Here's what I've learned about stress:

That flutter before a major pitch?
The heightened awareness during board meetings?

That's eustress, your secret weapon.

But there’s a dark side.

Most leaders aren't operating in productive stress.

They're drowning in the paralyzing kind that wrecks sleep and clouds decisions.

Quick test:

Does your stress sharpen your focus or shut down your thinking?

Let’s dive into how to take back control:

Eustress vs. Distress: Know the Difference

• Eustress = focus, urgency, heightened awareness. 
  
  It’s the pressure that comes before the puck drops or the curtain lifts. It fuels peak performance.
  

• Distress = overload, burnout, shutdown. 
  
  It shows up as waking at 2am, reactive decision-making, or spiraling into analysis paralysis.

Elite CEOs Know How to Channel the Right Kind of Stress

Less pressure isn’t coming. You didn’t become CEO to hide behind a desk all day, did you?

You need to harness the pressure.

Here’s how to make the shift:

1. Design for Flow, Not Chaos. 

Structure your schedule around high-performance windows.

Block time to prep for critical thinking, decision-making, and strategic work. Protect this time, ideally outside of your office.

2. Track the Signals. 

When you start snapping at your team, losing sleep, or feeling dread instead of drive, that’s distress creeping in. 

Don’t ignore the signals. Recalibrate.

3. Build in Recovery. 

Elite performers train hard. Elite performers also recover hard.

You need margin, solitude, and time away to stay sharp. Make it non-negotiable.

The Best CEOs Learn How to Use Stress to Their Advantage

If you’re chasing a stress-free version of leadership, don’t become a CEO. You’ll be miserable.

Pressure is part of the job.

The trick is to harness the stress that fuels performance, and eliminate the kind that breaks your body down.

Being a CEO is a lonely lifestyle. Having a coach with no agenda can be the solution you’ve been looking for, but only if it’s the right type of coach.

If you’re looking for an emotional support human, I won’t be that.

But if you want someone who only cares about YOUR success - then let’s talk.

CEOs hire me because they need truth without drama. Insight without fluff. Speed without recklessness.

They need a Trusted Advisor who is completely on their side.

When you’re ready to discover your genius, here’s how I can help you:

1. AI Readiness Houston. Join us April 2nd, 2025 in Houston, TX to answer the question - ARE YOU READY TO LEAD IN THE AGE OF AI?

2. 1:1 CEO Coaching. Schedule a no obligation first session to find your superpower, connect with your highest ROI activities, and succeed with less effort and stress.

3. 3:1 CEO Coaching. Embark on a transformative journey toward realizing your limitless capabilities, partnering with two other CEOs. Learn and grow together.

Go forth and scale,

— John Hittler