Thriving under pressure: Insights from a professional runner’s playbook
For a professional runner, walking up to the starting line for a world championship is far from a calm experience. That walk usually includes feeling your heart beating out of your chest, your stomach churning, and even some dizziness– all sensations of pressure and all normal. As a professional track and field athlete, TSI team member Savannah Shaw has lived this reality, navigating the pressure of competition, and discovering strategies that helped her handle the pressure. The very same strategies you can share with your students to help them handle the pressures of their own lives, from navigating FOMO to the pressure to perform academically.
As a recipient of three All-American honors, a competitor at a world championship, and someone who has experienced back-to-back NCAA national titles, Savannah is no stranger to pressure and faces it regularly while striving to be at her very best. “Although it often gets a bad reputation, pressure, when handled in appropriate ways, can actually fuel us forward,” Savannah says. She recently sat down with us to share strategies she has learned through her journey as a professional athlete that educators can use to empower their students to rise above the pressure and thrive in various aspects of their lives.
Ready? Set. Go.
Step 1: Celebrate your why
The starting point for handling the pressure lies in understanding the ‘why’—why students are in these high-pressure situations and why they choose to embrace them. When competing in track and field, Savannah shares that it helps her to consider her goals, how much she loves the sport, and the community she has found with people who run. With those positive thoughts in her mind, she focuses on how exciting it is to be able to do what she loves and make use of amazing opportunities to compete at a high level.
“Everything negative – pressure, challenges – is all an opportunity for me to rise.”
– Kobe Bryant, basketball player
Educators can encourage students to reflect on their own passions, academic pursuits, and the sense of accomplishment that lies ahead. By celebrating their ‘why,’ students can find motivation to push through moments of pressure, transforming challenges into opportunities for growth.
Step 2: Select calming activities beforehand
“When I’m getting ready for a race, I don’t just get my uniform out and stretch; I also prepare my nerves. This involves bringing my favorite snack right before the race, watching a fun show, or a few TikToks when I’m feeling especially nervous, and making sure I get to the track meet early,” Savannah says of her pre-race rituals. All of these things help her feel calm and ready to go during a high-pressure event.
Just as athletes have pre-game routines, students can benefit from pre-test or pre-performance rituals. Each student is unique in high-pressure scenarios but finding a strategy that works can make a big difference in mindset and even performance. Empower students to create their own pre-pressure routines and discuss the importance of finding activities that bring comfort and focus and suit their individual needs.
Step 3: Focus on what’s right in front of you
In her junior year of college, Savannah struggled with race anxiety. “Before races, my mind would go to all the ways the race could go wrong and how bad the failure would feel. Often these negative thoughts led to poor performances,” she shared. Through the help of a sports psychologist, she learned how to let go of negative thoughts and stay present during races. “One way I did this was by focusing on the task at hand, no matter how small, such as putting on my uniform, doing my pre-race strides, and catching up to the next group of women in the race.”
Similar to race anxiety, many students face overwhelming situations. Test-taking is one area of stress for students. To help students stay present, encourage them to break down tasks into manageable steps and remind them that every small accomplishment contributes to the overall goal. Whether it’s putting on a uniform, reviewing test note cards one last time, or addressing a social concern with a friend, focusing on immediate, achievable goals empowers students to conquer larger challenges.
Step 4: Changing your perspective: Good pressure
Even though stepping up to a starting line can be nerve-wracking, Savannah reminds us that it’s not bad to feel pressure– it shows passion for the event. In moderation, feeling pressure to perform in sports, receive an A on a test, get accepted into a college, and more are all ways we can level up and understand what we care about. Many professional athletes (like the ones quoted in this post) find that pressure helps them be the best they can be even when it’s challenging.
“I always tried to turn pressure into a positive thing because that just allowed me to really be able to get into the zone and focus on something at a super high level.”
– Michael Phelps, Professional swimmer
Research suggests that changing the way we perceive stress can impact our responses and performance. Instead of viewing a situation as threatening, consider framing it as a challenge. This shift in mindset can make a big difference in approaching high-pressure situations. By treating stress as a challenge, students might find themselves more motivated, focused, and better equipped to perform at their best.
Handling the pressure as a student
As Savannah shares her experiences performing as a professional athlete and her strategies for thriving under pressure, it’s clear that these lessons go beyond the track. Dealing with pressure isn’t just for athletes; it’s something everyone faces in different areas of life, like school, friendships, and personal growth. In the #WinAtSocial Handle The Pressure Lessons, we empower students to handle the pressure of their daily lives by finding their own path no matter the pressure from others. So, whether it’s gearing up for a race or prepping for an exam, we can remind ourselves and our students to embrace the pressure as a sign of caring about something and use it to do our best.
Always stay up-to-date with the latest and greatest trends online by subscribing to our newsletter where we talk about trending tech and social media news weekly! In the meantime, check out our Instagram and TikTok @thesocialinst for tips, trends, and highlights when it comes to social media.
The Social Institute (TSI) is the leader in empowering students by understanding students. Through #WinAtSocial, our gamified, peer-to-peer learning platform, we equip students, educators, and families to navigate their social world – in the classroom and beyond, online and offline – in healthy, high-character ways. Our unique, student-respected approach empowers and equips, rather than scares and restricts. We incorporate timely topics about social media, tech use, and current events that are impacting student well-being and learning. #WinAtSocial Lessons teach life skills for the modern day, capture student voice, and provide school leaders with actionable insights. Through these insights, students play an essential role in school efforts to support their own health, happiness, and future success as we enable high-impact teaching, meaningful family conversations, and a healthy school culture.