In Fight-or-Flight Mode About Your Career? Here’s How to Manage It

You know that feeling when you don’t get the job, you miss out on the university spot, or you hit a brick wall on a project you’ve been slaving over?

Maybe it’s a looming deadline that’s making your chest tight. Your brain suddenly goes into full-on meltdown mode. And it’s not because you’re weak or dramatic. It’s because, evolutionarily speaking, your brain thinks you’re about to die.

Why career stress sometimes feels like a life-or-death situation?

I’m not exaggerating - your primitive brain treats that email saying, “We regret to inform you…” the exact same way it would if you were starving, or being chased by a tiger. Heart pounding, stomach churning, tunnel vision — that’s fight-or-flight in action.

The problem? While it’s brilliant at getting you out of danger in the wild, it’s absolutely rubbish for making rational career decisions.

So, how do you handle it without doing something rash you’ll regret later? Let’s break it down.

Acknowledge the disappointment, the frustration, the sadness, mess, confusion or whatever else you feel. Name it. Let it be real. That’s your first step to not letting it run the show in the background of your subconscious.

This is part of the natural processing. Depending on your situation, give yourself a few minutes, hours days, maybe even a couple of weeks. That emotional fog will lift in its own time.

Your brain literally can’t keep you in fight-or-flight forever. It’s exhausting.

Eventually, it’ll run out of steam. Until then, your job is to not make any huge life-changing decisions.

Don’t quit your job on a bad day. Don’t sign up for a brand new degree at 2am. Ride the wave first. It’s going to feel yucky, heavy, uncomfortable - but it will pass. Once the intensity has simmered down, that’s when you’ll be able to think straight again.

Give yourself the space to just live, breathe, and process. Your brain can only sustain that level of stress for so long before it runs out of energy. Once it says, “Alright, we’re safe now,” your normal thought processes will come back. This could be a few minutes, hours, days, or weeks. When they do, you’ll naturally start to think clearly again, problem-solve, and find a new direction.

And it's a sign that you're in the game. At work, facing a setback isn't a bug in the system - it's a feature.

So, be kind to yourself. You wouldn't expect a boxer to get knocked down and immediately get back up without a moment to catch their breath. The same applies to you.

The modality doesn't really matter - what matters is that you physically burn off the chemicals that are making your brain feel like you’re in mortal danger.

Then, once you’ve moved, do something grounding - make yourself a cup of tea, scribble a few words in a notebook, breathe. Think of it as hitting the reset button on your nervous system.

Once the emotional storm has passed, you’ll move from “Oh no, everything’s awful” to “Okay, what’s next?” That’s your growth mindset kicking back in.

Here's the realistic part: people don't care that you were challenged, that you fell, or haven't yet figured it all out; they care about what you do with it.

Employers, colleagues, clients - they’re not keeping a tally of your setbacks.

They want to know that when things get tough, they can count on you to rise again and show up. That's the real test.

That grit, that bounce-back ability - that’s worth more than any prestigious uni name or perfect CV. That’s what makes people trust you.

Feeling overwhelmed right now? That’s not weakness - that’s your body doing exactly what it’s designed to do. Let yourself sit with it. Don’t rush the process.

When you’re ready, your brain will switch back on and you’ll know your next move.

And if you need someone to talk it through with, I’m here. Drop me a message, leave a comment, share your story. We’ll ride it out together.

How do you handle the fight-or-flight moments in your career? Do you ride it out, or do you throw yourself into action straight away?