Put Yourself in a Pressure Cooker

Pssst, here's a tip. Do you want to squeeze everything out of life that it has to offer you? Do you want to grow to heights that you never imagined? Do you want to feel victorious when you look back on your life? Put yourself in a pressure cooker.

Pressure cookers cook food faster by using high heat and pressurized steam.   I relate that to life. At times, life will throw difficult things at you, but sometimes you need to look for the heat. We were not meant to live timid, mundane lives. We were meant to create, innovate, and experience. We certainly need periods of rest and relaxation, but after a while, that gets boring. Why is that? Because we are meant to be constantly growing and evolving. I don’t want to leave this world without having fulfilled my potential and I definitely don’t want that for you!  

Pressure cookers accelerate your learning

When you’re in a pressure cooker situation, you will accelerate your learning. I intentionally look for situations that will challenge me to grow. I constantly look for ways to refine my skills and craft. In a pressure cooker situation, something that might have taken you 5-10 years to develop, you might learn in 2 years. The pressure is very high, and it is uncomfortable, but the outcome is worth it.

These are 2 major formative experiences that changed me because of the pressure that I was under.

Becoming a Director at 32 years old

First, I became a Director at 32 years old. I was responsible for leading a business from end to end meaning that I had to make decisions on things like brand messaging, pricing, positioning, supply chain, and profitability.  If I am being honest, I was in over my head at first. But the pressure of the role and the need to deliver forced me to learn fast. There is no teacher like experience. Having to make decisions quickly and in sometimes volatile environments, made me improve my decision-making skills. I could have learned some of these things in other roles at a slower pace or where I was not fully accountable, but that would not have been the same experience. I had many sleepless nights and unbelievable stress, but I would not trade that. For I came out on the other side, a better and stronger leader. I can look back on my choices and reflect on where I made the right calls and where I made mistakes. That helps my conviction when I need to make tough decisions today.

Enrolling at The Wharton School

Second, was deciding to pursue my Executive MBA at The Wharton School. I am one month away from completing my classes and I can’t believe the person that I have become. Completing a program with a very rigorous curriculum and standards was extremely difficult. It was not uncommon for me to spend 20+ hours a week doing homework on top of my full-time job. Now, being on the other side, I see that the sacrifice was worth it. The program exposed me to new ways of thinking from my professors, my classmates, and simply by being in a new environment. I now view my career narrative and future in a new way. I view business and how it can be done successfully in new ways. Could I have learned some of those lessons in other ways? Sure. There’s so much you can learn through experience and time, but life goes by in a blink. Why not consider ways to accelerate your learning and impact?

Look for the pressure

I have seen colleagues and friends put themselves in pressure cooker situations in a variety of other ways such as taking on stretch assignments at work, starting a side hustle, or switching industries. The ways to challenge yourself are endless. The faster you learn and grow, perhaps you can monetize that and increase your income. Perhaps you can get a promotion sooner. Or even if none of that happens, you will continue to grow into the best version of yourself.

Look for the pressure, my dears!

Elisa