Do you lose your cool when shit hits the fan? Incorporate these daily practices to learn how to be calm under pressure.

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Nothing good ever comes from a midday call from your kids’ school.

So when that number pops up on the caller ID, it’s an immediate sinking feeling that grips your stomach as you answer the phone.

On a random Tuesday just before lunch, we got the call.

My daughter Giuliana was having an allergic reaction. We’ve dealt with reactions before. We’ve even dealt with reactions at her preschool.

But now she was in a new school, new people reacting to the emergent situation that we are forced to trust dearly to make the right decisions.

Decisions that need to be made immediately.

Whether it be an allergic reaction to some tree nuts that another kid tricked your daughter into eating.

Or maybe it’s one of those broken limb situations.

Or anything in between.

When it happens to your kid, there’s another layer of fight or flight response that kicks in.

You are called into action and you must be decisive.

Being ready for these situations requires priming yourself and your mind.

In this article, you’re going to learn a few helpful practices to overcome crazy situations.

I’ll breakdown what I do every day to help prepare me for battle when shit hits the fan.

As a result, you’ll be much more prepared when things aren’t going your way to avoid hitting the panic button, freaking out and losing control (and your cool).

Let’s get into it.

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Being cool and calm under pressure can come natural to some. For others, it requires work.

I’m a firm believer that anyone can develop this skill to be patient in the moment, though.

It’s a matter of doing the work day in and day out before the crisis happens.

So you are sharpened, and your mind is trained to battle the craziness when the proverbial shit hits the fan.

As I’ve mentioned before, I battle with anxiety.

It’s that fight or flight response mechanism that is natural to human function. But, if that function never shuts off, it can leave you in a constant state of panic. Waiting for the next shoe to drop.

While this may sound like a great way to always be prepared, it is not.

Instead, this constant state of anxiety is more like the “boy who cried wolf” playing out in real time.

If you’re always waiting for the crisis to hit, you’re not necessarily going to be ready when that actually happens.

I’m never going to be the dude that posts about “10 tips to stop anxiety.”

That’s silly and foolish. And for people, like me, that deal with chronic ongoing anxiety, it’s rather insulting.

However, there are several things you can add to your daily practice to help tamp down that heightened state.

Doing so will make you much more present.

Much more likely to be ready for when real crises evolve.

So you can manage them properly and calmly without going off the deep end or lashing out at loved ones or even recoiling into a ball and disengaging altogether.

My Daily Practices to Prepare for When the Shit Hits the Fan

It starts with simple practices that can keep you calm under pressure.

For me, that includes a variety of techniques:

Meditation every day.

For 10-15 minutes, I’ll sit down to start my day and be mindful in the moment.

I’ve used apps to help with this, like Headspace and Calm.

If you are simply not a fan of meditation, I urge you to at least find some mindful practices that you can add to your day.

Simply being present while washing dishes, going for walks, and playing with your kids (instead of intermittently checking your phone) can go a long way here.

Journaling.

After my meditation session, I whip out my journal and set my intentions for the day, take down notes and channel some thoughts.

Some days this is a brain dump of what is on my mind.

Others, it’s more a diary situation where I’m just writing out my thoughts, concerns or worries.

And then there’s the opportunity to celebrate wins, really pick myself up and champion my progress on everything from parenting to business-related stuff.

Take time every day to develop this practice, it’s so important that I wrote a guide to getting started with a journal.

Cold showers.

Crank the water down to super cold and hop in the chilly H2O for 30 seconds to a minute, or even more.

Cold exposure is a fantastic way to prepare your body and mind to handle sudden stressful situations with better clarity and less anxiety.

Think of this like practice.

A football team practices all week to get ready for the big game.

You are practicing by exposing your body and mind to uncomfortable situations. It’s acute stress and anxiety.

While you are exposing yourself to the frigid temps, be present in the moment. Do not drift off to try and get your mind off of it (that defeats the purpose).

Instead, lean into it. Be mindful about it. And take nice, deep breaths to signal to the body that you are safe.

Deep breathing.

For a few minutes per day, I practice the deep breathing exercises of the Wim Hof Method.

Another example of priming the body and mind for uncertainty.

You are essentially forcing yourself to go into a state of troubled breathing or even hyperventilating.

Sounds crazy and stressful, right?

Again, that’s the point.

If you know how to do this now and tell yourself during the practice that you are safe, it’ll be easier to signal safety to your mind and body when shit actually does hit the fan and you’re called into action.

This is a bit more of an extreme practice for the advanced trainees of the group.

But once you’ve handled mindfulness and cold exposure, you might want to dive a bit deeper into the practices with the Wim Hof Method.

Just make sure you are doing so in a safe space (some people can pass out practicing this one).

Not one of these things alone will make me a Super Dad.

Nor will they prevent craziness from happening.

They certainly didn’t stop me from worrying about my daughter’s safety and wellbeing. But, they did play a role in helping me think clearly and help make decisions quickly.

In my daughter’s case, we decided to administer the EpiPen to help control the situation.

From there, it was a trip to the Emergency Room for evaluation.

She’s totally fine as a result.

And yes, it was still stressful. But, it could’ve been much worse.

Life will always toss craziness at you. Mindfulness practices won’t prevent that. They won’t prevent you from ever being anxious or stressed or pissed off.

But they can certainly help you see through some of those emotions in the heat of the moment to take action as needed.

Think of this stuff like training for a heavyweight fight.

A bout that you might never actually have to take on. But, you’ll be prepared for it anyway.

If you are a busy parent, and do not have some mindfulness routines patterned throughout your day, I highly suggest getting started on one.

You’ll eventually develop a little more grace, a little more patience, and a lot more sanity.

Strengthening your body and conditioning through weight training and cardio can help prepare you for extraneous physical exertions.

This applies to strengthening your mind through continuous practice.

Let me help you learn to create the simple habits to stay cool when shit hits the fan … 

I’m here to help you out. 

If you have any questions, reach out. I answer all of my emails at pete [at] petecataldo [.] com … Hit me up with the subject line “Shit Hits the Fan” and I’ll answer any questions you have to make this work for you.

Or you can hit me up anytime on the socialz on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

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