Hi friends,

I’m writing this week’s newsletter from Denver Colorado. I’m here taking the midterm for my orthopedic fellowship program.

I’ve been feeling nervous and anxious this week as I prepared for the exam, but now, anxiety will not help me. Instead, I’ve used a framing method to turn nerves into excitement. This technique helped me avoid freezing while taking practical exams in PT school.

When humans are anxious, the body mobilizes molecules that increase heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate, and hypervigilance. Ironically, excitement brings about this same response.

I like to use this response to help me perform better. Using the natural stress response to improve my focus, alertness, and performance helps me shift from an anxious state to a state of readiness.

Nervousness is a normal part of being a human, but how you frame the nervous feelings is up to you. You can either let it overwhelm you, or use it to your advantage to improve your focus and performance.

Until next week,

Kevin