Module Content

Segment One - An introduction to the Comfort Zone Model of Stress

• Introduction
• An outline of the Comfort Zone Model

Segment Two – Stress from Underload

• Symptoms associated with "underload"
• Which people are most at risk from "underload"
• How people can be busy but still experience stress related underload
• The key to moving out of the underload zone

Segment Three -The impact of Different Size ‘Stress Containers’

• How people can have different sized ‘stress containers’
• How people can change the size of their ‘stress container’
• Recognising that individuals all have different limits, regardless of how well they learn to manage stress

Segment Four – The Comfort Zone and the Lower Part of the High Performance Zone

• The concept of the High Performance Zone
• Why it’s difficult to stay in your high performance zone
• The positive effects of stress that occur in the high performance zone
• How the top part of our high performance zone runs into the overload distress zone
• The implications of our peak performance occurring when we are highly stressed
• The link between our interest in sex and stress

Segment Five – The Top Part of the High Performance Zone – The Burnout Zone

• The concept of the Burnout Zone
• Common symptoms that occur in the Burnout Zone
• Why short stays in the Burnout Zone are not a problem
• The negative consequences of spending long periods in the Burnout Zone

Segment Six – The Impact of Stress on Performance

• The link between stress and performance
• The "I thrive on stress" syndrome graph showing
• How our peak performance occurs when we are highly stressed
• The reality of the old saying "the straw that broke the camel’s back"
• The huge drop in performance that occurs when people experience burnout or stress overload

Segment Seven – Coping with Jobs that often swing from underload to overload

• Making sense of the old saying that "if you want something done ask a busy person to do it:
• Examples within Fire and Ambulance Services
• Strategies for coping with jobs that swing form underload to overload