Why Can't You Think Clearly Under Stress? | Nervous System Regulation for Executives| AI for Executives

Episode notes

Send us Fan Mail I'm Sahar Andrade, MB.BCh, a Neuroleadership Coach and Forbes Coaches Council member. Direct answer: yes, stress genuinely changes what your brain can access in the moment. Under sustained pressure, cortisol reduces activity in the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for working memory and complex reasoning. That's why capable, well-prepared leaders still go blank in the meetings that matter most. It looks like a confidence problem. It is actually a stress hormone doing its job on the wrong timeline. In this episode, I break down the mechanism and the fast, practiced way back to clear thinking. We cover the twenty-minute cortisol curve, why high performers are hit hardest, and the specific rehearsal that shrinks a ten-minute fog down to ten seconds.

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