Every human being on the planet finds themselves, at one time or another, in a stressful situation that they can’t escape. You know what I mean. You are in a meeting at work, and a colleague undermines you in front of everyone. Whoa! At this point, stress jumps on your back like a mad gorilla. What do you do?

Proverbs 12:16 (NASB) "A fool's anger is known at once, but a prudent man conceals dishonor.

We can easily say what we want to do. We want to pour a glass of cold water over their head or yell at the top of our lungs or at least crawl under the table and hope everyone just leaves the room. These are natural responses, of course, since our most primitive instinct wants to kick in – the instinct to survive. When someone attacks us, we want to attack or run. Those instincts serve us poorly in professional life. As the verse above says, showing anger (or fear or stress or annoyance) is dishonorable.

Learning how to manage stress in these precarious situations is key for career advancement. Here are three practical ways to find immediate balance.

Pray For Strength

In the split second it takes for our blood pressure to rise, we can also find peace in a simple prayer. “Father, help me to be calm,” is one prayer I offer up. This helps us not only rely on someone greater than ourselves, it helps us keep in mind that God is in control, all the time.

Centering

This is practice where you learn to become aware of your posture while taking a slow, deep breath. When frustrated, we tend to lean slightly forward (fight) or slightly backward (flight). God created in us the sigh, a way to help us automatically center. Trouble is, when we are in a tense situation, we tend to hold our breath. In that moment, breathe slowly and calmly, and you will find yourself begin to stand straighter and taller with confidence. The urge to strike back or run away disappears.

Slow it Down

When feeling the tension rise, make a deliberate choice to slow down your speech pattern. Yes, talk slower. What will actually happen is you will be talking at just the right pace. When stressed, we tend to speed up from the cortisol and adrenaline our brains start pumping through us. These chemicals are what prepare the body to quickly respond to stress. When you slow down your speech, you offset the surge of energy that often overacts.

James 1:19 "My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry."

Practicing the three techniques listed above allows us to hold to the guidance from James. As we are quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, we can show the righteousness of God to our colleagues. Not only does this shine the gospel light, it also fosters great relationships in the workplace and does wonders for career advancement.

Shawn Sommerkamp is a motivational speaker and Executive Coach with 20+ years of Fortune 100 leadership experience. He founded Motivationeer™ to coach Christian professionals how to use their career to glorify God and support local church growth.