Subdue panic, a true enemy of success

November isn't a happy month for many first-year business students.

At the beginning of the month, all of the new concepts we've been taught are tested in a flurry of mid-term exams. As the month progresses, we have individual assignments due, team research reports due, and conferences on numerous business-related issues we're encouraged to attend.

Oh, and don't forget the summer internship hunt. November is when I'm supposed to set up informational interviews with executives, polish up my résumé and attend a networking event on Bay Street.

That's plenty to digest, but none of the textbooks or management theories have taught me the biggest lesson I've learned since enrolling in an MBA program two months ago -- a lesson I'll need to apply through the rest of this program and my whole working life.

The lesson: Don't panic. Panic is the worst enemy of anyone who wants to succeed.

And if you don't want panic to put you under, find sound strategies to deal with it.

I'm no newbie to the pressures of deadlines or the need to perform. Having spent years as a reporter in news radio and at The Globe and Mail, I rarely miss a due date. At times, I thrive under the pressure.

So why is the volume of commitments due over the next month causing me to sweat in a way I never sweated on the job?

Perhaps it's a result of the lifestyle shift from full-time employee to full-time student.

In the working world, I have always had an editor or other boss lingering over my shoulder, ensuring that deadlines were met. If they weren't met, I risked consequences.

In grad school, however, you really are on your own. There is no boss to ensure you stay on top of your tasks. Slacking off on a group assignment? Someone will cover for you and you'll still get the grade. Leaving something until the last minute? It's your prerogative. Don't want to hand something in? That's fine, too. It's your money.

But now, weeks of procrastination have come back to haunt me. And if I put myself in this mess, then I'm going to have to be the one to get me out of it.

Pondering the deadline pressure and observing scores of other students stressing out across campus, I began to ask myself a flurry of questions: If I panic, will the assignment become easier? Will the deadlines be moved back? Will I learn more? Will my performance improve?

No, no, no and no.

At that moment, I realized that if I panicked, I could be setting myself up for failure.

I also knew that I had to derive a plan to ensure I didn't remain overwhelmed by the workload.

I made a list of all the assignments due over the next week and through the end of the semester. I pulled out my calendar, rejigged non-essential appointments and slotted in work schedules for each assignment.

For the final step, I spent 30 minutes examining all of the upcoming assignments and putting together a preliminary plan of action for each one.

They were simple jot notes but, as each minute passed, I felt more and more confident that I'd complete all of the work.

My stress level plummeted as I realized that setting small, achievable goals for the near term will add up to successful completion of the bigger projects.

Seems I am on the right track. According to career placement firm AppleOne, it's not just workload and deadline pressures that cause people to panic. Procrastination is to blame for stress among managers and rank-and-file.

"They put everything off until the last minute, and then find themselves overwhelmed by the job they have to do," an article posted to the company's website reads.

The way to decrease the stress, it suggests, is to set so-called micro-deadlines for projects.

"It will make the entire project seem less daunting. Remember, little steps are easier than big steps, so once you have your plan in place, don't think about the mountain. Focus instead on the next plateau," AppleOne adds.

It's a lesson easily adaptable to the workplace.

Almost everyone operates under time constraints, and the ability to deliver products or services on deadline can make or break a company or your career.

If you fail to get the proposal done, the boss may not call on you again or a potential customer may turn to the competition.

Don't deliver the goods on time and you might have to kiss that fat contract or lucrative promotion goodbye.

That's why it's so crucial to remain calm, focused and have a plan in place during times of deadline turmoil.

Looking ahead at the week, my "plateaus" include researching and drafting the first chunk of a team research project, reading two text chapters, attending a résumé workshop and compiling preliminary research for another assignment. Next week has similar mini-milestones.

Looking at it that way, it actually doesn't sound that bad.

"I told you November was deadly," said my friend, a recent MBA graduate.

"You'll get through it. Just don't panic."

Richard Bloom is a former Report on Business writer who has enrolled in York University's Schulich School of Business to obtain an MBA. He will write regularly on the career lessons he is taking away from the classroom.