The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.’
– William James

Chances are, if you’ve bought this book, you’re feeling stressed. A Productivity Ninja knows that stress in some form or another is inevitable if you’re ambitious and you want to get things done that really matter. Indeed, a good shot of adrenaline now and again can be a wonderful, exciting thing. However, what we also know is that stress is a barrier to the kind of relaxed concentration and Zen-like calm that we need for long-term, sustainable productivity. This chapter will open your awareness to stress and how to recognize what might be causing stress for you. We’ll go on in the next chapter to look at attention management and how reducing your stress will increase your attention. Goodbye stress, hello Zen-like calm.