Five years ago this month I started this blog with a Musical Monday Life Coaching theme. I’ll bring it back this week, as I feel that many in our nation are under pressure.
The hit Under Pressure, released in October 1981, was the only collaboration between David Bowie and Queen. It was written by Bowie and the Queen band members in an impromptu jam session in Switzerland.
Under Pressure was Queen’s second #1 hit in the UK. It received both critical and commercial success. In 2011, Rolling Stone ranked Under Pressure as the second ‘Best Collaboration of All Time.’ The classic song re-charted again in 2016 after Bowie’s passing.
By all accounts there was a great deal of ego in the jam session that gave birth to Under Pressure. The feeling of inescapable pressure was present in their lives as was the hope that love for one another is the way to combat it.
“It’s the terror of knowing what this world is about
Watching some good friends screaming ‘Let me out’
Pray tomorrow brings me higher
Pressure on people, people on streets”
--David Bowie & Freddie Mercury/Queen, Under Pressure
These lyrics could certainly have been written today. We live in highly uncertain times. The Pandemic and its lingering economic effects, the war in Ukraine, and devastating mass shootings in cities across the US have caused many to feel under pressure. What will the future hold?
One strategy to cope when feeling under pressure is to control what you can control, which includes positive change. Setting a goal and taking steps to achieve your desired result is a way to focus on positive outcomes. While there is much uncertainty in the world, we are all capable of creating positive change. Focusing inward on change is certainly within our control.
Is it time to… consider a new career, get organized, plan for retirement, start to travel, give back to your community in a new way, or learn a new skill? Do you need help to make a change? If the answer is yes, then consider working with a life coach to create and execute a plan to achieve your goals.
How do you stay positive when feeling under pressure? What’s your next goal? How will you achieve it?