Michael Clarkson

A presentation by stress authority Michael Clarkson, winner of a dozen national awards in journalism and author of eight books.

Used to be that we reserved our adrenaline rush for skydiving or fanatical support of sports teams. Now it’s accessible in our pockets and purses with smart phones.

Physicians and psychologists say we’ve become such news junkies that it’s affecting our mental and physical health, as well as our social and family lives, our studies, and even our work. Headline news can loop in our heads to the point of a migraine.

The resulting worry and stress over what we see as threatening issues can affect our emotional and immune systems, our decision making, our relationships, and our work.

Water cooler talks were largely about how the Blue Jays did last night. Now it’s about climate change, racial injustice, government intervention, WW III, Donald Trump, and Mark Carney. Issues can become contentious, even exaggerated.

Recent polls show that more than 80 per cent of Americans are stressed over their nation’s future.

I’ve been guilty. A few years ago, when my smart phone told me I was spending three hours a day on it, not to mention my time in front of cable TV news, I left it in the house and built a fort in my backyard, where I stayed, hibernating for a month.

If we are to avoid a “breaking news pandemic,” if such saturation is distressing, strategies are available. 

Michael tells us – in a funny and yet informative way – that we need to deal with an uncertain environment, sometimes by actually making fear work for us. Whether the change is organizational or personal, we can find opportunity and learn from it. And we can lead people through it.

Believe it or not, stress should be the greatest resource we have today, says Michael Clarkson. With strategies, we can dump needless fears and focus on the real ones in order to make worry intelligent and even productive at work and at home. Michael, a leading authority on fear and a recovering worry-wart himself, says that through strategies, we can actually harness stress as an ally in day-to-day life and even exploit it as an achievement tool – as a small percentage of high achievers do.

Using his award-winning experience, Michael shows us how to tap into local, provincial and national media to benefit your organization. A daily newspaper reporter for 37 years, lastly with the Toronto Star, Clarkson recounts his fascinating investigations of police, government and health issues and interviews with recluse J. D. Salinger, The Queen of England and Ted Turner.