When the stressful situation is less threatening the brain…
When the stressful situation is less threatening the brain and body shift into a different state: the challenge response like a fight or flight response. A challenge response gives you energy and helps you perform under pressure.
— from Failure & Resilience (Challenge/Failure/Perseverance/Accountability/Flexibility/Resilience)
In the book
That appraisal is not just a mood; it changes your biology. When you read a hard situation as a challenge rather than a pure threat, your body shifts into a different gear — one that gives you energy and helps you perform under pressure rather than freeze. And keep a sense of proportion about the whole subject: failure is, in truth, somewhat overrated as a catastrophe — most ventures that fail do so for several reasons, and the fall is rarely the simple disgrace it feels like in the moment. — Failure & Resilience (Challenge/Failure/Perseverance/Accountability/Flexibility/Resilience)