Many business owners and leaders don’t understand what stress really is and tend to wear it like a badge of honour. They’re driven, committed, and resilient, but at what cost? When asked “are you stressed?” the common response is “no.” If it is “yes” it’s usually because that’s how they are feeling in the moment.
What if the feeling of being stressed (or not) has little to do with how stressed you actually are, and that feeling is just the tip of the iceberg of the load of stress your body-mind is actually under?
The human stress response is an ancient biological function necessary for us to survive short term threats, but it is not meant to be chronically elevated over long periods. Understanding and effectively managing your and others “Stress-Load” is key to high performance for individuals and teams.

In this immersive three-hour workshop, we’ll unpack the real biology and behavioural impact of stress on performance, communication, and decision-making. You’ll learn how a chronically high Stress-Load affects your ability to lead, think clearly, and interact with others, even when you’re not “feeling” stressed.
You’ll also see how the cumulative stress of your team can become an organisational constraint if not understood, creating productivity and efficiency leaks that are hard to see.
Drawing on decades of experience in how stress affects human behaviour and performance, we will walk you through a fresh, science-based new take on stress.
Not theoretical fluffy stuff. The real mechanics, what’s going on in your body and brain, why it matters, what Stress-Load is and how to manage it before it burns you or your team out.
Some of you or your team may have already experienced some level of burnout and from our experience of working with thousands of people all over the world, it’s unlikely you know exactly how to prevent it happening again.

This workshop will show you how. This session is designed for smart, high-performing humans who want to prevent being hijacked by invisible pressure, overreacting to certain situations, and operate with even more awareness, energy, and a more balanced headspace.

Key Outcomes

• Understand stress like never before.
• Get under the hood of stress biology and behaviour, and see how it directly affects your focus, memory, mood, and leadership presence.
• Spot the invisible signs of Stress-Load Learn to recognise early cues of your stress-load being too high (in yourself and others) before it becomes an issue.
• Rethink resilience Discover why “just coping” isn’t sustainable and what true sustainable performance looks like.
• Identify and learn to manage your Stress-Load Understand your unique stressors, learn how to manage them for more sustained performance and have a pathway to a more balanced lifestyle.
• Improve your leadership under pressure Increase your capacity to respond, not react, especially when it matters most.

Who It’s For
This workshop is ideal for business owners, managers, and leaders who want to sharpen their human skills and lead with more clarity, calm, and confidence.

Hosted in Queenstown by local expert Drew Knowles www.drewknowles.com and supported by Laurel McLay www.laurelmclay.com, each workshop includes opportunities to network with like-minded professionals and share a relaxed lunch afterwards, because some of the best conversations happen afterwards over a meal.

Tickets: $49 + GST per workshop (includes lunch). THE HUMAN ALCHEMY WORKSHOP SERIES: REGISTER FOR ALL THREE This workshop is part of the Human Alchemy Series, a three-part exploration into the art and science of human performance.

Designed for business owners, leaders, and high-performing teams, each session can be attended as a powerful standalone experience or as part of a transformative arc.

Whether you come to one or all three, you’ll gain practical tools, real-world insight, and behavioural strategies to unlock performance, reduce friction, and lead with more clarity, connection, and impact.

Sign up for two or three and save:
• Two workshops for $79 + GST
• All three for just $99 + GST
You will be emailed your promo codes for your second and third workshops once you have purchased your first ticket.