Looking for additional leadership opportunities for your new supervisors and aspiring and emerging leaders? Want to bring training to your team? Join us for our GROW classes, indicted on our Classes & Training page by the icon at left. These affordable courses are designed to help you improve your skills in areas like conflict management, emotional intelligence, delegation, communication, performance management, and more.
Overview
Leading a small business or team means making tough decisions every day — often under pressure and without a roadmap. Stress, overwhelm, and uncertainty can cloud judgment, trigger reactive behaviors, and get in the way of clear communication. This full-day, in-person workshop gives you practical, easy-to-use tools that help you stay calm, focused, and effective in the moments leadership matters most.
You’ll explore why the brain so often misfires during stress, but the emphasis stays firmly on what to do about it. Using simple, science-backed techniques, you’ll learn how to shift out of instinctive “survival mode” and into the clear-headed part of the brain where good decisions, productive conversations, and confident leadership happen. Importantly, you’ll learn how neuroplasticity can help these desired responses become your norm.
By the end of the day, you’ll be equipped with strategies you can use immediately on the job: recognizing early signs of overwhelm, staying grounded during conflict, thinking clearly under pressure, and approaching challenges with steadiness instead of stress. The personally helpful news is that challenges and discomfort can initiate the formation of desired neural pathways. These tools help leaders at every level create calmer workplaces, build stronger teams, and make decisions that move their organizations forward.
Participants will learn how to:
- Stay clear-headed under pressure using easy tools to prevent stress from derailing decisions.
- Recognize early warning signs of overwhelm and redirect before reactions escalate.
- Respond thoughtfully instead of reactively, even in tense meetings or difficult conversations.
- Communicate more effectively when stakes are high or emotions are running strong.
- Navigate conflict with more confidence, maintaining focus on solutions and outcomes.
- Recover quickly from setbacks and maintain momentum during challenging periods.
- Support team members by modeling calmer, steadier leadership in stressful situations.
The Science Behind the Curriculum
Developed by Dr. Niraj (Raj) Nijhawan, this curriculum has a proven track record of translating complex scientific concepts into straightforward tools that participants can apply immediately to improve their focus, resilience, and stress management.
The program’s approach combines the latest scientific insights with hands-on exercises, ensuring participants not only understand the “why” behind each technique but also have the chance to practice and adopt these methods. The curriculum’s science-backed strategies, rooted in research on neuroplasticity, stress responses, and brain health, make it effective, while its interactive design ensures that participants leave with practical skills to create real, positive changes in their professional and personal lives
Registration for Spring 2026
Location: Grainger Hall, UW-Madison
Date: March 3, 2026
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Fee: WEDC and the Mainstreet Bounceback Program are supporting the $289 cost of this course for operating, for-profit businesses under 500 employees. These businesses should register here:
Businesses <500 Employees, Register for Spring 2026
Fee: The cost of this course for nonprofits, pre-venture (not yet started) businesses, and those participants from a company of over 500 employees is $289. These organizations should use the link below to register:
Registration for Businesses >500 Employees, pre-venture, or non-profit Coming Soon
Registration Deadlines
| Registration type | Date | Fee |
| Earlybird | Earlybird closes: 2/10/2026 | Earlybird Registration Fee: $260 |
| Late Registration | Late Registration begins: 2/21/2026 | Late Registration Fee: $317.90 |
| Course registration closes | 3/2/2026 | — |
Registration & Cancellation policies
- Payment will be required at time of registration. You must have either a credit card or valid UW-Madison funding string to be able to register.
- Cancelations at least 24 hours before the program begins will incur a $25 cancellation fee. Cancelations less than 24 hours before the start of the program will incur the full program fee. To cancel, call registration at 608-262-2451. Please note that in the case of a cancellation (by either the participant or the SBDC), participants can only be transferred one time into a new course.
Disability Statement: Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance. Contact the UW-Madison SBDC office at sbdc@bus.wisc.edu to request accommodations.
The Small Business Development Center at UW Madison is recognized by SHRM to offer Professional Development Credits (PDCs) for the SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP®.
Instructor
Paul Riehemann, Senior Trainer and Coach, Life Ecology Organization (LEO)
Paul (MBA and Certified Public Manager, UW-Madison) has led public, private and non-profit organizations and is also an experienced wellness coach and workshop instructor. Paul has earned multiple certifications including Emotional Intelligence and Primal Health Coaching, Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and Project Management. He is a Mechanical Engineer and earned his Professional Engineer license in New York State.
Paul is Founding Chair of the Environmental Sustainability Rotarian Action Group (ESRAG.org, an international environmental organization through Rotary International), a Past President of the 400+ member Rotary Club of Madison, and has qualified and competed in three Ironman Triathlon World Championships.
He is skilled at interactive/task-based adult learning. His purpose as a trainer is to help others be their best.
The frameworks for thinking about the topic [were really valuable]… I am leaving with practical tools to apply the content.
Founder, Sichi Consulting, LLC.
Being able to identify low-brain ["lizard brain"] moments and how to switch them to high-brain [analytical] moments [was invaluable]. Thank you!
Insulation Specialist, Green Homeowners United
[It was great] Hearing stories and perspectives from the presenter [as well as] real scenarios. The presenter created an environment that facilitated sharing and speaking about our experiences.
Service Manager, Applied Tech
[I really enjoyed] engagement with other attendees and instructor. Paul is great at teaching the content, and his activities were an excellent way to help us incorporate it with our professional an personal lives.
Founder, JBY Financial Planning
The role-playing was surprisingly effective for practicing difficult conversations. Overall, the course had many concrete takeaways that I believe will be effective in both personal and business settings.
Garrett Hughes, Co-Owner, Heartwood Tree Company
[I liked] honing in on navigating challenging situations, with tools to improve [my] communication skills
Owner, Orange Shoe Personal Fitness
The course material was very insightful. There were so many mind hacks that will help me better manage my triggered states.
Owner, Eye of Overview
[I enjoyed the] new methods/techniques to deal with difficult situations. Good course. Paul is very knowledgeable and a good instructor.
Procurement Outreach Specialist, Madison Black Chamber of Commerce
The Wisconsin SBDC Network is a proud part of the Office of Business & Entrepreneurship within the Universities of Wisconsin.
It is funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.
The Wisconsin SBDC at UW-Madison helps entrepreneurs succeed at any stage. We offer no-cost, confidential consulting and business education across a wide region, primarily serving Dane, Sauk, and Columbia counties. SBDC services are provided in a nondiscriminatory way to all legal residents and citizens in the US.
Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance. Contact us at sbdc@bus.wisc.edu or call (608) 263-2221.