Hijacked: The Surprising Neuroscience Behind the Choices You Think You're Making and How to Take Back the Controls

Burnout Isn't the Problem. Hijacked Choices Are. Why am I so drained all the time?You've worked hard to build a successful life. But somewhere along the way, the pressure became constant, and you're exhausted, disconnected, and running on autopilot. Hijacked reveals the surprising truth: Sustainable success isn't created by working harder or managing your time. It's driven by how your choices are being made.
Executive coach Paula Houlihan explains the neuroscience and real-world experience with her Choice MasteryT approach to reveal how unconscious patterns, stress responses, beliefs, and habits quietly drive performance, productivity, and, over time, burnout. After years in a high-pressure corporate environment, Paula found herself on the edge of an adrenal crisis-and faced a choice: continue operating on autopilot or take back the controls.
Now she's handing those controls back to you. Designed for high-performers, leaders, and executives who operate in high-stakes environments, Hijacked uncovers what's really driving your decisions-especially under pressure-and what to do about it. Inside this book, you'll discover how to: Recognize when autopilot is quietly driving your decisions. Interrupt reactive patterns in real time and change how decisions are made under pressure.
Apply a simple four-step framework to assess, evaluate, choose, and act with clarity. Increase focus, resilience, and moments of flow. Create success that performs at a high level-and sustains it. The answer isn't to push harder-or to pull back entirely. It's to understand what's driving your choices-and choose differently. Gain the science-backed insight into executive burnout, self-awareness, values-based productivity, leadership, and peak performance.
If you are ready to stop feeling hijacked by stress and enjoy a life that feels as good as it looks, this book will help you take back the controls.