Here Are the Surprising Habits Nissan’s CEO Uses to Manage Stress — And They’re Not What You’d Expect

At Nissan, the $8.5 billion automaker, CEO Ivan Espinosa unwinds by leaning in to his favorite hobbies. 

“How do I manage stress? Well, I try to continue being myself,” Espinosa said in a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal. “So I like to play tennis on the weekends. If I can’t, I play golf. And I also am a musician.”

Espinosa mentioned that he likes to play the drums. “I have a band, every now and then we get together, and we play for a while,” he said. “This helps me staying real and staying true to myself.” 

Espinosa began his career at Nissan in 2003 as a product specialist in the company’s Mexico planning division. Over the years, he advanced through key roles across Thailand and Europe before joining Nissan’s global headquarters in Japan in 2016. After holding several senior leadership positions, he ultimately took the helm as CEO in April of last year.

In a fast-moving career such as his, spanning multiple countries and increasing levels of responsibility, stress is inevitable. Yet he has found balance by turning to music, sports and exercise.

How other business leaders handle stress

Adam Ross, former CEO and co-founder of skincare brand Heyday, relies on the same stress reliever as Espinosa: exercise. He told Fortune in 2023 that exercise was “cathartic.”

It’s a go-to ritual for many executives. Alejandro Reynal, CEO of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, told Harvard Business Review last year that he makes fitness central to his leadership routine. starting his mornings with a workout and carving out quiet moments to recharge before diving into the day.

“Routine helps me stay grounded: I start my mornings early, exercise or run on the beach, have breakfast with my family, and take a few quiet moments before the day begins,” Reynal told the outlet. “Most stress fades when you reconnect with purpose — and remember that what we do is about people, not pressure.”

Michael Tennant, founder and CEO of the venture studio Curiosity Lab, has developed a precise morning ritual to keep stress in check. He told Fortune in 2023 that shortly after waking at 3 a.m., he freshens up, meditates, journals and identifies his top priority for the day. He reserves his mornings for creative work that fuels inspiration before shifting to the more demanding aspects of leadership.

Tennant said that his routine is central to his well-being. It gives him the clarity to evaluate his world, set priorities and take focused action each day. “My morning routine is the biggest part of my stress management,” he told Fortune.

Keith Lambert, the founder of Oxidizers, which sells pollution-control equipment, is also out of bed at an early hour — some days by 3:30 a.m. He describes himself as constantly in motion. “The moment I’m up, I’m moving,” Lambert told Business Insider. He spends his days walking, running his business and spending time with his family, saying he manages stress by doing his best to “practice a balanced life.”