Resilience is a buzz word that’s been thrown around a lot more in the last few years. Even more so since the pandemic.
A lot of people needed resilience to handle all the challenges that came with the stress of dealing with Covid, the cabin-fever of being sequestered at home, kids being home all day, remote work, etc.
Resiliency is gaining importance not just because of the pandemic but also due to the high expectations, constant change and growing complexity of today’s business world. Leaders have a lot thrown at them and they must learn how to cope in healthy ways.
Many years ago after some health issues and personal challenges, a good friend of mine once said…you are a resilient SOB. You just keep coming back.
I mistakenly thought for years that being resilient meant taking everything with a smile on your face, showing calm and charging ahead. That’s part of it. But I was missing one important aspect of resilience.
The part of actually dealing with the stress that my body and mind accumulated during all that upheaval. I had no coping mechanism in place, no balance.
Then I moved into a career phase where I lived on the road, working 70 hours a week and living in hotels for many years, completely focused on the work and flying by the seat of my pants.
Once again, I had no coping mechanisms that enabled me to handle chaotic days/weeks/years in a healthy way.
Mechanisms such as socializing, hobbies, relaxation techniques, working out, eating healthy, , meditation, therapy, etc.
Too many of us use unhealthy ways to cope and we all know that never works out well in the end. I just soaked up the stress up for years and it affected my health and my personal life.
An important part of making yourself resilient is how you make concerted efforts to take care of yourself. To balance yourself and stop the cumulative effect of nonstop stress. Stress is always going to be part of anyone’s life, so you better figure out a healthy way to deal with it!
What is Resilience and Why is it So Important in the Business World?
How would I define resilience for the workplace? In my humble opinion (after I researched definitions on line) it’s the ability to manage stress in a healthy way, combined with the ability to consistently bounce back and move forward.
But there’s a lot more to it when I say ability. There are multiple aspects that make up that ability:
- High EQ
- Flexibility
- Adaptability
- Responding well to pressure and adversity
- Responding, not reacting
Resilience isn’t something you change by just saying ‘I am going to be more resilient’. It’s about building a world around you that enables you to have that resilience.
Being resilient doesn’t just mean how you view and handle things. It’s building in support and coping mechanisms that enable you to take a healthy approach to challenging and stressful situations every day.
When I think of resilience, I think about the heroes in our world. The doctors and nurses. The policeman, the fireman, the soldiers, the teachers. They consistently deal with different types of stress and they have to view it as part of the job.
They need to deal with stress in as healthy a way as possible. Hopefully they don’t try to do it all themselves because they deserve support and encouragement.
Corporate leaders are also facing greater expectations, greater complexity of work and constant changing customer requirements. Being resilient is more important than ever for today’s business leaders.
The Benefits of Being Resilient
Being resilient has many benefits, Including:
- Better performance
- Healthier mind and body. Helps protect you from mental and physical health issues
- Better relationships
- Better leadership:
- Your team sees an effective leader that leads by example
- Your team will emulate your calm and resilient leadership approach resulting in a high performing culture
- Greater job satisfaction
- Greater engagement
- Greater self-esteem
- Avoiding burnout
10 Steps to Build Resilience
- Use EQ to be self-aware and manage your interaction with others.
- Put support and coping mechanisms in place:
- Socializing and connecting with like-minded people who understand your challenges and support you
- Put rest and recovery mechanisms in place:
- Meditation, working out, good sleep, reflection and relaxation breaks
- Have a positive approach based on being grateful and keeping things in proper perspective.
- Monitor and manage your stress and energy levels.
- Reframe the challenges of your work as expected challenges and opportunities. Not unexpected problems. Stop being surprised and upset by human nature!
- Adjust your approach so you are responding to challenges, not reacting.
- Build intentional and strategic processes so you can control what you control.
- Focus on taking a methodical and calm day-to-day approach. Don’t focus on how big the work is and try to boil the ocean.
Final Thought
Some people are naturally more resilient than others. It’s just their genetic make-up. But a vast majority of us need to work hard at being resilient for own well-being.
It’s important to make an intentional effort now to build strong resiliency and bring your life into balance. Also, don’t try to do everything on your own. Reach out to others for support, guidance and encouragement.
