Feb 22, 2017

Oh no, not another blog on Resilience!

I know! I know! Actually, I’d rather like to think of it as “Beyond Resilience” because I’ve always believed resilience to mean “one’s ability to bounce back.” While this is mostly true, especially in the face of adversity, I’ve come to realise that it is much more than that. It is an ability to pick yourself up and survive, but also to change course, and move forward. Chris Sheedy* puts it this way: “…resilience is the ability for a person to continue to move forwards in the face of distraction and particularly when things get tough.” He suggests that resilience comes from knowing your role in the greater change strategy and having ownership and accountability for your work. Feeling like you have some degree of control really helps, not only your self-confidence, but also your interactions with others. It goes without saying that excellent communication, consultation, and connectedness are vital, since all of us, together, help move the business forward.

The first step along the way then, is to establish exactly what’s going on and the strategic implications for you. By doing this you will be developing what Albert Ellis* calls an “unconditional acceptance of reality”.

Once you know the direction of the change, you have choices to make. On the one hand, you could say: “Ok, so this is grim, but at least I know where I stand, and somehow I need to find a way to make this more acceptable for me” or conversely, you could say: “I feel disconnected”, or “I give up”, or “I’m quitting”. The way forward in a “beyond resilience” sense, suggests that this is the time to be courageous. It is a time to stretch beyond your comfort zone of familiar work practices, and enhance your skills and relationships.

Finally, none of this is necessarily easy or enjoyable, but it is inevitable. Change, especially when it’s not on our terms, is very challenging for most. There are those who believe that some people are born more resilient than others. Perhaps this is true, but we can all develop our resilience. Three simple techniques that will help are:

• Physical well-being: Getting enough sleep and eating healthy food. Exercise is very important too, to relieve stress
• Social: avoiding negative colleagues but still being empathetic and supportive to them where possible
• Cognitive: trying to reframe negative thoughts and considering positive options and alternatives robustly.

For more information, take a look at New Horizons' Professional Development training courses.

References*

Chris Sheedy 29 November 2020 in insightsresources.seek.com.au/building-resilience-workplace
Albert Ellis, the founder of Rational Emotive Behavioural Therapy
Stuart Taylor in CEO http://www.resilienceinstitute.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/CEO-FEB16_Resilience-more-than-bounce-back.pdf
Stuart Taylor in Moneyclip Private Wealth article http://www.mcpw.com.au/news/bouncing-back/