Resilience is about being able to cope with tough situations and bounce back from difficult experiences. It can help us better deal with traumatic events or times of considerable stress. It doesn’t mean we’ll never face problems again or that we’ll be immune to life events. It just means we’ll be better protected, better prepared and better equipped to deal with them. Better to spend a small amount of time understanding how to be resilient, rather than endure the emotional cost to us of not doing so. You never know when you might need it. Here are 10 ways to develop your resilience so you're ready when you need your strength the most.
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Purpose. Having a firm sense of personal beliefs, values and intent gives you the power to progress through tough times with conviction and resolve.
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People. Forge positive relationships with family and friends. Reach out to bolster your wider community through networking meetings, social media and family events. Having a rich pool of contacts and connections offers leverage and sources of help in a range of situations.
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Groups. Engage with community organisations, faith-based communities and voluntary associations to widen your sphere of influence and avail yourself of social and spiritual sources for help.
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Empathy. Assisting others provides a feel-good factor and bolsters positive self-worth and wellbeing. It will also reinforce in you the value of, and acceptability of, asking for help when required.
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Perspective. Introduce a reality check so you don’t interpret problems as being worse than they are.
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Growth. Regard stressful events as opportunities for growth and transformation.
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Acceptance. Appreciate that bad things do happen and plans can change. Seek out a new reality and focus on the new opportunities and options that invite a better way forward. Seeing a therapist might help achieve this perspective.
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Realism. If you find a trend forming in tough situations that is affecting you, take a step back and reassess how you can protect yourself or shift to a more realistic game plan. Are you attracting adversity?
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Confidence. Trusting and believing in yourself can give you the positive self-esteem to combat adversity.
- Reflection. After events, assess how you coped with the situations and how you might deal with them differently in the future.
This leadership article...
was prepared for participants on our acclaimed 10/10 leadership development and mentoring programme and from The Crisis Book: a practical guide to overcoming and surviving difficult and crisis moments at work by Rick Hughes, Andrew Kinder and Cary Cooper. Whether you're a first time manager or an experienced leader, straightforward, practical advice on best practice is hard to find. Until now. To find out how you and your team can benefit, please contact us.
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