Resilience derives from the Latin word resilio, which means to “jump back”. Interestingly, while working in the field of coaching, I have repeatedly seen that the most resilient individuals and teams are not the ones that do not fail, but rather the ones that fail, learn the mistakes from each setback, and thrive because of it. Being challenged – sometimes severely – is part of what activates resilience as a skill set.

Within the military for example, soldiers are regularly exposed to scenarios designed to build their resilience skills. These exercises are repeated and adapted over and over affording these soldiers the opportunity to assess their options, decide a course of action, and act. Often the time frames for these exercises, but more especially the decisions they make, are milli-seconds.

They learn that you only fail when you quit.

5 ideas to develop your resilience skills…

So how can we develop resilience and stay motivated in the face of the volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA) in which we now work and live? Here are five simple ideas, based on some of the latest neuroscience, behavioural, coaching, and organizational research that you can try:

Exercise Mindfulness –

People in the business, medical, professional sports, and military world, are increasingly turning their attention to mental training practices associated with mindfulness. Scientists have discovered that mindfulness can assist judgement accuracy, enhance insight related problem-solving, facilitate job performance and is a practical and effective means of reducing employee stress.

So, find a mindfulness exercise that works for you and start practicing it now.

Monotask your workload –

Rather than continually multi-tasking, learn the skill of “serial monotasking”. Work in blocks and focus on each block until it is complete. Learn to reprogramme your work habits. If distractions encroach on your performance, identify and remove them.

Focus is the key.

Take detachment breaks –

Pay attention to the energy cycles you experience every day. Mental focus, clarity and energy cycles are typically 90-120 minutes in length. Therefore, it may be useful to step away for a few minutes to reset the energy levels whenever you feel you may be dipping.

Stand up, stretch, walk around for one minute then restart.

Develop mental agility –

Rather than reacting to an event, learn to respond to it. This “response agility” is the ability to pause, step back, reflect, shift perspectives, create options and choose wisely. So, practice this response agility next time you encounter a stressful event.

Pause, assess your options, then choose your course of action.

Cultivate compassion –

Often overlooked as a resilience skill is the ability to practice self- compassion and compassion for others. Research has shown that compassion increases positive emotions, creates positive working relationships, and increases cooperation and collaboration. So, give yourself a break!

Learn from your mistakes and take the learnings into your next stressful situation.

A worthwhile investment…

The ability to develop resilience as a skill is well worth the investment – both for yourself and your organisation. However, like any new skill it takes time and the more often you practice these drills, the better you become at that skill. So, start now to apply some of these ideas until they become embedded habits that will make you stronger and better able to address challenging issues as they present.

If you or any colleagues struggle with resilience and you would like to discuss your challenges, why don’t you give me a call.