Developing resilience: fundamentals

Introduction

Resilience is a key skill that helps leaders, managers, and teams deal with problems and get back on their feet after failures. In this blog post, we’ll explain what resilience is, what the five pillars of personal resilience are, and how to build a resilient team.

What is resilience?

Resilience is being able to get back up after a setback, deal with stress, and adjust to change and uncertainty. With practise, individuals can enhance their resilience.

The five pillars of personal resilience

To become more resilient, individuals can work on five key pillars of personal resilience:

1. Emotional regulation means being able to handle your feelings well, staying calm under pressure, and keeping a positive attitude.
2. Cognitive flexibility: This involves adapting to new situations, thinking creatively, and solving problems effectively.
3. Connection: This involves making and keeping supportive relationships, seeking help when needed, and offering support to others.
4. Physical health: This means keeping your body healthy by doing things like exercising regularly, eating well, and getting enough sleep.
5. Purpose and meaning: This means finding your life’s purpose and meaning, setting goals, and staying motivated and on track.

By focusing on these five pillars, people can become stronger and more resilient, making it easier for them to deal with the challenges and unknowns of what happens at work and in their personal life.

How to build a resilient team

To build a resilient team, leaders need to learn how to be resilient and help create a resilient culture. Here are some strategies that organisations can use to create a resilient team:

1. Encourage open and honest communication to create a supportive workplace where team members can ask for help and support.
2. Team members can learn new skills and improve the ones they already have by taking advantage of learning and development opportunities.
3. Recognise achievements to create a positive and supportive work environment that encourages resilience.
4. To improve physical and mental health, encourage healthy habits like regular exercise, a balanced diet, and enough sleep.
5. Encourage a sense of purpose and meaning by setting clear goals and a shared vision for the team.
6. Help team members deal with stress and challenges by giving them access to resources and support, such as employee assistance programmes.
7. Leaders can show how resilient they are by being flexible, optimistic, and persistent. This creates a resilient culture within the organisation.
8. Encourage team members to take care of themselves by taking breaks, getting enough sleep, and engaging in physical activity to enhance their overall health and resilience.

By using these strategies, organisations can build teams that can handle challenges and unknowns well, adapt to change, and keep the workplace positive and productive.

The key takeaways

Resilience is a key part of an organisation’s success, and the resilience of its employees is key to building high-performing, successful teams.

By understanding the basics of resilience, focusing on the five pillars of personal resilience, and putting in place strategies for building a resilient team, organisations can create a culture of resilience that helps team members be happy and successful.

It’s important to keep in mind that building resilience is a long-term process that requires constant work and focus.