Resiliency is the ability to rebound from hardship, difficulty and misfortune and successfully adapt to adverse situations. It’s perhaps more important today than ever, because the world is more interconnected than at any time in history. The “flattening of the world,” as Thomas Friedman refers to it, means we experience turmoil faster, more intensely and more often. The worldwide financial turmoil of 2008 is a perfect example of that. Nothing great in life is ever achieved without taking considerable risk and facing distinct difficulties. So, going forward, it’s important to understand how you have handled adversity in the past. That’s the best predictor of how you will handle it in the future.
Here are some questions to consider:
- How accurately do you assess the risks in challenging situations?
- Where would you place yourself on the cautiousness scale—over or under?
- Do you tend to be excessively optimistic or pessimistic?
- Does risk cause you to charge forward or retreat?
- Do you set realistic but challenging goals?
Here are some resiliency-boosting strategies:
- Carefully decide what you can control and what you can’t. Focus your energy on the former.
- Keep perspective on your ultimate goal—for example, to save as many jobs as possible to ensure the company’s survival, to raise sensitive children, to have a happy marriage.
- Remember, there are always other solutions. Find ways to improvise and stay flexible.
- Avoid succumbing to temptations to quit, to cheat, or to exploit.
- Keep yourself inspired: read, discuss, pray; do whatever it takes.
- Look for humor, even when the situation looks bleak.
- Remember and honor your personal stories of overcoming adversity.
- Find time to take care of yourself on a daily basis.
- Acknowledge fear but find a way to tame it.
- Make the tough decisions and do not look back.
- Commit to overcoming adversity—to win and not to allow yourself to fail.
- Be realistically optimistic but stay grounded in reality.
- Accept responsibility for past failures but do not beat yourself up over it.
- Find a small group of people who are willing and able to support you.
- Cast off negative people.
- Define specific, winnable goals.
- Communicate the facts, no matter how bleak.