Resilience

 

Thank you for returning to the “The Resilient Worker”!  Now our readership is up to two.  That’s 100 percent growth in only one week!

This week we will explore the meaning of the word “resilient” and why resiliency is so important in our everyday lives.  Webster’s defines the word as “the ability to become strong, healthy, or successful again after something bad happens”.  The reality is that, at some point, “something bad” is bound to happen in either are work lives or our personal lives.  This can range from the temporary setbacks of being passed over for a promotion or losing a big sale to the more devastating setback of being terminated from your job.  In either case, the ability to come back stronger, healthier, and more successful is paramount to our growth as human beings.  Resilient people do not seek out failure, disappointments, or tragedy.  But they understand that these setbacks are a natural part of life and, to some degree, inevitable.  Instead of feeling like a victim, resilient people respond with action.  There is a natural time for mourning, feeling down, or just plain pouting.  But after some reflection, the resilient person chooses action and moves forward with their lives.  The optimism returns and it is time to conquer new mountains!

So what makes a person resilient?  Are you either born with it or not?  I am not a trained psychologist, but I do know that, at its core, resiliency starts with a positive attitude.  You have to believe that you are capable, at some point, of being successful.  That belief is stoked throughout the course of your life.  Small victories in your personal life as well as your career prove that success may lie somewhere beneath.  Even the perennial “born loser” stumbles upon success at some point.  The ability to retain that feeling and hunger for more success will allow you to ride out the bad times with the belief that good times are right around the corner!

While a positive outlook on life is important, there is more to being resilient that just a good attitude.  Resilience also stems from positive relationships with your family, friends, co-workers and anyone else in your everyday circle of life.  Leaning on these strong relationships to vent, lament, or cry during these difficult times can help even the most pessimistic person turn their lives around and move forward.   Relationships also help us put the small setbacks in life in perspective.  Focusing on the things that really matter in life (i.e., the health of your children, the health of your parents, the strength of your relationships) provide perspective and allow us to accept our failures and move forward.

In three words, I can sum up everything I know about life:  it goes on! — Robert Frost

 

For better or for worse, life will move on without us. So take control of your own destiny and play an active part in moving past your setbacks!

In this weekly forum, we will primarily focus on the Resilient Worker.  But the concept of building and maintaining resiliency can apply to every part of your life.  Thank you again for your precious time and I look forward to continuing our journey together next week.  Until then, keep smiling.