During times of adversity, resilience is key. Recovering and learning lessons from adversity can be difficult, but acknowledging mistakes can help you move forward.
For many people, returning to how things operated before the COVID-19 pandemic will not be possible—in the workplace or at home. Maintaining resilience can mean committing to handling things differently—and better—in the future.
Josh Altman, associate director of Adelphi University’s Student Counseling Center, says resilience is “a set of practical skills that can be developed with practice and patience,” according to www.fastcompany.com.
Following are some basic tips to help you improve your resilience so you can be prepared when the unpredictable strikes.
- Find what helps you cope. Activities such as exercising or talking through your problems with someone you trust can help combat stress. You should not avoid your feelings, but it is important to rest, absorb the bad experiences and build up strength to recover. You also can ask yourself “why” questions that help ground you in the process and gain perspective.
- Look outside your comfort zone and try giving yourself a new challenge each day. Challenging yourself and stepping into a situation that typically makes you uncomfortable can help improve your confidence and resilience. Resilient people have experienced moments of hurt or challenge but maintain their ability to achieve.
- Learning resilience is easier when you surround yourself with a supportive community who understands the adversity you face and can cheer you on when needed. In a Stanford study examining passion and achievement, researchers found communities that prioritize interdependence—a sense of connectedness to a larger group—showed a greater sense of inner motivation.
- “Bounce forward” rather than “bouncing back.” This emphasizes the importance of adapting to a new reality and gaining a forward-thinking mindset that can help you avoid reactive behavior and learn to see past current stressors.
