“Being resilient is a vital attribute in our ‘always on’ lives. I am delighted to share with you this article by fellow Executive Coach Jacinta Hargadon who has recently joined our team of associates”. Peter Dunkin
The World Health Organization describes stress as the “global health epidemic of the 21st century.” Most of us live and work in fast changing environments, with technology driving constant connections so that we are available 24/7. We live in what is known as VUCA times. VUCA is an acronym used to describe the volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity of general conditions and situations. The common usage of the term began in the 1990s and derives from military vocabulary. This turbulence and pace of change is relentless and a cause of more unwanted stress for many of us. It is therefore important that we all access and use our resilience to manage ourselves in our environments.
What is resilience? Many say it is the ability to bounce back, to be unaffected by life’s challenges and stresses. It seems that amongst the definitions of resilience, whether it is being tough, or having a thick skin, we are all more or less resilient. Our own resilience is derived from our genetics, childhood influences and learning from difficult experiences. Despite having our own resilience, at times, we just don’t seem to have enough resilience to be able to cope or we don’t access the resilience we have. Another feature of resilience is that we all have varying amounts. Some people are able to sail through challenging events that, for others, have caused feelings of not being able to cope, depression and even burnout.
Why is it important to be resilient? Because there is a direct and adverse relationship between negative stress, health and wellness and productivity in our work and lives.
What can we all do to increase our resilience to help us deal with difficulties? We can recycle what we already know, i.e. think about times when we worked through a difficulty, what did we do? What worked for us? What skills did we use? What strategies did we use that were effective? What supports did we use? (family, friends, meditation, exercise, faith). We can also adopt a positive mindset and keep our issues and problems in perspective. As Epictetus said in the 1st century AD, Men are disturbed not by things, but by the view which they take of them.
It can be effective to work with a coach to help us recycle our resilience, to confront our difficulties and find our own resources. In particular, re-authoring may be needed – this is useful when our lives have changed, when we cannot go back. In these circumstances we have to build a new narrative for our lives. Sometimes we cannot have Option A, and we have to go with Option B. It can be effective to work with a coach to accept and create this new reality.
Being resilient, involves embracing change, moving forwards, being flexible and adapting to changes. Sometimes we need to ride with the tide rather than try to fight the ocean. Resilience is our unique ability to adapt and move on, to take action and create positive outcomes and it is a key requirement for our health, wellbeing and success in life today.