Developing resilience in the face of change and uncertainty is essential for team performance and organizational success. Most crucially, personal well-being and overall quality of life.
Resilience is the capacity to withstand or quickly recover from challenging events while being able to bounce back from adversity, adapt to change and cope with stress in a healthy manner. This helps us navigate life’s challenges more effectively, reduces the negative impact of stress on our health and well-being, and enhances our overall quality of life. Resilient individuals can better deal with life’s unexpected obstacles, learn from their mistakes, continue to work toward their objectives and conquer failures.
Dr. LaTonya L. Small, founder and empowerment strategist of LT Empowerment Inc., shares the benefits of personal and team resilience as well as some strategies to build resilience during changing and uncertain times.
Benefits of Resilience
Although change can be disruptive, when resilience is employed, you and your team can benefit in the following ways:
Personal
- Thrive in new environments: Resilient individuals can adapt, acquire innovative talents, adopt novel techniques and devise creative solutions to problems.
- Boost mental health: Although uncertainty can cause stress, resilient individuals have more effective stress-coping techniques, which help to minimize burnout and improve mental health.
- Grow personally and professionally: Resilience promotes the idea that challenges are opportunities for learning and growth. This increases the willingness to experiment and take calculated risks.
Team
- Create a healthy environment: Even amid chaos, a resilient team retains a sense of calm. Maintaining composure decreases anxiety and keeps everyone motivated and focused on their goals.
- Collaborate successfully: Resilient teams work together to identify and solve problems, using a variety of perspectives and experiences to develop unique answers.
- Foster stronger teams: Change is frequently an opportunity for improvement. Resilient teams see obstacles as opportunities to learn, adapt and become stronger. This promotes a culture of constant improvement.
Strategies to Build Resilience
Here are the top strategies to develop resilience through change and uncertainty.
- Develop a resilient mindset. Cultivate a positive outlook and embrace challenges as opportunities for growth and learning.
- Practice self-care. Prioritize your physical, emotional and mental well-being by engaging in self-care activities and developing a self-love mindset. This includes going to bed early, eating a balanced meal and exercising. Consider what helps you relax and get into your zone. For Small, it’s the ocean, music and traveling to new places. “They just set my soul,” she says.
- Build a support network. Understand what regulates you and surround yourself with caring friends, family members, colleagues and mentors. Recognize your needs and assess existing relationships.
- Seek perspective. Take a step back and gain a perspective of a situation. Reflect on your experience regarding what you’ve done successfully and how you can navigate and pivot. Think about how you’re framing the situation. One of my good girlfriends always would say, “How are you viewing the situation? Do you see it as half full or half empty?”
- Be flexible and adaptable. Don’t be so rigid. During times of change and uncertainty, be flexible, especially in a team environment. Consider how to communicate effectively and advise the team to reflect on what they learned from a negative situation.
- Develop problem-solving skills. Break down problems into manageable tasks. Develop practical, actionable and SMART solutions that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and timebound.
- Practice mindfulness. Think about the mind. Make sure you’re regulating and understanding what’s going on with yourself. Find quiet time to concentrate on your thoughts, breathing and environment. When your mind starts to wander, try to bring your attention to the present.
- Cultivate gratitude and optimism. Begin by asking yourself: How are you viewing these? What are you grateful for? Even in stressful and challenging times, there’s always something to be thankful for. Think about that and remember it.
- Seek professional support. When needed, obtain professional assistance. This will enable you to discuss your personal resilience inventory, which is a self-assessment that measures your level of resilience. The inventory consists of activities and exercises that ascertain how you deal with and resolve situations related to different resilience aspects. It also helps you visualize a situation and identify your strengths and areas for improvement.
Small leaves these thoughts: Uncertainty and change are inevitable. Are you prepared to deal with them when they knock at your door? By applying these strategies and seeking professional guidance, you can effectively manage stressful situations and build resilience.
Professional Skills and Training Resources
Federally Employed Women (FEW) membership offers premiere training on the national, regional and chapter levels. The focus is to help members strengthen their professional skills and acquire knowledge of career development and planning techniques. Additionally, FEW enhances members’ personal effectiveness and awareness of the broader issues that impact women. Get in touch to learn more. We’d love to hear from you.
Dr. LaTonya L. Small is the founder and CEO of LT Empowerment, Incorporated, a consulting company with the mission of empowering people to live life with Possibilities, Power and Purpose. The company offers facilitated learning and strategic development through customized services, workshops, coaching and motivational speaking. LT Empowerment adds value to its clients by unpacking the root, reward and relational impact of decisions and actions derived or planned and transforms them into viable outcomes that render performance excellence and financial gains. Contact Dr. Small for more resources and support at info@LTEmpowerment.com.