Between the economic challenges, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the changes to working norms brought about by the pandemic, the subject of ‘resilience’ has never been talked about more. Highly resilient individuals cope well under pressure, navigate disruptive changes effectively, and bounce back quickly from setbacks. In contrast, if you have low levels of resilience, you may struggle to adapt to change, and your wellbeing and mental health may be negatively impacted. We often make the mistake of thinking about resilience as a personality trait as something individuals either possess or don’t. Whilst some people may naturally have higher resilience than others, it is certainly not fixed and can be developed over time.
At an individual level, self-awareness is key. We measure 15 areas of Emotional Intelligence at LeverageEQ, but we’ve found that the 4 areas that most impact an individual’s resilience are their ‘Stress Tolerance’, ‘Optimism’, ‘Emotional Expression’ and ‘Flexibility’. Discovering how you score in these areas can be a useful first step. At an organisational level, one of the most powerful ways of helping employees to build greater resilience is through the development of a coaching culture. Managers can use coaching conversations to help employees reassess how they handle challenging situations, identifying what can and can’t be controlled by them and how to come up with actionable solutions. If you are interested in developing your own resilience or have pinpointed it as a priority within your team or organisation, contact us to discuss further.

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