Even if an employer creates the ‘perfect’ conditions for resilience for its workforce to thrive, an individual employee has to actively engage in behaviours that are helpful in order to cope well with the inevitable challenges that will arise.
While this article focused on what employers can do, this article focuses on what individuals can do to protect and bolster their resilience levels.
Don’t miss our sister event The Watercooler on 30 April and 1 May 2025 in London where several sessions will be covering the link between resilience and wellbeing. For more details on this event on shaping the future of work, health, wellbeing, culture and innovation, see here.
Keep it simple- get back to basics
It may sound obvious, but looking after our bodies, so they are well rested, well fed and well exercised, will make us more able to deal with adversities. Stress – if it affects us detrimentally in terms of physically in our bodies or mentally in terms of our minds – lowers resilience levels.
However, even though many of us know the theory, it can be hard to make healthy choices in practice.
This is where attending and contributing to activities, like lunch-and-learns and other types of training or discussions, can help give us a nudge in the right direction, as can networks and clubs set up around a particular healthy habit, like running or walking.
No one can tell you what will make you resilient
Resilience is personal. What stressors affect us are unique and dependent on our backgrounds and life experiences.
“Some people know they need to go out for a run or meditate. Others need to speak to their friends. So, yes, an organisation has a responsibility to create the conditions for us to thrive but in order to do this individuals have to work out what supports them so they can self-manage,” says Rachel Schmieder, UK Director, resilience consultancy Awaris.
“There must be understanding of agency. We can support each other but it doesn’t mean everyone does the same thing. Everyone’s path to resilience is different.”
It’s worth noting, too, that some people find the best way to relax their body and mind is actually doing something active – called ‘active rest’ – rather than the traditional ways we think of such as napping or chilling at home.
Use the resources on offer
One of the frustrations we hear about from employers is that they invest in resources, like Employee Assistance Programmes, but then take-up is low.
This could be due to lack of knowledge or fear of being perceived as weak (even though these services are confidential). Make sure you know what your employer is offering, not just for you, but many encourage access for families and loved ones, understanding that these are stressors for employees.
Your worry about your child, for instance, could be lowering your general resilience levels and many EAPs now offer services to support young people, which could lower your stress as well as theirs.
Employees, when they proactively engage with resources available, are often surprised at the breadth of offers today, with more employers adding services like 24/7 virtual GPs as well as more sophisticated services for more complex needs.
Use your voice
Our most read article of 2024 was on the importance of listening (see here for full list of ‘most read’ articles). Employers are realising that it’s essential to garner feedback from employees so they can create effective solutions.
So, while you may have a never-ending to-do list, make sure you get round to filling in the employee feedback surveys or mechanisms so that you can give your opinion on what would improve your working conditions.
Be mindful if perfectionism is an issue for you
Some industries, like law, or those which hire a high number of neurodivergent people, for example, are associated with high levels of perfectionism which, in turn, can be associated with low resilience and high burnout.
If this perfectionism is ‘maladaptive’ (ie self-critical) then it’s linked with low resilience as people perceive themselves as failures if they make mistakes. They will also be reluctant to admit if they are struggling, or access resilience training or other resources that could help them, because they would not want others to perceive them as failures
The antidote to perfectionism, says Awaris co-Managing Director Tamdjidi, is self-compassion; a skill which can be learnt and can boost resilience. Another is social connection.
Being a perfectionist does not mean you lack resilience. If you are aware of your trait, you can manage it and ensure that it doesn’t get in the way of your resilience, or your progress.
For more on neurodiversity and perfectionism, see this article.
Note, too, that more and more employers are introducing benefits that enable employees to access neurodiversity diagnoses and subsequent support.
Push yourself out of your comfort zone
Getting out of your comfort zone in a supported way, in which you feel stretched but not to the extreme, is a good way to build confidence and resilience.
There’s a need to support Gen Z to do this in particular, as this article explores.
Prioritise your social wellbeing (even if you don’t feel like it)
“Here’s the truth about resilience: resilience is the strength we draw from each other, and it’s as simple as that, you can’t be resilient on your own,” says Bruce Daisley, formerly Vice President for Europe at Twitter and now a culture consultant, and author of Fortitude: The Myth of Resilience, and the Secrets of Inner Strength.
The best example of resilience he came across in his book research all have an element of people coming together to face challenges.
Important, resilience-fuelling questions we can ask ourselves at work, he says, are: how can we celebrate the collective and make people feel understood and supported by the people around them? How can we tap into group energy? If I, or someone else is struggling at work, do we have someone to talk to about our workload?
“There’s a reason why the number one predictor of whether people like their jobs and are engaged is down to whether they’ve got a best friend at work,” he says. “But the challenge, for many of us, is that increasingly we don’t have friends at work because we’re so busy and work has become transactional.”
Clearly, this is an issue that employers must address (pointed out in this article) but individuals can be proactive too. While it might be very tempting to stay at home catching up on emails on your laptop in your jammies, rather than venture out (or even onto Zoom) to meet your colleagues for a social, cultivating relationships with your colleagues could be the most powerful thing you ever do at work to protect your resilience.
Don’t miss our sister event The Watercooler on 30 April and 1 May 2025 in London where several sessions will be covering the link between resilience and wellbeing, including Ellie Orton, sharing where resilience fits in with NHS Charities Together’s ‘psychological safety’ initiatives, a panel exploring where resilience fits with proactively supporting global employee health and wellbeing and Yelp’s Chief Diversity Officer shining a light on how storytelling is helping to build resilience and enhance remote work culture. For more details on this event on shaping the future of work, health, wellbeing, culture and innovation, see here.
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