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Boost your resilience

Resilience is a buzz word in workplaces at the moment….but what exactly is resilience, and how do we increase it?

There are varying definitions and ways of measuring resilience, but to put it simply, resilience is the psychological capacity to bounce back from setbacks. Some people are more resilient than others, and seem to cope with setbacks well, but for others, those same setbacks can be quite different. The important thing to remember, is that resilience can be practiced and built!!

There are several characteristics that resilient people often share. These include:

The ability to ask for help when needed, and to utilise the support network they have in place.
The ability to reflect on longer term goals and values when a setback comes along.
The ability to see failure and setbacks as a learning and growth opportunity.

Here are some of my favourite tips to help boost your resilience:

Get to know your own warning signs that indicate your stress levels may be feeling too high – what does it look like for you when you’re under more stress than you can cope with? What are those triggers at work and at home that send your stress levels sky rocketing? Once you’re aware of these warning signs and triggers, you can actively plan to manage them, by scheduling in activities that help you to cope, such as taking a lunch break, seeking support from your manager at work, going for a walk or to a yoga class, or whatever works for you.
Consider your reaction to the situation you’re in. Remember that no two people experience the same event in the same way – our thoughts and attitudes about an experience strongly colour the experience we then have. If you’re having a strong emotional reaction, ask yourself the question “is my reaction helping me with doing what I need to do” – if not, try and hold your perspective a little less tightly and focus on the things within your control.
Consider the coping style you’re adopting. There are three main types of coping style – problem focused, which involves doing things that directly impact the problem, emotion focused – which doesn’t change the problem, but helps deal with the emotions you’re experiencing in relation to the problem, and avoidant coping – which involves doing nothing at all. Problem focused coping has the best outcomes for wellbeing, if you can directly work to resolve the problem. However, if you’re feeling too emotional, or the problem is currently out of your control (ie, it’s 3am at night!) – engage in emotion focused coping to help relax, refocus and recharge until you can take action in regards to the problem.
Make time for positive emotions. Positive emotions are linked with increases in wellbeing, as well as increased creativity and problem solving ability (read more here!). Positive emotions can also serve as a buffer against stress and help you to physically recover from stress! The key takeaway here is that when you’re stressed, it’s more important than ever to do things you enjoy and that make you happy!!
Show some GRIT!! People with GRIT show high levels of passion and perseverance – people high in GRIT can outperform people high in IQ – a bit of GRIT can help you to succeed!! For more info, see this TED talk by Angela Lee Duckworth.
Consider how you perceive stress – can you embrace stress as a challenge, rather than as something harmful? See this TED talk by Kelly Mcgonigal for some information!!
Look after your physical health – if you’re eating well, exercising every day and sleeping 7-8 hours per night, you will be better equipped to cope with stress when it comes along.
When a setback comes along, ask yourself these questions:
- Which of my strengths can I draw upon to help get me through this.
- What could I learn from this setback? How could it help me to grow, or to see a bigger perspective?
- Who can I draw upon from my support network for help? Do I need practical support or emotional support? This question can help you determine who the best person may be to help. Are these services you can draw upon, or do you need help from your psychologist or GP.

Would you try these tips? What else helps you to cope with setbacks?

Don’t forget, if you feel like you’re having difficulty coping with a setback, you can talk to your GP, or contact LifeLine (Australia only) on 13 14 11.

Do you have a growth mindset?

Do you have a growth mindset? Have you ever convinced yourself that “I’m just not a maths person,” or “I’m no good at learning languages”? Have you ever given up on a problem because you feel you’re just not smart enough to finish it?? This may have due to your mindset around your ability to change and grow.

Carol Dweck’s mindset theory is about how people implicitly attribute the causes of their intelligence and other factors. Our mindset is often shaped through how we are praised and rewarded during childhood.

With a growth mindset comes the belief that basic qualities and abilities can be developed through hard work, effort and dedication (“if I work hard, I can succeed at this,” “if I put in more effort next time, I could get a better outcome”). A growth mindset is linked with receiving praise or feedback for your effort, progress or strategy on a task, as opposed to receiving praise for intelligence or being talented. As a result, those with a growth mindset are more resilient in the face of setbacks and see setbacks as learning experiences. They are more motivated, they seek out learning opportunities and perceive effortful or difficult tasks as making them feel capable or smart.

In contrast, a fixed mindset, is the belief that traits and abilities such as intelligence, personality, talent or particular skills are fixed traits which we can’t change (“I was never a numbers person”, “I wasn’t born smart” etc). A fixed mindset is associated with being praised for outcomes (winning or losing!) or being praised as intelligent or talented. As a result, those with a fixed mindset may avoid challenges, and may feel incapable when a difficult task requiring effort comes along, as they fear that failure is a reflection of their character, and may reveal they’re not intelligent or talented. Those with a fixed mindset are less likely to show resilience and perseverance in the face of setbacks and will show decreased motivation for difficult tasks. Children with a fixed mindset may also show increased distractibility in the classroom, and will try and validate their intelligence through performance.

Do you want to learn more about how a fixed or growth mindset can be developed in children? Click here to watch a fantastic video!!

How can you develop more of a growth mindset? Try these simple tips.

Reflect on a time you’ve had a positive outcome on a work task, assignment or other important goal. What was it that you did that helped you to succeed? How much time did you spend preparing or practising? What was the strategy you chose which helped you achieve your goal?
Next time you set yourself a goal around achieving a particular outcome, also set yourself a learning goal. Despite the outcome of the goal, what could you learn through the process of striving to achieve your goal? For example, if I had a goal of successfully delivering a presentation at work, I could set concurrent learning goals such as developing my knowledge in the presentation topic, developing my confidence in public speaking, and developing my skills in leading a project.
Reframe your failures as “learning opportunities.” Consider a time you didn’t achieve the outcome you set out to achieve. What did you learn from this failure? What were the skills or learnings you gained whilst working on the process of the goal?
Are you finding the thought of a difficult task daunting? Set yourself small but achievable goals, and break the larger task down into smaller more manageable chunks. Do you need more knowledge or information before you start the task? Set this as your first goal! When you achieve this, spend time reflecting on the learnings you gained.
Have realistic expectations around the time and effort needed to learn a new skill or accomplish a task. Learning something new takes time – be sure to reward yourself for the effort you’re putting in along the way, and remember to keep your focus on the learnings you’re gaining along the way, rather than a win or lose outcome!!

Would you try these tips? Is your mindset a growth mindset?

References

Dweck, C. S. (2012). Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Constable & Robinson Limited.

Boost your Mental Toughness!!

When you hear the term “Mental Toughness” it’s easy to think of sportspeople, or people putting themselves through extreme feats like climbing Mount Everest!! Mental Toughness seems to be everywhere today, and is frequently referenced in sporting literature…. but do you need to be super sporty, or hike through mud and snow to be mentally tough? Or can mental toughness help anyone achieve their goals? Are there mentally tough musicians, dancers, office workers, accountants etc!?

Anyone, in fact, can be mentally tough….regardless of your interest or lack of interest in sport/ice bucket challenges/Tough Mudder/eating insects etc. *Phew!*

Mentally toughness can be defined as “a collection of values, attitudes, behaviours, emotions, which enable and individual to persevere through any adversity, and to maintain concentration and motivation when things are going well” (Gucciardi & Gordon, 2007). So in a nutshell, it’s about having qualities which can help direct you to persevere towards your goals and to be motivated to keep persevering!!

So what are these wonderful qualities which make up mental toughness? Clough & Strycharczyk (2011) use the 4 “C’s” model of mental toughness, which breaks mental toughness into:

Challenge – this is about embracing change, and seeing challenges as opportunities for growth!
Control – this is about having a “can do” attitude, feelings of accountability and belief you can achieve the outcomes you want, as well as your ability to control your emotions.
Confidence – a belief in your own abilities, as well as confidence in your ability to influence others!
Commitment – an ability to set clear goals, and to persevere towards them!

This all sounds great in theory, but are some people just born more “mentally tough” than others!? Well luckily, mental toughness can be taught, and there are several strategies which have been tried and tested in the field of sports psychology, which are now translating to coaching and management literature.

There is no quick fix to become mentally tough, but through a combination of strategies, you can increase your mental toughness….here are a few of my favourite strategies!!

Goal setting. Whilst this sounds simple, setting clear goals can help to direct your attention to the important tasks you need to focus on, and can enhance your commitment to goals. Just remember to set your goals at a level of difficulty that is at the right level of challenge. You may start which smaller, easier to achieve sub goals, then work towards increasing your sense of challenge buy progressing setting more difficult goals. Think about how you will measure your goals….how will you know when you’ve achieved them? Think about the support or resources you might need to achieve your goals.
Mindfulness. Mindfulness compliments mental toughness in many ways – mindfulness is actually a fantastic tool for helping you to develop attentional control and focus (a key element of the “control” component of mental toughness!). In turn, when you’re better able to focus and remain in control of your emotions, you may just find you experience increased confidence as a result of this!
Imagery. Imagery, or mental rehearsal, is commonly used by athletes who are trying to practice and perfect their technical skills, without engaging in physical practice, and can also help increase your feelings of confidence and control. Whatever you’re working on developing your mental toughness for, you can apply imagery to. Are you giving a performance? A speech? Playing in a tennis match? Whatever the task, close your eyes and imagine performing the task in real time. Imagine yourself in the same setting where you would perform the actual task. Think of the feelings you would typically have at the time of the task, and try and bring those to mind. Practice your task/performance in as much detail as you can, using all your senses (imagining the task, imagining the sensations you would feel, imagining the sounds that you would hear). Imagine yourself performing the task perfectly!
Reflection. Mentally tough people regularly reflect on their successes and setbacks…what worked well and what didn’t. Reflection is a key tool to help you to review your progress, acknowledge your successes and improvements, and to make adjustments to your goals and strategies to achieve them if they’re not working!! You could also reflect on your past successes in similar situations to increase your optimism and confidence even more!!

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Remember, like all changes, building mental toughness takes time and persistence!! Enlisting social support from friends and loved ones can also be a great tactic to help support you in your changes.

Would you try some of these strategies? Would you go on a mental toughness journey to help you to achieve and persevere at your goals?