“Resilience is all about being able to overcome the unexpected. Sustainability is about survival. The goal of resilience is to thrive.”  Jamais Cascio.

I have been watching lots of documentaries recently featuring top level sports teams. I have watched programmes behind the scenes of the England and Australia cricket teams during last year’s Ashes contest, also programmes featuring Newcastle and Burnley football clubs.

One of the things that struck me from watching these programmes, was how resilient sports people have to be to cope with changing fortunes and the highs and lows of elite sport. You can learn a lot from these programmes about coping mechanisms that can be applied to your own life.

The ability to cope with relentless change and to be flexible in our thinking are key to helping us to thrive in today’s demanding world. The capacity to quickly recover from difficulties, set-backs, challenges and disappointments is a great quality to possess.

It may be that the ability to adapt and bounce back is stronger in some people than others. However, with focus and attention you can develop your resilience just as you can build up muscles through regular exercise. I believe that having great resilience and the capability to find extra reserves of energy when required are vital to help people to flourish and thrive.

Certain conditions in people’s lives help them to be resilient. These include having a few people to talk to without feeling judged and also receiving regular encouragement from others.

Maintaining good health and physical condition with regular exercise, sufficient sleep and a healthy diet play an important role. Being involved in community projects, charitable causes, staying optimistic and expecting things to work out for the best also help.

Here are some ideas to develop resilience:

Goal setting
Having personal goals, even small every day ones help you to look towards the future with optimism and provide a sense of accomplishment once completed. Goals you’ve achieved in the past are a strong reference point in the future when you’re pursuing something and the going gets tough.

Acceptance and positive expectations
Accept that you are unable to change the past and focus your energy on the present moment, your growth and development. Have positive expectations of success and create a mechanism to review your progress. Maintain a positive attitude and optimistic outlook.

Make room in your life for laughter and fun
The ability to maintain a sense of humour and to see the funny side of a situation when facing a challenge is a great coping mechanism. It helps to relieve stress and keep your spirits up.

Remember how you conquered previous challenges
When you face a fresh challenge remind yourself how you conquered a previous challenge and the learnings that you took from the experience. It’s good to have clarity about strategies that helped you cope with previous hardship.

The importance of self-care
Take care of your needs and feelings both physically and emotionally. Engage in hobbies and pastimes that you really enjoy and contribute positively to your overall wellbeing. Get sufficient sleep each night and exercise daily.

Maintain a journal
This helps to externalise your feelings and provides a sense of clarity and perspective. It quite often allows you to view situations in a different way and conjures up new perspectives for you to consider. It can help you to create some new ideas, approaches and action plans that you can practically apply.

This week, why not take a few moments out to reflect. Consider what action you can take to develop your resilience.

To arrange a free no obligation consultation, please contact Stephen Pauley via the contact form or by e mail: Stephen@befirstclass.co.uk