The classic metaphor is a bamboo in the wind: it bends in order not to break and stands upright again, once the storm is over. Or the wings of an airliner: during my seven years in the airline industry with a total of over 4’500 hours spent up in the air, I was amazed over and over again about the wings’ flexibility. They are constructed in such a way that they can maximally bend under the forces that occur during a flight. Otherwise, a plane could never be steered through turbulence without being damaged.

We as well live in turbulent times that are often characterized by an acronym called “VUCA” (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity). VUCA has become the new norm. The sooner we recognize and accept this, the better we will be able to perform and create results, even without the comfort of “security”, and recover after crises or failure.

Resilient individuals see challenges and possibilities even in situations that seem to be losses or failures at a first glance. Even so called “problems” gain a completely different quality for them. These days, resilience has become a key property – in general and for leaders in particular. But why is it that some people literally blossom in situations of crisis, whereas others almost crack under pressure? And what can somebody who is lacking this particular skill do?

The good news is: resilience can be trained and developed like a muscle. One of the keys for that is full acceptance of what lies in any given moment, without any resistance against existing facts and by simply rolling with the punches. What may sound like passive resignation at first is anything but that: accepting a situation – especially an inconvenient one – makes it possible to act from a calm and composed state of mind instead of reacting out of sheer resistance. Just like in Aikido, a Japanese martial art, in which no resistance is set against the opponent’s energy. Instead, the energy is deflected and used in one’s own favor.

Acting in such a way can require quite some guts, as it might mean having to leave one’s comfort zone. The good news is that learning usually happens best outside that comfort zone and if we repeatedly face up to challenging and demanding situations and manage to handle them successfully, they gradually become part of our extended comfort zone. Our personal “elasticity” grows. Resistance against existing facts on the other hand, has an exhausting, trying and fatiguing effect on any human being.

Among other factors, resilience is fostered by a clear focus on one’s own values, goals and priorities, with a healthy portion of optimism and pragmatism, the highest possible independence in one’s decisions and the ability to say “No”. In addition, a well developed level of self-acceptance and distinct awareness for one’s own needs as well as appreciation and tolerance towards other people’s opinions and beliefs are also beneficial.

Last but not least, leaders cannot just develop their own resilience but also that of specific team members or even the whole team. The procedure is the same:  a recurrent, controlled and well-dosed leaving of the comfort zone. Moreover, even an entire company can become more resilient by its management team acting as role models and in a way that the organization overcomes times of crisis as in recent years much better than more rigid and inelastic ones.

Coaching can be a helpful tool in developing the resilience of individuals and teams.

How do you increase your and your team's resilience?

Yours

Thomas Gelmi