Resiliency in the Workplace
Resilience is necessary in the workplace for employees to cope with people, events within the organization, and with outside events that impact the organization.
3 min readWherever you work, you’ll eventually find yourself in a stressful situation. Your ability to bounce back, adapt, and grow afterward is called resilience, and it’s the key to coping. Resilience also helps you choose to follow through when there’s pressure to quit and to see past obstacles even if they don’t go away.
Threats to Resilience
The following may cause serious stress that threatens our ability to bounce back:
- Work culture. Anything that happens in the organizational culture of your job, such as policies, mergers, growth and expansion, and layoffs.
- Job Interactions. This can include bullying, intimidation, being overworked, accidents, a coworker’s death, a workplace loss (demotion, reassignment, retirement), and fear of supervisors.
- Personal life. Any stress or anxiety we’re experiencing outside of work and how we behave toward others can hinder our ability to adapt at work.
The Benefits of Resilience
Being a resilient person does not make you superhuman. You’ll still face physical and emotional reactions to traumas and setbacks. However, it does allow you to continue functioning and to reach out for help if needed. The benefits of resiliency on the job extend to both the employee and the workplace dynamics.
The employee benefits through:
- increased job satisfaction
- less stress
- greater happiness
- motivation to perform well
- lower risk of anxiety and depression
Your workplace atmosphere benefits through:
- higher productivity
- more motivated employees
- increased morale and creativity
- less staff sickness and turnover
Building Resilience
While resilience is not necessarily something you’re born with, some people have a natural ability to bounce back. But if you don’t, don’t worry. You can learn the skills. Here are some tips to building resilience:
- Clear vision. Have a clear vison of the projects and goals before you.
- Self-confidence. Accept that challenges will arise and believe that you can meet them. This helps you maintain the conviction that you can overcome them.
- Organization. Chaos, clutter, and lack of organization lead to stress. When things like your workstation and calendar are organized, you’ll feel more in control when stressors arise.
- Understanding. Empathize with your coworkers and work to see their viewpoints. Being socially aware in the workplace helps us monitor our own reactions to problems and seek resolutions to conflicts, confusion, and miscommunications.
- Problem solving. Rather than dreading or avoiding problems in the workplace, see them as opportunities to find new solutions.
- Learn from mistakes. When you make a mistake, don’t beat yourself up. Learn and move on.
- Be active. When faced with adversity, don’t shut down. Speak up for yourself and your goals. Be assertive and active in teamwork, and take a self-directed approach toward problem-solving.
- Proactive. Identify potential problems, and take action to prevent them before a disaster occurs.
- Value relationships. Don’t fly solo. Ask for and give feedback.
- Self-care. If you take care of yourself, you’ll be more productive. Get enough sleep, eat healthy, exercise, relax, and spend time with family and friends.
If resilience is something you struggle with, reach out to friends and family or a mental health professional for support. Talk to your human resources staff or EAP about what support is available through work. With the right plan and attitude, you’ll learn to bounce back better when the next problem arises.
Sources:
American Psychological Association. Resilience for teens: 10 tips to build skills on bouncing back from rough times. Accessed January 22, 2023. https://www.apa.org/topics/resilience/bounce-teens Opens in a new window
Public Health Emergency. Individual Resilience. Accessed January 22, 2023. https://aspr.hhs.gov/at-risk/Pages/individual_resilience.aspx Opens in a new window
American Psychological Association. Resilience. Accessed January 22, 2023. http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/road-resilience.aspx Opens in a new window
Mayo Clinic. Resilience: Build skills to endure hardship. Accessed February 6, 2023. http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/adult-health/in-depth/resilience/art-20046311 Opens in a new window
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