The art of building resilience
Resilience has emerged as one of the most crucial qualities for professionals—and individuals at large—to thrive in a world of constant disruption. It's no longer a buzzword exclusive to boardrooms and coaching sessions. Instead, it has become an everyday necessity. From navigating corporate shake-ups to handling personal upheavals, resilience is the inner engine that drives us toward recovery, reinvention, and renewed balance.
The world of business will celebrate the ability of resilience in a professional and remunerate them more for the turnarounds. The real essence of resilience for an individual is in its ability to deliver an equilibrium in life post every disruption for the individual, thus enabling a happier life for the individual. The happiness is due to the fact that as humans we are always happy when our lives are in a state of equilibrium. Every disruption shifts the equilibrium, creates anxiety, fear, stress, and makes us yearn for the next equilibrium. The time horizon between the two equilibriums can vary depending on the context, situation, or person. It is in this time duration between the two equilibriums, that resilience comes into play. It helps one approach the journey with positivity and determination toward the next equilibrium with a determined outlook. A more resilient person traverses the two equilibriums created by disruption with far more calmer nerves and less anxiety thus making the journey far less painful and the experience more being a learning.
Easy ways to build resilience
Let us now reflect on the easy ways to build resilience. Those who faced adversity in the early years of their life are already gifted with resilience. For them, there was no option but to push for the next equilibrium with a positive outlook and it has become a strength. But, what about people who haven’t dealt with any adversity? How can they build resilience as we all want to avoid adversities.
There are various ways to build resilience, however to explain the mental process of building resilience let me provide how it works through a physical process directed by the mind.
When you start running a marathon, there are various reasons your body faces adversity and signals the mind of disruption due to running from a state of walking; different days there are different issues like some days the climb is steeper, some days the body is not as prepared ,few days the climate is bad for run etc, however because the runner is determined, the mind sends signals to the body to adapt to the change and each runner has their way of adapting to the equilibrium, some through breathing, some through their stamina, some through the way they take the steps, each has their way and through the marathon, they battle the disruption to go towards a state of equilibrium to the extent it becomes a meditative state of mind. This is a real-life example of a physical process of building resilience due to a determined mind to overcome the disruption working through the mind.
To build resilience in the same way for life led disruptions which are not physical in nature generally, the mind has to be trained towards the goal like the marathon and be determined towards running the marathon irrespective of the disruptions. Building resilience hence is more to do with a focused and positive mindset to create milestones and experience the marathon of life. Every individual who wants to build resilience thus has to have a positive outlook towards building the next equilibrium and traverse the journey with a positive outlook and adapt to all the changes that are necessary to attain the next level of equilibrium. This kind of mindset alleviates anxiety and fear. The more you are disrupted and changed, the lesser is the anxiety, fear or stress due to the disruption and higher is the positive outlook.
In summary, if you got to build resilience, two things are very important – a positive outlook and the ability to adapt and change. Build it to “Outshine and Outlive.