What do we mean by resilience and how does it apply to the workplace?

Being able to adapt, handle challenges, learn from experience and bounce back from failures are all examples of workplace resilience. Identifying resilient staff is easy to do. They are the ones harnessing adversity and embracing discomfort. Resilient employees bounce back. This is often a personality trait that is seen in the day-to-day life of the individual, but it can also be encouraged and promoted at work.

Resilience allows a positive approach to daily life. By being proactive at addressing the various challenges they face, individuals who are resilient move from problem to solution quickly. Their mindset remains logical and focussed on finding a solution rather than becoming complacent about the situation. In the workplace, resilience is about adapting and being able to solve problems. It allows those who have this ability to accept certain situations and find the positives in them. Ultimately, this behaviour has a positive impact on employee morale and motivation.

Below are some characteristics you might see in a resilient person:

• They have a positive mindset about most situations.
• They face situations that arise head on.
• They are not overwhelmed by their emotions.
• They recover from challenges promptly and move on.
• They are motivated regardless of the outlook of the situation they are in.
• They experience change smoothly.
• They have better physical and mental health as they cultivate these.
• They have healthy relationships with their co-workers.
• They are self-aware.
• They deal with disappointment by bouncing back.
• They are cognitively agile, which means they are able to make decisions effectively.

Resilience in the workplace is highly valued and leads to many benefits.

Benefits of resilience in the workplace

There are many direct and indirect benefits of having a resilient workforce. We elaborate on some of these benefits below:

Overcoming challenges

The definition of resilience is to be able to overcome adversity. As such, having a resilient workforce means that staff will be able to deal with challenging situations better. Employees will work together in a constructive way and manage their emotions to provide a calm and logical response to the adversity they are facing.

Better communication

As resilience relates to emotions, those who are resilient have more self-confidence. This comes from the fact that they do not let themselves get overwhelmed by a situation. This self-assurance has an indirect impact on communication. Those who know themselves and who are confident are more inclined to express themselves and propose solutions. For more information on how to improve workplace communication in company culture, check our content here. 

Reduced risk of burnout

Burnout is complex and unfortunately not uncommon. Resilience and burnout are directly related. When someone loses the drive for their work, they lose the spark they had for their job. Having resilience will increase resistance to burnout overall.

Realistic expectations

Resilience has an effect on setting boundaries. As such, it contributes to increasing overall self-awareness. This means that expectations are clear and not conflicting.

Learning and development

Resilience leads to people being willing to adapt and continuously learn. Staff who display high resilience will look to grow and seek out development opportunities. In the long run, this makes for more qualified staff and has a direct impact on business performance. 

Better time management

Days are often filled up with back-to-back meetings, long to-do lists and more. Being able to manage time effectively is essential for success and sound mental health. Individuals who are resilient are often good at managing their time. The fact that they are more self-aware and somewhat emotionally detached means that they deal with their workload well and coordinate their time in an effective manner. They make for more productive employees.

All of the above are examples of benefits that resilience brings to the workplace. Even though resilience is natural in some, it can be cultivated and encouraged in anyone.

Resilience for leadership teams

The benefits of resilience are obvious and the importance of this quality in leaders is even more valuable for your business. It directly impacts leadership style, the level of stress your leaders will communicate to employees and the engagement they will have with their teams.

Resilient leaders often:

• set realistic goals;
• share their positive and long-term vision;
• communicate well and with confidence;
• give recognition on performance;
• provide time management guidance and realistic project deadlines.

As employees tend to adopt their leader’s style, having a resilient leader has a positive domino effect on teams, with better performance and less stress.

9 examples of resilience at work

How can you pinpoint resilience? To facilitate the identification of resilient candidates or leaders within your business, we provide some concrete examples of resilience in the workplace below.

Accepting a certain position

Some companies can be hierarchical and not all who apply to a position will be successful in their application. Resilient team members are those who do not discourage themselves when they are not successful in the promotion they desired. They do not get demotivated by the setback and reach a place of acceptance while staying positive. Often, this behaviour means that they will thrive at something else, as through this process, they display their mindset which will be greatly appreciated.

Maintaining a high focus

In an environment where information overflows, keeping your focus is not always easy. Resilient employees are able to ignore the politics going on around them or the office gossip. They are focussed on their mission.

Harnessing discomfort

Businesses value those who step outside of their comfort zone. This is exactly what resilient people do. They are not shy at experimenting with new situations in which they know they will grow. They are aware that the discomfort they will be in may greatly benefit them in the long term. Having the ability to reflect on a challenge and make the most of it is a path to accelerated growth.

Taking in constructive feedback

Good leaders provide constructive feedback to their team members. This feedback aims at guiding employees in their career and lays the path to growth and career progression. This is only applicable if the individual receiving the feedback is receptive to it. Resilient people are always willing to learn and grow and as such they are good listeners when it comes to constructive feedback. Learn more about constructive feedback here.

Having a healthy work-life balance

Work-life balance is a challenge in today’s work environment. With constant asynchronous communication, sometimes flowing overnight with emails being received around the clock, work-life balance can be a challenge. Spending quality time with loved ones, at the gym or other interests is essential for mental health. Resilient workers have an excellent work-life balance. Find out how to promote work-life balance here.

Knowing what is triggering

Those who know themselves well are able to avoid certain situations. They ascertain what triggers them and can pull themselves away from those triggers to not feel stress, frustrations or inadequacy. Those who learn their triggers are more resilient at work.

Being able to solve problems

Resilient workers do not become complacent about their problems. They look for resolution. This has a direct impact on their stress levels. Being able to solve problems is a great skill to have.

Being in control of emotions

Being emotional is natural and is not uncommon at work. However, being in control of these emotions is a great skill to have. Resilient individuals are strong in this area. They are able to control their emotions and set them aside to make decisions based on facts. In addition, by not showing their frustrations or disappointment, resilient staff are perceived as more confident and mindful.

Not taking things too seriously

We all too often take ourselves too seriously. Although resilience is about persevering to achieve set goals, it is also about letting go when all the signs are pointing in that direction. Resilient staff should be cared for and valued in order to ensure employee retention.

There are many benefits to resilience in the workplace. As an employer, you should promote it and cultivate it through your company culture. It is also essential to hire resilient leaders and encourage them in their path. The result will be better productivity and happier employees.