Cultivating Resilience: Think of the 4 R’s
As I was filling my car with gas the other night, I took a moment to express gratitude for 24x7 availability for gas stations – because I remember the days when my parents had to go get gas only when the station was open, or risk running out of fuel.
I had a theory. My assumption was that the number of drivers running out of gas would have decreased dramatically over the last few decades, given more sophisticated cars and measurement systems, and the availability of gas pumps. Guess what? COMPLETELY wrong. In fact, in just one year, more than 30 million Americans had to rely on AAA for assistance. And half a million of those were people who ran out of gas! According to an AAA executive, “vehicles today are advanced more than ever, yet are still vulnerable to breakdowns.”
That had me thinking…in our technology-enabled, 24x7 workplaces, we run the same risk! Despite technology that should make our lives easier, and provide ample alerts, we run the risk of running out of fuel, or an eventual breakdown. So – how can you build resilience, especially in these uncertain times? Consider these 4R’s of Resiliency:
Renew: Start fresh. So you’re having to work from home right now? OK: how can you create an “office space” that’s lovely, and will best support your ability to stay focused and productive? What tools and resources do you need to have readily available? Set boundaries with your family, roommate, etc about what is and is not acceptable during “work hours”. Treat working from home just as if you were in the office: stay on a schedule, be showered and dressed. Sure – you can be working in yoga pants instead of office-gear, but maintaining a level of professionalism will go a long way in making you feel that you’re in your more “regular” work mode.
Rewire: Resilience can be learned. You’ve seen our earlier posts on our amazing brain and its ability to create new connections, known as neuroplasticity. You can train your brain to better manage stress. Over time, your brain can create new connections that will allow you to access your higher-level thinking, reasoning and judgement. True, we’re not facing lions or other life-threatening situations these days, but our brain perceives the stress of our current world in many of the same ways.
Practicing mindfulness, staying focused on the task at hand, taking a few deep breaths or even making virtual connections with other people can all help lower stress levels in the body. Breaking down a seeimingly insurmountable problem into smaller steps makes it much more manageable. Over time, your brain will learn to accept and objectify the challenge, rather than moving straight to fight / flight / freeze behavor.
Refocus: It’s easy to get caught up in the drama unfolding before us. Take a moment to objectively look at the situation and remind yourself of your priorities. Whatever is in front of you is temporary, and you can find your way through. One of my favorite mantras when facing significant challenges is to remind myself that this problem is temporary (won’t last forever), external (it’s not entirely about me) and specific (tied to one issue) and that it’s not permanent, personal or pervasive.
Part of what makes the current uncertainties so challenging is that, in many cases, it is personal…and while temporary, we sure don’t have a clear resolution. Even in this time of social distancing, we can find new ways to connect and collaborate with others, and to share the vulnerability that makes us all human.
Relax: Hard to do when you’re in the midst of chaos…but sometimes it helps to just relax. Especially as leaders (and parents, and coworkers…), our stress levels can be contagious. Your ability to keep things in perspective will absolutely have an impact on the people around you. And wouldn’t you rather lower the overall level of anxiety right now? Let’s all take a collective breath and a deep sigh. This too shall pass.
Stay tuned for virtual development offerings from Nova Leadership coming soon. In the meantime,…
Stay smart. Stay safe. Be resilient.