Resilience is what gives people the psychological strength to cope with stress and hardship. One’s mental reservoir of strength is what one calls on in times of adversity. This resilience helps people to pick themselves up after turbulent times.

Those parents who have children who love to loom will relate to this. Stuck at home, my daughter has taken to looming with gusto. As she graduates to the harder designs, sometimes her b ands snap. Having spent hours making it, only to have it destroyed made her cry herself to frustration. What should we do as parents? The normal platitudes are; it’s ok, these things happen; well keep trying and start again; well at least you now have practice doing it and can do it better etc.

Interestingly, parents are advised by psychologists at this point to acknowledge the effort, empathize with their feelings and then encourage them to start again. Fortunately, she has now learnt to accept these moments and start afresh without breaking down. 

How is this any different in the professional world? To be perfectly honest, it is not. One might argue that the effort in the corporate world equates to money wasted. The question that comes to mind here is, “what is the cost of the experience of knowing what does not work?”. 

Put yourself in the shoes of a nurse, who despite the dangers of infection, continues to treat those who walk into a hospital. Is the nurse driven because it is a job? Why would the nurse put his or her life in continuous danger? 

Well, this crisis will undoubtedly help those with resilience rise to the top. The key ingredients will be positivity, persistence, big picture thinking, focus, acceptance of ambiguity, willingness to accept criticism and acting to make things happen as opposed to waiting for someone else to make them happen. I am rooting for YOU. Are YOU?

If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading – Lao Tzu

Abdulhussain Tejani