A 1990 study by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention in America showed that one-quarter of employees considered their job to be the most significant source of stress in their lives. In an increasingly connected world, the stress of working life is a bigger issue than ever: when things go wrong – as they invariably do – it’s hard to step away from the strain. This has a knock-on effect on our performance, our health, and our motivation.
It’s impossible to avoid change and challenging situations completely: what we can do is change how we react to them (as we say in NLP: you are in charge of your mind, and therefore your results). Resilience is the ability to bounce back, and it empowers us to take risks, adapt and stay positive in the face of challenges.
Why a resilient workforce works best
From an employer’s perspective, a resilient workforce is desirable for a number of reasons: lower staff turnover, better employee satisfaction, and improved performance and attendance. In the last few years there has been a wealth of research on the benefits of resilience at work, and I’ve been working with an increasing number of organisations to provide resilience training to their staff.
If you’re interested in how resilience training could improve your bottom line and give you a more productive, happier workforce – or you’re just not sure what all this talk of resilience really means – read on.
What is resilience?
Resilience is our ability to deal with the ups and downs of working life, to manage stress, and cope with change. It allows us to deal with the unexpected, with the challenges of working with other people – to fail, make mistakes, and get up and try again.
Resilience at work can be seen as the other side of the same coin as civility in the workplace: in an ideal world, you’d have a civili workplace where everyone feels comfortable, and a resilient workforce who can cope with the stress of everyday life.
Resilience and NLP
Resilience is an implicit part of the teachings of NLP. NLP advocates resilience through taking back control in situations where we feel out of control: that there is no such thing as failure, only feedback, that we are in control of the way we respond to any given situation, and that we have the resources available within us to deal with challenges.
How to foster resilience
The good news is that resilience – like presentation skills, good communication and civility – can be taught. With good training and effective strategies, resilience can become a habit even for those who struggle to deal with stress.
If you’d like to chat about resilience training for you or your staff (usually delivered over a half-day or one-day course) get in touch.