Resilient Leadership in the Toughest Times
2 min readMar 31, 2020
A few months ago, we asked a range of leaders how they keep their resilience in challenging times. Little did we know that the coronavirus pandemic was about to place unprecedented demands on everyone, in both their personal and professional lives.
We asked these leaders what can undermine their resilience, and what strategies help them recover. We asked how they spot when others are at risk, and how they seek to help. The headlines from their responses include:
- Nearly everyone talks about emotional and physical symptoms when their resilience is reduced. Their capacity to think rationally takes a hit, and they can easily find themselves triggered into fight, flight or freeze. Their bodies can go into constant alert and a spiral of agitation or anxiety.
- Different people are triggered in different ways, depending on personality and life experience. An individual with a tendency to perfectionism, or someone with a deep need to control, is triggered differently from the person whose inclinations are to avoid conflict and who needs to feel liked. A recovery strategy that works for one person won’t necessarily work for someone else.
- Some people surprise themselves with their ability to recover from setbacks, whilst for others it is much harder. A generally positive outlook on life appears to be what makes the difference
- Humans are not designed to survive alone. There was a universal feeling that, even if it is a relationship that has triggered a setback, the support of others is a critical part of recovery; and
- We all need to put on our own oxygen mask before helping others.
In the booklet, we offer a framework for thinking about personal resilience under six headings:
- Spot the warning signs (that your resilience is at risk)
- Identify the triggers
- Know yourself and your anchors
- Cultivate a positive mindset
- Experiment with strategies
- Reflect on your accountabilities to others.
We will talk more about each aspect in our posts over the coming weeks, linking to the here and now — but also to life beyond the crisis.
