In the last two years, more and more organizations seem to be recognizing the merits of improving resilience in the workplace. But the question is: How?
Here are 10 approaches managers can employ to help build their teams’ resilience amid continued changing and uncertain times:
1. Create strong colleague relationships. A powerful team rapport isn’t something that happens overnight, but deeper team connections can offer stronger support during challenging times. Take an interest in what’s happening in team members’ lives outside of work.
2. Foster positive mental attitudes. If you don’t think of yourself as a naturally optimistic person, taking a moment to stop and think before you respond to situations can be a surprisingly simple way to help change your mindset.
3. Reflect. Reviewing good experiences at work helps to identify positive behaviors that helped you achieve your goals.
4. Learn from setbacks. When we have a bad day at work, it can be tempting to forget it ever happened. But revisiting events and behaviors can help you spot behaviors you could work on to help you react more positively in the future.
5. Embrace flexibility. Expecting your team to work in the same way means team members don’t have the opportunity to explore and share other ways of thinking. A flexible approach may trigger new, more effective ways of working and learning that can help to keep things moving.
6. Set daily goals. Break down your to-list into smaller, daily goals each morning and celebrate each of your successes as you achieve it.
7. Encourage regular breaks. Research shows that we need brief breaks to protect our energy, mental clarity, creativity, and focus. The Pomodoro technique, for example, mixes short bursts of activity with regular breaks to help enhance well-being.
8. Organize non-work bonding. Teambuilding sessions, volunteering, retreats, and social get-to-gethers can help promote psychological safety within your team.
9. Share the art of mindfulness. Team mindfulness sessions can help to regain control of your thoughts and help your team embrace work more positively, especially when they are feeling doubtful about the future.
10. Check in regularly. Help your team practice self-evaluation skills—ask them what they’re proud of, and where things could be better.
