5 Ways to Cultivate Resilience in Crisis
By: Helen Fitness
Tags: Crisis, Conscious Leadership, Leadership, Wellbeing, Stress

These are interesting times, aren’t they?

What used to be a background hum of stress and anxiety that many people lived with has had the volume cranked up with the development of an international health crisis.

As I speak with clients at the moment, it is clear that living with the stresses of, first, the Australian bushfires, now more globally, Covid-19, these events are truly taking their toll on their mental wellbeing.

Times of crisis require exceptional resilience and leadership — politically, commercially and from a personal perspective. Unfortunately, few of our elected leaders have what it takes to be the leaders we need. Events like this are likely to be more common owing to the changes in our environment.

As a business leader, your people are taking their emotional cues from you, just as your family is taking emotional cues if you are a parent.

HOW YOU ARE SHOWING UP MATTERS TO THOSE AROUND YOU.

So, what can you do to cultivate resilience in crisis?

Be compassionate of your people and yourself: We all respond differently to difficult times. Some people will be truly taken down by what’s going on around them; others will roll along. Be aware of that and allow people space to express their emotions of fear and anxiety. Be available to them, and be there for yourself, too. Give yourself plenty of bio-breaks to reset yourself. Seek support where you need it — you don’t have to do this alone. Communicate, communicate, communicate: Keep them abreast of what’s going on and how it’s affecting business and what you’re doing to manage the situation. Removing some of the uncertainty is important to people, especially in times of crisis. Speak of what it means for them and how the event challenges us to pivot our thoughts about how we live and work. For example, it’s an invitation to have more effective virtual meetings using video technology instead of the spider speakerphone or hiding behind email. It’s OK to say that you don’t have all the answers — no-one does; not even the authorities. Right now more than ever, it’s your role to create a sense of psychological safety as far as you’re able. Ultimately, your people (whether they’re clients or employees) should not feel the distance that physical isolation may bring. Personal leadership is imperative right now: Everyone must ensure their wellbeing is front of mind. As a stress management practice, meditation (or stillness or prayer — whatever you like to call it) does wonders for centring and creating a sense of calm in the mind. I find I also feel the physical difference when I meditate. I feel anxiety as a pile of chains sitting on my chest. When I meditate, I can feel it physically lift. A lot of my clients say they’ve tried meditation and they can’t do it. Sure—it takes practice (that’s why it’s called a practice!) Start with 2 mins and increase it a minute a day with no expectation of what it’s “supposed” to be like. As little as 12 mins a day has been proven to make a profound difference to your wellbeing. “Don’t believe the hype:” Whilst we don’t want to minimise the seriousness of the situation, be judicious with your information source. The majority of mainstream media have proven themselves time and again that their core tenet is stakeholder returns, so the more drama, the better the stock price. Get your information from the World Health Organization, your country’s Chief Medical Officer and health authority, and other reputable authorities. Tune out all else. Be grateful: With so many negative messages bouncing around, it’s important to focus on what’s great in life to balance out the situation. Start and finish the day by writing 5 things you’re grateful for, reading them and sitting with them, to get a true sense of gratitude. Sounds lame. Very powerful.

Leadership in these times is as much about how you show up for yourself personally as it is about how you show up for others. One feeds the other. All of these things can be done to continue building resilience, in crisis or not.

Human beings are a resilient bunch, and like pandemics before, this too shall pass. We may just have to make some tweaks to how we live and work and be more compassionate to ourselves and others. Oh, and wash your hands.