Resilience is the ability to bounce back after change. It is the speed with which things return to normal after a disruption. The more resilient people are in your organization, the better they are able to incorporate changes into their work without experiencing more stress than they can handle. To influence change, foster resilience.
There are multiple facets of resilience that you can help people with:
- Mental – Focus on positive thoughts instead of negative ones, control perspectives
- Emotional – Manage emotional reactions to the change
- Physical – Give people the opportunity to relax so they don’t get exhausted from the project
- Social – Readjust to the new social structure, negotiate relationships, develop support systems
Without resilience, people may check out, jump ship, or just be running at lower capacity because they can’t get their footing back. As a change agent, your job is not complete until people feel like they are back to normal again – a new normal that incorporates all the changes they have undergone. Help people learn to bounce back.
How might you foster resilience?
Read more of the 99 Ways to Influence Change.