4 Ways to Build Resilience at Work

You shoulder many responsibilities every day, at home and at work. You can’t control whether a natural disaster or supply chain disruption will impact your world, but you do have to deal with their consequences. These unknowns can influence your ability to focus, adapt, and remain healthy. Fortunately, developing resiliency can help.

Building resilience at work involves acknowledging uncertainty and creating an action plan to lessen its impact on you, so you can stay focused on what you need to do day-to-day.

Here are four strategies to help you boost resiliency so you can bring your best self to work tomorrow and the days after.

1. Cultivate Your Network and Reach Out When You Need To

Privacy is important in the workplace, but isolation is unhealthy. Many of your trusted confidants are just a text or phone call away, in and outside your professional life. 

Sometimes the best ways to build resilience are by extending generosity to others. Consider the bonds you have with coworkers. Foster them. Coordinate a day to visit the office, or book a space that provides comfort and safety.

If your coworkers or friends are spread across different locations, schedule a recurring virtual meeting to catch up. Just make sure you have a strong internet connection and remember to unmute yourself when speaking.

2. Use Your Professional Resources

Another way to build resilience is by making use of resources around you, like virtual healthcare. Telehealth provides convenient access to licensed professionals and, according to a 2021 McKinsey study, people use it 38 times more now than pre-pandemic.

If you need emotional support, teletherapy could be the right choice for you. Whether you’re in a private office suite or in your car, a teletherapy session can help you process uncertainty with an expert.

Make sure to leverage other benefits, as well. Most companies offer an Employee Assistance Program, which you can use to find a good teletherapist.

If your company offers workplace flexibility, take advantage of it. If you’ve been working from home and you’re struggling to achieve a healthy work-life balance, get out of the house. 

Additionally, if your workplace offers a remote work stipend, spend it. These funds could go toward upgrading slow equipment or booking a private office space for much-needed focus.

3. Designate Blocks of Time Away from Screens

It’s become a buzzword, but “Zoom fatigue” measurably impacts your health. To mitigate its effects, consider turning off your video during conference calls. Screens are ubiquitous with work today, but you can still reduce the effects of prolonged use.

One way to do this is by giving yourself screen breaks throughout the day. A recent 2021 study from Microsoft reveals that taking breaks between video calls can actually prevent stress from building up, which enables you to stay engaged longer.

Once away from work, let yourself relax. Consider turning to screen-free entertainment like books or podcasts. An added bonus: reading can reduce stress by as much as 68 percent. This stress relief is critical for getting enough sleep, which is a necessary component of building resilience at work and at home.

4. Establish Daily and Weekly Goals

In times of uncertainty, it can feel difficult to cultivate positivity or a sense of accomplishment. Address this by giving yourself daily, weekly, or monthly goals. These can range from moving around more throughout your workday to spearheading a presentation, but these don’t just have to be work-related.

Maybe you want to run a marathon by the end of 2022 or start volunteering for a local nonprofit that you’ve previously only supported through gifts. Whatever will help you feel accomplished should go on this list.

Establishing goals for yourself demonstrates that your self-worth isn’t solely decided by your output at work. Yes, you’re a professional, but you’re a human first.

Building resilience at work takes time and repeatable processes. Setting achievable goals can help you stay motivated, which fuels your productivity and efficiency. To hold yourself accountable, keep this list posted on your office wall or somewhere you’ll see them every time you sit down.

Building Resilience at Work Is an Ongoing Process

Uncertainty is a part of every professionals’ life. This is why identifying ways to build resilience now benefits you in the future.

While stress levels remain high, there is light at the end of the tunnel. In a 2021 survey by The Harris Poll, 70 percent of US adults reported confidence that everything will work out post-pandemic. In other words, acknowledging stress doesn’t mean you can’t identify opportunities for optimism. Sometimes building resilience means taking work and life one day at a time.

If you’re looking for ways to build resilience with some privacy, book a tour to check out our proworking spaces. If there’s a professional in your life that could use a reward for their hard work, check out our gift cards for day office passes.

Picture by theschooloflife.com