Resilience

Fall 2010

Resilience: coping with and recovering from trials, setbacks, and stress. Explore ways to bounce back from adversity, take charge and flourish.

“When life hands you lemons, make lemonade.” Resilience is the ability to make something good out of something bad. Develop resilience by learning to regulate your emotions and focusing on opportunities for growth and the light at the end of the tunnel. Learning to cultivate resilience can help you bounce back from trial and trauma, to thrive and emerge stronger than ever before.

Greetings!

Welcome to the fall issue of the Leap Forward Coaching, LLC Newsletter which is inspired by clients who have worked with me to achieve richer and more fulfilling lives. I hope you find at least one suggestion, thought, or idea to inspire and encourage you.

In this edition, our topic is Resilience: coping with and recovering from trials, setbacks, and stress. Explore ways to bounce back from adversity, take charge and flourish.

May your New Year be filled with peace, joy, and fulfillment,

Melanie Ott

Inspirational Quotes

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall. ~Confucius

Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it. ~Helen Keller

Adversity has the effect of eliciting talents, which in prosperous circumstances would have lain dormant. ~Horace

Resilience: Bounce Back From Adversity

Resilience is the ability to roll with the punches, to bounce back from, or adjust easily to misfortune or change. Everyone faces occasional setbacks and problems. Resilience is the difference between people who fall apart under stress and those who rise above it.

A number of factors or characteristics contribute to resilience, including:

• Supportive connections and relationships with others,
• Viewing setbacks as temporary and passing,
• Maintaining a positive outlook despite setbacks, and
• The ability to make realistic plans and take steps to achieve them.

Author Roger Pearman says flexibility is the key to effectively cultivating resilience. "It means keeping your emotions from hijacking your good reason, being able to detach yourself in order to step back and gain perspective, and understanding that your past and your personal qualities are resources to inform your next choice."

The expression, "When life hands you lemons, make lemonade." refers to resilience: the ability to make something good out of something bad. An important element of resilience is acting in the face of uncertainty. Resilience won’t make your problems go away but it can help you see past them, handle stress more effectively, and find renewed enjoyment in life.

Your need for resilience may be spurred by the current economic climate, or by personal or career struggles. Regardless of your situation, resilience is developed by learning to regulate your emotions and focusing on opportunities for growth and the light at the end of the tunnel.

Tips For Cultivating Resilience

Try these tips for cultivating resilience to train yourself to bounce back from times of stress and trauma.

• Make personal connections. Spend time with loved ones and friends to gain support and encouragement. Confide in others and ask for and accept their help.
• Find meaning. Develop a sense of purpose for your life. Having a meaningful and fulfilling direction can help you focus on the future and experience a greater sense of well-being.
• Count your blessings. Be mindful of the good things in your life. Literally make a list. Consider spending five minutes each day reflecting upon and expressing your gratitude for the positive aspects in your life.
• Accept change as part of life. Recognize that some dramatic life changes cannot be avoided or altered. Accepting what has changed can help you focus on the elements of your life which you can control. Keep in mind that all circumstances are temporary.
• Maintain a hopeful outlook. Staying positive during bad times can be difficult, but maintaining an optimistic outlook enables you to remember and expect good things in your life. Find something good in each day that signals a change for the better.
• Take decisive action. Overcome the "stuck" feeling you may experience during a difficult situation by creating an action plan. Brainstorm possible solutions. Set realistic, positive goals and then work to achieve them. Focus on your progress. Taking charge of your actions can help you feel in greater control of your life.
• Assist others in need. Reaching out and helping others facing trauma can shift your focus off of your own trials. You may benefit by learning how others cope and work through challenges.
• Nurture yourself. During times of pain or stress it may be all too easy to neglect your needs. Eat well, get adequate rest, and exercise regularly. Engage in activities you enjoy. Self care keeps your mind and body primed to deal with life’s challenges.

Further Reading on Multitasking & Mindfulness …

• The Road to Resilience (American Psychological Association)
• Resilience: Bouncing Back (Psychology Today)
• Building Resilience in a Turbulent World (Vision.org)
• A Question of Resilience (The New York Times)

Focus on the Future …

What do these important issues have to do with you? Cultivating resilience is a life journey that can help you not only withstand and bounce back from periods of trial and trauma, but to thrive and emerge stronger than you were before.

At Leap Forward Coaching, LLC, we have a process that will empower you to live more skillfully by increasing your awareness of the forces and factors shaping your self-image, worldview and your ability to achieve your full potential for success and happiness. By guiding you through your life as it unfolds, we can help you become more fully aware of your strengths, resilience and resourcefulness.

Leap Forward Coaching, LLC

www.leapforwardcoach.com