As we head to the end of another year I have been reflecting on how we have done this year compared to previous years. We are definitely in a much better place as a business and as a team. This is a little surprising as we’ve had quite a tough year, we’ve launched a new branch to our business and our work in the mining industry has been impacted by the economic downturn across the industry. So why are we doing better? I have asked myself and our team and the bottom line is that we have built our resilience.
According to the Oxford Dictionary, Resilience is defined as: The capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness.
Chatting about resilience with my team, we all agree that we are certainly tougher and stronger this year, even in the face of some real challenges.
There are a number of reasons why we are much stronger, the leading five reasons are as follows:
1. Adaptability
Even with most detailed plans and strategies in place, things can change very quickly. Deals fall over at the last minute, people let you down, cash flow is challenged. In business you can expect the unexpected. It’s how you deal with these challenges as a leader that will impact the resilience of your business and your team. Share the disappointment with your team, but don’t falter. Include a positive affirmation as to how you will move forward.
2. Positivity
Don’t take it personally. There are ups and downs in all businesses, and in life for that matter. We all need to be able to ‘roll with the punches’ as they say. Your own coping skills will be contagious and you want to infect your team with a ‘we can do it’ attitude. Remember that both positive and negative energy is going to grow if you feed it. Make a choice to be positive.
3. A shared vision and purpose with our team
If you want to build resilience in your organisation you need to focus on providing a positive culture for your team. Reminding your team of where you are going and how you will get there will take the sting out of disappointment.
4. We have learned from our mistakes
After a disappointing result we get together as a team and do a ‘how do we take responsibility?’ exercise. It can be quite empowering to take ownership of what took place and how you played a role in it. It is also great to have the lesson learned it hindsight for future reference.
5. We accept that we are not always in control
Sometimes the situation is just beyond your control, there was nothing that you could have done to prevent the outcome. Companies close down, economic situations change, projects get cancelled. Again, you can use the gift of hindsight to review what you did, how well prepared where you? Could you have changed the outcome? If the answer is no then simply acknowledge and accept that it was beyond your control and move onwards and upwards.
Like many growth factors in business and in life it comes down to implementation. If you want to build a resilient business then you need to focus and take action. In the end it comes down to choice.
