When your organization is going through uncertain or challenging times, everyone on your team must embrace a Mindset of Resilience. It is the ability to continue to evolve despite changes, such as adapting to changing circumstances, incorporating new behaviors, and following new processes.
Why is a Mindset of Resilience necessary?
A mindset of resilience is not the strongest that keeps you alive, nor the most intelligent, but the most responsive to change. For example, some of these changes (epidemics, such as COVID-19 – severe economic downturn – crises and industry changes – crises and changes in technology – incidents of terrorism – natural disasters) can upend your workplace and test the mental fortitude of your team to varying degrees.
Your team needs to be flexible for your business to survive and thrive amid this type of change. Because part of the ability to adapt to change will be due to natural inclinations, and the other part is environmental. Therefore, the following question must be asked: “How can you as a leader create a positive and supportive atmosphere that can help guide your employees through a period of crises and changes?”
Linear Thinking vs. Mindset of Resilience
Why is having a mindset of resilience a challenge for many of us? Note that we are creatures that tend to be at ease. Realizing that change can lead to good results, we often resist change because it drives innovation, development, and growth. So it is natural to go back to linear thinking and processes (Step 2 – Step 3). It is our training of what to do, which generally leads to a predictable result. But all too often, linear thinking leads to employee failure in crises, especially those situations that involve multiple simultaneous changes, successive fluctuations, and uncertainty in the future. These situations require flexibility, agility, more problem solving, and thinking outside the box.
The processes your employees followed may not be relevant or sufficient to solve the problems and challenges your organization is now facing. There may be no clear beginning and end to the challenges in your organization. Linear thinking can also get us into the trap of thinking that there is only one acceptable way to do things. Which separates us from other possibilities. In this situation, linear thinking can make your employees feel “stuck” and prevent them from moving forward and achieving success in whatever is the “new normal.”
Employee Health and Safety
Don’t underestimate the emotional and physical toll crises and changes in the workplace can take on your employees, especially those with a low mindset of resilience. When changes or situations occur, of course, severe stress related to job security and finances can affect an individual’s physical health. Negative thinking can be harmful within your team, affecting productivity and quality of work. It also causes employees to become self-focused and withdrawn, which leads to a failure to help each other and identify more significant opportunities for your organization. In short, it can ultimately impair your organization’s ability to weather changes and crises.
Reinforcement of Mindset of Resilience
1. Acknowledgment of the situation
Don’t let fear and rumors take hold within your team. It is essential to unite your team to tackle the problem head-on by explaining the events. And impacts on the organization, what to expect in the future, and what your team can do now. Note that doing this step removes some of the ambiguity and uncertainty.
2. Discussion on how to control the situation
Paradoxically, understanding what we cannot control makes us more in control and considerate of our actions. So talk about what your team doesn’t handle versus what your team can manage. Note that what you cannot control is all external factors. What you can control and boost your momentum forward is your reaction to these external factors.
3. Communication and transparency
When you communicate and are transparent properly, your communication with your employees can create a sense of stability, which is vital in preventing feelings of fear and isolation. Employees need to feel that they know what is happening and find solutions.
4. Prioritizing
Explain to your team what is important now and what the priorities are. For example, you can clarify and explain your most important interests, what tasks or projects require a sense of priority, and what can set tasks or projects aside temporarily. Doing so prevents your employees from wondering what they should do. And whether they add value and avoid wasting time and resources.
5. Authorization
Delegate as many of your tasks as a leader as you can to other team members at various levels of the organizational structure. Delegating gives your employees a sense of mission and purpose, as well as security. So the last thing you want is for your employees to feel helpless and useless.
It does not lead to a mindset of resilience. Moreover, delegating tasks leads to enhanced mindset of resilience and better planning, more talent identification, more idea sharing and collaboration across the team, and new talents and assets in some employees.
6. Stay away from linear thinking
To achieve this, you have to work with your team to get things done by redefining future expectations. In addition to setting new goals, no matter how small or short term. In addition to developing a problem-solving mindset and encouraging ideas, recommendations, and creativity.
7. Follow up on employee performance and care
Monitor your team regularly to see its performance. You have to help your employees, show them interest, and nip any negative situations in the bud. If your employees show signs of diligence, you have options ready to relieve stress. It should be one essential component of your organizational culture.
Much of an employee’s mindset at work has to do with their relationship with their leader and future manager. As a leader, the more warm, open, caring, and trusting you are, the more secure your employees will feel despite the uncertainty.
If the employee needs more time to adjust, be flexible. Every employee deserves time to assess their mindset of resilience and make adjustments. Consider how to meet your employees’ personal needs without negatively affecting your business. Or consuming too many resources during times of crisis.
Changes can be complicated for your employees. And it raises the question of everything familiar to them in the workplace and even affects their physical and emotional well-being. Moreover, negative feedback can prevent your business from weathering a crisis. For this reason, as a leader, you must foster a mindset of resilience in your employees.
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