Resilience & Perseverance: How to develop these essential skills in times of change
Struggling with change?
Struggling with change? Success hinges on your ability to bounce back. Learn how to build resilience and perseverance so you can navigate uncertainty and setbacks.
Change is inevitable. It’s also scary. And if there are two sidekicks you’re going to need to navigate it, it’s resilience and perseverance.
Whether you’re leaving behind an unfulfilling corporate career, untangling yourself from systems that no longer serve you, or transitioning into entrepreneurship, resilience and perseverance will be your strongest allies.
(I know from experience that they’re the difference between feeling crushed under the weight of change and feeling empowered by it.)
Cultivate these two and you can adapt to uncertainty, bounce back from adversity, and ultimately find a purpose-driven career or business that aligns with your values.
I won’t bullsh*t you. Resilience and perseverance aren’t a given; they are skills you need to consciously develop.
So, let’s look at exactly how to do that, shall we?
Navigating change alone is tough.
Let’s work through it together
Understanding resilience and perseverance
First up, let’s do a deep dive on what resilience and perseverance actually are.
What is resilience?
Think of resilience as your ability to bounce back from setbacks and failure.
It’s about finding an inner strength and resolve when things go wrong and learning to adapt to challenges, even when they feel impossible.
Developing resilience means that, in time, the stuff that once bugged you no longer feels like such a big deal.
What is perseverance?
Put simply, perseverance is your ability to keep on keeping on when times are tough. It’s a stamina to keep working towards your goals, despite the many obstacles.
It differs from motivation, which can fluctuate. Instead, perseverance is refusing to quit, no matter what challenges are thrown your way.
Embracing the NEW!
Perseverance is your ability to keep on keeping on when times are tough. It’s a stamina to keep working towards your goals, despite the many obstacles.
What resilience and perseverance aren’t…
If there’s one thing that really p**ses me off, it’s how resilience and perseverance are terms that have been hijacked by corporates who use them for their benefit.
In corporate environments, you’re often expected to bounce back quickly in systems that expect too much of you.
This blog post isn’t about pushing yourself to the brink or ‘developing a thicker skin’ for someone else’s gain.
No, this is where you’ll learn how to use resilience and perseverance as YOUR personal resource so that you can adapt and recover during times of setback and change.
It’s about making these skills your closest allies, so you can keep pushing towards your goals, EVEN when the going gets tough.
Why resilience and perseverance are crucial in times of change
Not everyone is going to tell you this but when you’re going through a big life change, failure is going to become your most frequent visitor.
You will fail more than you’ll triumph. Following a new path will require so much from you - shedding old identities, confronting your fears, and embracing new ways of thinking.
The transition can feel isolating, uncertain, and overwhelming and without our friends resilience and perseverance it will be easy to retreat back to your comfort zone.
You’ll face many knocks, but if you slowly build resilience and perseverance you will…
Feel less threatened and intimidated by the unknown
Adapt to changes more quickly
Recover from setbacks - and even feel motivated by them
Make sustainable progress towards your goals
Need clarity on your next steps? Start here
How to develop resilience and perseverance
Reframe failure - it says nothing about your worth!
Have you ever wondered why failure really stings? It’s because too often we see it as a sign of our self-worth.
We internalise failure and failing quickly becomes ‘I AM a failure’.
What if you simply saw failure as part of the journey? After all, nobody has achieved anything great without encountering their fair share of it.
Reflect on a recent setback you experienced. When you look at it objectively, can you see how it’s not a reflection of who you are or what you’re capable of?
2. Watch your language
The language we use shapes how we think and feel about challenges and setbacks. Be mindful about how you describe the obstacles you’re facing.
“This is impossible” and “I can’t do it” are disempowering phrases that lead to helplessness. Try replacing them with “This is difficult, but I will find a way” and “I can’t do this yet, but I’ll figure it out.”
This way you’re focusing on growth, not defeat.
3.Focus on the bigger picture
A major part of developing resilience and perseverance is remembering why you started.
When things get tough, it’s easy to get bogged down in the details and lose sight of your goals.
Now is the time to visualise the end goal. Get hungry for it because when you know who you are and what you want from life, you’re more likely to keep pushing for it, no matter the setbacks.
4. See challenges as learning opportunities
I’ll be totally honest with you. There are times in my life when I’ve failed and if someone had told me to ‘see it as a learning opportunity’ I might have wanted to punch them in the face. (Or at the very least, send them a strongly worded email.)
But after experiencing my fair share of setbacks, I know that the ability to find a lesson in a challenge is the difference between sink or swim.
If you can find any lesson, no matter how small, in whatever it is you’re dealing with, you can find the determination to keep going. It’s no longer a defeat, but part of the learning process.
Instead of asking ‘Why is this happening to me?’, try asking, ‘What is this teaching me?’.
5.Be ready to pivot
I’m pretty sure you don’t need me to tell you this, but life rarely goes to plan, no matter how well you plan for it.
And that’s why flexibility and adaptability are key when it comes to developing resilience and perseverance.
I don’t know about you, but I find great relief in acknowledging that things can and - let’s be honest here - will go wrong.
When the plan changes (and trust me, it will) it’s okay to feel frustrated and to vent, but try not to get stuck there.
Take a beat, and assess the detour. (Is it really as bad as you think it is?)
Sometimes the best way forward isn’t the one you envisaged, so be open to other paths.
6.Practice emotional regulation
Nobody would blame you for throwing a bit of a tantrum when your best-laid plans go to sh*t. When setbacks happen, it’s easy (and dare I say, normal?) to get swept away by our emotions.
Resilience and perseverance aren’t about suppressing your emotions, but about learning how to manage your emotions so they don’t manage you.
What does that look like?
When the sh*t hits the proverbial fan, it’s recognising your feelings, giving yourself space to process them, and choosing how you respond.
I know what you’re thinking: Easy in theory, not so easy in practice, right?
One simple practice that makes it easier is deep breathing. Take a moment (or however long you need) to breathe deeply, centre yourself, and assess the situation.
A final thought on resilience and perseverance
Success isn’t a straight line, and whatever change you’re navigating right now, it can be helpful to remember that.
You’re going to encounter lots of twists and turns, and when it feels like all is lost, it’s resilience and perseverance that will help you bounce back and keep moving forward.
We can never fully protect ourselves from life’s curveballs, but if we develop resilience and perseverance, we can embrace the wobbly nature of change and keep going.
I see all of you!
I believe in you, even when you doubt yourself and feel you have run out of resilience and perseverance!
Struggling with change? Let’s work through it together
P.S. listen to my Podcast episode - Career Change at 40 - is it to late? Spoiler No, its Your time
