Personal resilience is a quality that helps you overcome setbacks and allows you to not only survive but also thrive in the face of adversity. Promoting personal resilience has been found to help prevent burnout and increase life satisfaction in a range of highly taxing careers.

There are three important facets to the resilient person: (1) A commitment to finding meaningful purpose at home and/or work; (2) The belief that they can influence the outcome of events around them; and (3) The belief that both negative and positive experiences are essential to learning and growth.

The good news is that whether or not you believe that you hold the quality of resilience, there are three things you can do today to start cultivating and strengthening your personal resilience.

1. Relationships

Firstly it’s important to cultivate supportive workplace relationships, spending the most time with the people who provide mutual support and encouragement. The more connected you are with people in different areas of life (e.g., colleagues, family, friends) the less likely you are to develop depression and burnout.

2. Find Meaning

Secondly, find meaning in setbacks. When something goes wrong, reflect on what you’ve learnt because of the experience, and how that will help you in your future challenges. This helps us to replace unhelpful thoughts with resilient thoughts.

2. Maintain Balance

Lastly, try to maintain a sense of work-life balance that allows you to engage in a range of activities (e.g., physical activity, relaxation, relationships) outside of your professional life to give you a sense of meaning and general satisfaction.

Finding it hard to implement these tips? Feeling stressed or down? Contact our Sydney based psychology practice Foresight Psychology Ultimo: 02 8380 8855 / info@foresightpsychology.com to find out how we can help you recover your sense of meaning, fulfilment, and freedom.