More resilient people can “roll with the punches” and adapt to adversity without lasting difficulties, while less resilient people have a harder time adapting to stress in their personal life and work environment.
Resilient people are more often action oriented and don’t give up easily. Usually, if they are not succeeding, they are prepared to look at a different approach to get the outcome they are seeking.
Emotional and physical resilience is, to a degree, something you’re born with. Some people, by their nature, are less upset by changes and surprises and this is usually evident in infancy and tends to be stable throughout the person’s lifetime.
Emotional resilience is also related to some factors that aren’t under your control, such as age, gender, and exposure to trauma. However, resilience can be developed if you have the will.
You need to have a desire to handle life’s challenges with greater ease, to grow from adversity, and want to turn negative events into positive ones. You need to exhibit a victor mentality and not live in the state of a victim.
Seven common traits of people who exhibit emotional resilience are:
Optimism: Resilient people can see or find the positive aspects in most situations and believe they will handle whatever comes along.
Perspective: Resilient people learn from their mistakes rather than deny them, they see obstacles as challenges to be overcome or adjust to, and find meaning in difficult situations rather than seeing themselves as a victim of uncontrollable circumstances.
Perseverance: Resilient people are often action oriented and don’t give up, even if they are not succeeding at the time or doing things perfectly. They understand the Japanese Proverb:” Fall seven times, stand up eight.”
Emotional Awareness: Resilient people can identify what they are feeling in the moment and why they are feeling that way. They are prepared to own the feeling, and then change it to support the result they desire.
Support: Resilient people understand the value of support and they find and surround themselves with supportive friends and family.
Sense of Humor: Resilient people know to laugh at themselves and life’s difficulties as it’s a way of coping with something unpleasant.
Choice: Resilient people know that “choosing not to choose, is choosing” and that they are in control of themselves most of time and that they have a choice in most situations.
