La resilience is the ability to facing adversity, à bouncing back after a setback (failure, stress, conflict, sudden change...) and to regain psychological balance. It is based on acceptance, emotional regulation, making sense of the ordeal and looking to the future.
It is not the absence of stress or emotion, but the ability to get through them without collapsing. In business, resilience means being able to hold out over the long term despite constant pressure and change.
Why develop this key skill?
Resilience enables :
- Managing periods of uncertainty or crisis
- Coping with change without losing your bearings
- React constructively to failure or criticism
- Maintaining motivation and commitment
- Regenerate emotionally to avoid exhaustion
Example
After being sidelined from a major project, a member of staff took the time to take stock, discussed the situation with her manager and repositioned herself on a new assignment where she was able to fulfil her potential to the full. She showed resilience.
Resilience is the art of navigating torrents.
Boris Cyrulnik
🔁 Associated skills
- Stress management
- Self-awareness
- Self-confidence
- Emotional intelligence
- Adaptability
How can we develop it?
- Learning to identify and welcome emotions without running away from them
- Working on letting go and accepting uncontrollable situations
- Practice mental regeneration routines (sleep, breathing, sport...)
- Finding meaning in the ordeal to overcome it
- Surround yourself with professional and personal support
Self-assessment
✅ I know how to bounce back from setbacks and unexpected events.
✅ I remain hopeful or lucid in difficult times.
✅ I'm able to put things in perspective that don't depend on me.
✅ I draw on my internal and external resources when the going gets tough.
✅ I learn positive lessons from my past trials.
Less than 4 positive responses? It's time to explore your inner resources and take it easy.
Read also
The soft skills that will be essential in 2025
To remember
Resilience is not a superpower: it's a human skill, nurtured by clarity, acceptance, support... and hope. It is vital in an uncertain and demanding professional world.