Staying on Top When Your World's Upside Down

“The single most powerful predictor of the ability to withstand and rebound from adversity is the perceived support of others. The resilient leader should keep this in mind and strive to build a resilient culture.” George Everly and Douglas Strouse: The Secrets of Resilient Leadership: When Failure is Not an Option

I’ve spent many evenings over coffee and cookies with members of support groups. It’s amazing how often real magic occurs in these meetings. When people leave, they still have cancer, they are still addicted, the child they’ve lost still isn’t ever coming back to them. But they have renewed hope and courage, new ideas and new friends. The problem didn’t go away, but their ability to cope with the problem was strengthened, and they were uplifted in the process.

I often wonder why the workplace can’t be like that. What would it be like to work in a place where there was such a spirit of fellowship that at the end of the day everyone would go home physically tired and mentally drained because they’ve been working hard all day, but emotionally and spiritually uplifted by the support of a caring boss and coworkers?

Wouldn’t it be great to work in such a place? Wouldn’t it be great to work in an organization where the culture encouraged everyone to have a positive self-image, that promoted constructive self-talk, and that inspired self-belief. Take a look in the mirror: the lion looking back at you is the person who can get that started.