How to develop resilience during uncertain times
What comes to your mind when you think of the word "Resilience"?
At Bettr, we help students to develop resilience through the Holistic and Work Training Programme. Often many students would struggle when they are attached to cafes during their on the job training. Some find it difficult to adjust to the work environment, while many struggles because of sudden setbacks or crises in life. One good example was during the Circuit Breaker in 2020. When Singapore went into "lockdown", our students had difficulty performing at work because of sudden changes in their home environment. Examples of these changes are loved ones losing jobs and the need to look after young siblings because of home-based learning. As a result, students had to take on additional caregiving duties, which added to their stresses and caused their mental health to deteriorate.
So how can the students and yourself develop resilience in life?
Resilience is the ability to bounce back after a crisis or setback and move forward in hope and possibility. How one can bounce back depends on the mindset and how one chooses to look at the problem.
Our thoughts affect our emotions and thus affect what we choose to do.
When we are experiencing a crisis, our thoughts spiral into the past and the future. For example, we might hear ourselves saying this: "Why is this happening to me again?" and "I will never get out of this situation. My life will always be miserable." We might feel anxious, frustrated and even hopeless when we hold on to these two statements.
We can develop resilience by exercising optimism.
To develop resilience, we can first learn how to listen to our thoughts and be attuned to our emotions.
Pause and take some time to write down all the thoughts that come to your mind when you think of a particular obstacle or problem you are facing.
As you write down these thoughts, ask yourself how these thoughts make you feel.
When you are doing this exercise, one thing to note is not to be critical or judgmental when you write down your thoughts and feelings. Just let the thoughts and feelings flow.
Next, look at your thoughts and write down these answers beside your thoughts.
3 QUESTIONS
How long will the problem last?
Does the issue affect one area or multiple areas of my life?
Is there anything I can do about the situation that is within my control and my resources?
FOR EXAMPLE:
It will take some time for Singapore to recover from COVID-19. But once there is herd immunity, we can adapt and adjust to the new normal. This situation will not be forever.
The issue I am facing now only affects one area of my life. I still have savings to tide through.
Although I lost my job, I can learn different things, which can help me gain new job opportunities.
This exercise helps us to exercise optimism. It allows us to take responsibility in the situation, and we do not need to react or ruminate on negative thoughts.
Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash
Want to learn more? Click this link to learn more about exercising optimism by Six Seconds.