The ‘Hammer Strikes’ we are willing to take!
How many hammer strikes are needed to drive a nail into the wall? It does take quite a few, isn’t it! If you were the nail that is being driven into the wall, how many hammer strikes would you take before you say “Enough”? That would be a hard question.
Often in the corporate world, you come across situations, experiences, and people who behave like the hammer driving the nail. It does take away your ability to function in a seamless manner. You know those experiences and people who are your triggers. Success in those particular situations depends on how resilient you are during the hammer strikes. This presents the original question, “What is Resilience?”
It would be helpful to first look at what resilience is NOT. Resilience does not mean trying hard to be like a rock in every situation. It does not mean ‘never falling down’ as maybe commonly perceived. Resilience involves recovering from every challenge and low that corporate life, or life in general, throws at you, quickly. It involves bouncing back from challenges and adversities with ease, grace and resolve, and not giving up. This probably sounds like an instant coffee thing. However, it is a long term solution that needs patience, focus, and careful application.
What are some of the ingredients that contribute to a resilient outlook?
Being Fully Present in the Moment
Before you go rolling your eyeballs upwards thinking “not another mindfulness solution again!!!”, invite yourself to observe this sentence in spite of all the thoughts racing in your mind RIGHT NOW. That is the simplicity of being fully in the moment. It helps in staying with life that is happening in the world rather than meandering in your mind where the hammer strokes can be easily felt.
Imagine for a moment you are on a sales call with a prospect and your prospect mentions that the product is far from interesting. What would be the first reaction? Now, that’s one situation where being fully present allows for focusing on why the customer feels that way rather than reacting to the customer’s comment about our product. Remember, a solution only sprouts in the mind of someone who is fully present to the problem that is at hand.
Focusing on the Next Immediate Step only
After centering yourself with the first step, the next step is to focus on the ‘Next Immediate Step’ only. Imagine your manager calls you and confirms that the project report submission deadline has been advanced from next week to this week. What would be the first thing you do? In those moments, it is helpful to stay centered and focus on the next immediate step. It is useful to re-do your milestone progression chart of the project first thing before you do anything else. Focusing on just the next step allows for unnecessary thoughts to hi-jack your flow and improves the possibility of a solution for the challenge.
Developing a Supportive Community of Friends/Co-workers
You don’t have to go through challenges all by yourself. Sometimes, it is nice to fall back and rely on a group of friends/co-workers who share your value system, for you to bounce back. What a relief, if you have nurtured a group of friends/co-workers who can help you in difficult situations and lay before you a tried and tested path that can give you a clear direction during challenging times. So, don’t forget to ask for help. Asking for help is not a weakness. It is definitely a sign of courage and grit.
Relying on the Power of your Spirit
To bounce back you need a solid base or foundation. To bounce back from every challenge that life presents you, then a major aspect you may like to explore is to familiarize yourself with the power of your Higher Self or Higher Consciousness and that is within you. Knowing that this strength is always available to you, you only need to remember and practice drawing from it. The more you rely on this resilience within, the more quickly you are able to come back to your center, from every challenge with ease. In simple terms, your spiritual well-being at every step determines how you face challenges.
Some ways in which you can discover your true Core are:
• Taking time out of from work and exploring a new skill, or cultivating a hobby unrelated to your career, traveling to spend time with yourself
• Laughing often increasing your inner joy – no reason, no season for joy and love
• Meditation or following a spiritual practice on a regular basis
• Cultivating qualities such as positivity, discipline, self-sufficiency, acceptance, communicating with love and respect, managing anger, facing fears, giving up the victim mentality
• Getting rid of emotional and mental baggage
• Developing a sense of detachment with the drama of life
• Remembering you are All-Powerful because you are divine
Your resilience and ability to bounce back expands when you are comfortable allowing yourself to experience moments of weakness and challenges. Allow your true inner strength to shine and have a resilient day and week ahead!
