Resilience is key when dealing with problems like failed projects, an overbearing boss, and criticism in your job. Open to a change in career? Browse Guardian Jobs and find your perfect role today. Human beings respond in different ways to external forces. Even a minor knock back can weaken self-esteem in some people with a measurable impact on their work performance. Others weather storms with little or no effect on their efficiency or sense of wellbeing. Some crumble, some cope, some not only survive but thrive under considerable pressure. This is resilience. We want to know what drives it, why some people lack it, and whether it can be strengthened. Career resilience is a strategy for building layers of protection to ensure that your work performance and personal reputation are only temporarily dented when things go wrong, so you rediscover strength and energy after personal setbacks. It applies to common work and career problems such as failed projects, dealing with an overbearing boss, organisational politics and dealing with rejection and criticism. If your working life lacks resilience you're more likely to get locked into negative thinking, blame yourself in most scenarios, and put your best energy into self-doubt rather than achieving results that get you noticed. Here are some top tips to help you construct a more resilient career:
Blame yourself only when you can learn something There is an important difference between blaming yourself and taking responsibility. Blame is a childlike fear of contempt or ridicule; taking responsibility is an adult response framed around a shared understanding that things go wrong for a wide variety of factors. Blame points at one person, responsibility points at contexts. It doesn't mean that you are the sole cause of a problem. Blame is often very disconnected from facts. Be clear about what has happened. You may learn a lot from a near miss that has only light consequences. Accepting responsibility is about looking to the future and deciding what can be improved. Recognise the point where healthy reflection tips into beating yourself up. Looking back is fine for short periods, but "failing forwards" is about beginning the next project, starting the next day. Do review, but only once, and not for too long. Set aside time to look at a situation or event, ideally alongside someone who witnessed events. Record up to three things you would do differently if the situation came up again. If the list is any longer you won't do anything about it, and you'll keep adding to it. If you need coaching, training or a pep talk to help you do those things, arrange that now.
Don't listen to 2am voices Even if you're not an insomniac, small issues can become big concerns at two o'clock in the morning. You might find yourself worrying about a difficult meeting or regretting things that happened yesterday. Before long your mind creates a bigger picture of everything that's going wrong. This negative self-talk may sometimes reveal important learning, but it's often a time when you wallow in a particularly negative caricature of yourself, taking one event and using it as an excuse to label yourself. Listen carefully what comes up, and recognise that it represents the lowest point of a confidence cycle. More than anything else, don't allow thoughts to translate into actions. Most decisions made at this time of night say no, rather than yes, seeking escape or avoidance. Sometimes it's a very basic desire for revenge. The most career damaging emails are sent in this state of mind. It's all too easy in a sleep-deprived state to accidentally press send and to broadcast a message that you know will sound like a fit of pique or crazed nonsense when you read it at breakfast time.
Fix the things you can and accept the things you can't If you worry about getting everything done, think about the consequences; the better you perform, the more new tasks you'll be given. You can go from star performer to swamped in a month. Trying to complete an ever-lengthening task list is a recipe for burnout, faulty judgement, and things start to go seriously wrong. Working wisdom is often about discernment – the ability to adopt a quieter state of mind or to teach yourself how to judge things carefully – sometimes this simply means working a little more slowly. The danger with working in an overload state is that you only see how busy you are and how stressed you feel, and you don't take time out to ask two important questions: how much of this matters? Am I missing the things that do matter?
Stop worrying you're a fake
"Imposter syndrome" makes people feel they're phoneys – despite overwhelming evidence of their competence. We dismiss achievements as mere luck, chance timing, or even a clerical error. This doubt can prevent you from putting yourself forward for interesting roles or projects. Recognise that the feeling is perfectly normal, and smile at the enormous creativity you put into trashing your own confidence. Imposterism creeps in where you are isolated. People who work closely with other team members don't feel like a fake so much because they receive fairly constant feedback. Those at, or close to, the very top of organisations often have no one around to tell them they are doing a good job, or to steer them towards more constructive behaviours. Find a trusted mentor to discuss this problem with openly. Recruit supporters who will remind you of your tangible achievements.
Source: read://https_www.theguardian.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fcareers%2Fpressure-four-ways-cope-wrong-work-job
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