Is Covid-19
waning your resilience?
With Spring in the air here in
South Africa, we should be looking forward to sunny days and holidays. Sadly,
many of us may be wondering how we’re going to cope with the last quarter of the
year and how much longer we can deal with burn-out and emotional stress. The question
is; where Covid-19 is taking us? Will it get better – or worse?
What we need right now is a good
dose of resilience. In other words, we need to find a way to ‘bounce back’ and
adapt to the ‘new normal’. While some people do this quite easily, others get
stuck along the way, especially when doubt begins to creep in and we
second-guess ourselves and the world around us. This includes organisations,
institutions, work, government and leadership.
South African psychologist and
economics fundi, Rod Warner, talks a lot about resilience. It’s a topic he’s
studied and written extensively about for the last eight years. Here’s an idea
of Warner’s summary of how we react, both negatively and positively, in times of
trouble.
Negative response:
1. Immediately
after the event, confidence levels drop and people feel overwhelmed saying: “I
can’t cope with this.”
2. When
adjusting to change, some people just can’t adapt and adjust
3. Over
time, they lose hope and become dysfunctional and withdrawn
4. Finally,
they get ‘stuck’ and feel helpless. They don’t find any meaning or purpose to what’s happened.
Positive response:
1.
At the start, confidence levels begin to erode
when people feel overwhelmed and unsure whether they can cope
2.
As they adjust, their weakened ability to cope
begins to strengthen. They begin to identify hope and find the strength to persevere
and adjust to new circumstances
3.
They become pro-active and try new things. Their
confidence levels go up
4.
Hidden talents are discovered and some people even
thrive when these are put into good use. Resilient people learn what’s really
important in their lives.
Resilience is not dependant on
whether you’re an optimist or a pessimist. Resilient people are survivors who
endure the same struggles, disappointments and heartaches that everybody else
does, the difference being that they have ‘character-strengths’ and tools.
What are these tools?
1.
Family
Covid-19 has taught us the importance of family. We identity
with family. Bonding with family is our strength because we don’t want to let
them down. This is a great deterrent when people feel suicidal because they think
about how this will affect their family
2.
Finding a purpose in life
Life is pointless unless there’s purpose. Finding purpose is a life-long journey that often only becomes evident in times of
trouble and tragedy
3.
Faith
People don’t have to be religious to have faith. Faith
is connecting with the universe and your inner soul. Faith can come from people
around us
4.
Perspective
Over time, humans have been programmed to survive
despite their greatest odds. Finding perspective in difficult times builds
character and often defines or who we are
5.
Generating positive feelings
This is possible by momentarily moving away from the
situation by meditating, deep breathing, prayer or distraction. It’s a great
way to cope, recharge your batteries and motivate the people around you
6.
Realistically optimistic
Planning the way forward needs to be ‘doable’, otherwise
people will set themselves up to be disappointed
7.
Reaching out to others
When we put others first, our returns are doubled. A concept many
people find it difficult to grasp.
John Locke, an English philosopher
and physician from the seventeenth century believed that “each individual
deserved to be accepted as a rational, responsible, talented, self-directed
being until proved otherwise. An individual grew from experiences and awareness
rather than being in the grip of instincts” and “The incentive can be a
positive reinforcer like candy or a negative reinforcer like a whack from a
stick.” He called it ‘behaviour shaping’.
To learn more about Rod Warner, go
to: http://buildingresilience.co.za/author/rwarner
