I’ve always thought that I was a pretty resilient person however after recently reading an article on resiliency; I realized that I have some work to do. Let me explain. You see there was a 40 year study conducted on the island of Kauai and it involved the development of children. During this period close to 700 children were observed in the area of their development. What was observed was that 1/3rd of the children grew up to be contented, successful and caring adults. The conclusion for this was that it was due to their great resiliency. These children had the ability to not let things get them down and to find happiness despite adversity.
Psychologists have discovered that resilient people share some of the same characteristics. It is based on this information that I discovered that I needed to do some more work in this area. Take a look at the information below to see if you have the characteristics of resiliency.
1) Emotional control: Changing from a negative state of mind to a positive state
of mind is not a challenge for highly resilient people.
2) Considered behavior: Resilient people are not easily distracted. They pursue
their goals with concentration and discipline. They do not give into their whims.
3) Causal analysis: In negative situations they ask “why” instead of indulging in
being angry.
4) Empathy: They are able to see things from another person’s point of view
and can change their perspective based on this information.
5) Realistic optimism: They harbor no illusions about reality. ( It is what it is).
They have an optimistic outlook on life.
6) Goal orientation: These people are always setting new goals and work at these
goals consistently.
7) Self- belief: They believe they can change themselves and their lives.
Now that you know some of the qualities of a resilient person, how many of these qualities do you exhibit or do you need improvement in areas?
After looking at these qualities and realizing that I needed to do some work in some areas to improve my resiliency, I decided to examine my practice of wellbeing to see how I could improve my resiliency. What I discovered is that I have some tremendous tools that I use and share with my clients to improve their health that can actually be used improve resiliency too. I have decided to share some of the tools that I use that are geared toward overcoming seemingly insurmountable obstacles and bounce back after a crisis.
Use the little irritations and challenges in your daily life as opportunities to train yourself to become more resilient.
Often people wish the world would change to suit them but in reality it just does not work that way. It is much easier to change yourself because you posses the ability to interpret and evaluate incidents in many different ways. You have the ultimate control over how you think and feel. If you have difficulty in this area here is something that may help you.
Find out which attitudes and convictions are responsible for your negative emotions. Once you do this ask yourself why you feel this way. Feel free to write this down in a journal or on a piece of paper. Writing it out helps you to see it in a more realistic and personal manner. Then write a new conviction opposite of what you have just written down that identifies how you want to feel. Cross out the old one and keep the new one with you where you will come across it frequently such as in your pocket, purse or wallet. Each time you come across it read it silently and once out loud.
While you can’t expect to change your old convictions immediately, when you realize how fabulous your new thoughts make you feel you will want to make the new thoughts a permanent part of your life. What is important to note is that as you do this you are increasing your flexibility while becoming more resilient.
Another tool you can use to increase your resiliency is to understand and question your negative emotions. Let me explain. The same situation may trigger different emotions in different people; the key is to understand what this reveals about you. When you know what makes you respond the way you do, it will become easier to control your emotions. For example, if you are often angry, ask yourself if it is because you feel someone has violated your rights or if it is something else. Being aware of this can be the key in permanently changing your convictions to a more positive state.
In Ayurveda, the goal is to keep the mind and body in a state of balance“bliss” as much as possible and increasing your resiliency is a great way to help your mind and body stay in a state of “bliss.”
Wishing you much health and wellness!
Namaste,
Rochele Lawson, RN,AHP,CMS
The Queen of Feeling Fabulous
twitter:@rochelelawson
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Blissful Living 4U 