They cultivate resilience—and so can you. In today’s fast-paced, high-stakes environment, it’s not enough to lead with purpose alone; resilience, your ability to bounce back and find a way through the toughest circumstances, is what truly makes a difference. This episode dives into the essentials of resilience at work, exploring how you can inspire it within yourself and your team. Learn from leadership expert Simon T. Bailey as he shares insights that will help you boost productivity, reduce stress, and stay grounded—even when facing challenges head-on.

In this episode, you’ll gain:

• Practical self-coaching questions to cultivate resilience and self-awareness every day.
• Tools to create meaningful connections and build a human-centered leadership style.
• Strategies to set boundaries and protect your energy, allowing you to lead with clarity and focus.

Take a few minutes for yourself—press play and uncover the steps to becoming a resilient leader today!

Highlights of Building Resiliency with Simon T. Bailey

[00:00:00] – Setting the Stage for Resiliency
Simon and host David Dye open the conversation with a powerful idea: people are learning how to be resilient by watching their leaders. Building resiliency begins with modeling presence, not just purpose, in the way you show up every day.

[00:02:18] – Learning Leadership at Disney
Simon recalls his early leadership lesson from a Disney executive: “Know who you are and why you’re here.” This revelation about creating moments rather than just doing a job was a pivotal step in his journey of building resiliency.

[00:04:57] – Inspiring Resilience in Your Team
A surprising statistic reveals that 82% of working Americans believe great leaders inspire resilience in others. Simon explains that building resiliency isn’t about giving directions but inspiring others by asking questions that lead to self-discovery.

[00:09:00] – Practical Questions for Self-Coaching
Simon introduces three practical questions to help leaders build resiliency: “What went well today?”, “What is right about you?”, and “How did you grow?” These questions foster a mindset of resilience by focusing on personal strengths and daily reflections.

[00:15:08] – The “Hurry, Worry, Ready, and Steady” Framework
Simon describes four personality archetypes—Hurry, Worry, Ready, and Steady—as a way of understanding how people approach challenges. This framework helps listeners identify their own tendencies in building resiliency.

Keys to Becoming Your Own Coach

[00:17:59] – The Importance of Asking “What Are You Feeling?”
Simon emphasizes the value of asking, “What are you feeling?” as a tool for self-reflection and emotional awareness, which are crucial steps in building resiliency. Leaders who understand their own emotions are better equipped to connect with their teams.

[00:24:17] – Learning to Be Vulnerable as a Leader
Simon shared a pivotal moment when he received tough feedback early in his career, pushing him to be vulnerable and open to growth. Embracing vulnerability, he argues, is essential for building resiliency in leadership.

[00:27:37] – Setting Boundaries to Protect Your Yes
Building resiliency includes setting boundaries. Simon explains the importance of saying “no” to protect what you value. Saying no to distractions allows you to stay focused on your core goals and commitments.

[00:32:15] – Navigating Others’ Reactions Without Losing Focus
Simon discusses how leaders are not responsible for others’ reactions. Building resiliency means focusing on your purpose and priorities rather than trying to manage how others may feel about your decisions.

[00:41:08] – Surfing Through Life’s Uncertainties
Using surfing as a metaphor, Simon explains that life will knock you off balance, but building resiliency is about getting back on the board. Each new wave is a chance to apply what you’ve learned and approach challenges with confidence.

The post Building Resiliency: How to Become Your Own Coach appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.

As 2022 draws to a close, I’m curious, what’s been a source of inspiration and strength for you this year?

In our final #askingforafriend of the year, I share some savvy inspiration from human-centered experts, and I’d love to add yours to the mix. I’ve been collecting these thoughtful clips and put them together in the video below so that you can pull the best of the best from our 2022 content…and jumpstart your 2023 with human-centered inspiration.

For me, a massive source of inspiration and strength has been being able to deeply connect with people, build new relationships, and strengthen important bonds with friends and family.

We were forced to get creative in how we connect with each other over the last two years, and I’m grateful for the technology to do that. And a huge source of inspiration and strength was being able to reconnect in person– which I realized how much I cherished and really need in my life.

Our clients have massively inspirated us this year…we are so grateful to receive their trust and establish these important partnerships to grow leaders.

So where do these powerhouse leadership development experts source their inspiration and strength? Listen in to find out!

• Marchall Goldsmith, author of The Earned Life and leadership coach
• Julie Winkle Giulioni, author of Promotions Are So Yesterday, speaker and consultant
• Amer Kaissi, author of Humbitious, professor and executive leadership coach
• Jess Pettitt, author of Good Enough Now, and diversity and leadership speaker
• Colin Hunter, author of Be More Wrong and leadership coach
• Chad Littlefield, author of Ask Powerful Questions and speaker
• Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg, author of What’s Your Problem and innovation specialist
• Jennifer Moss, author of The Burnout Epidemic, speaker and workplace culture strategist
• Jean Marie Digiovanna, speaker, trainer and coach
• Whitney Johnson, thought-leader, keynote speaker, executive coach, and consultant
• Rita McGrath, author of Seeing Around Corners, speaker and consultant

What would you add? What’s been a source of inspiration and strength for YOU this year? Comment below and let me know.

Other related articles:

A Better New Year at Work? A Fresh Start to Deeper Human Connection (letsgrowleaders.com)

What are You Noticing? Insights and Observations as the Year Comes to an End (letsgrowleaders.com)

The post Inspiration and Strength: What Inspires You and Give You Hope? appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.

To face a world in constant flux, and prepare for a future of uncertainty at work, you need more than resiliency. April shares practical ways to live your life so that you’re prepared to better cope with (and thrive) no matter what comes at you.

In this week’s Asking For a Friend, I talk with April Rinne, author of Flux: 8 Superpowers for Thriving in Constant Change.

8 Superpowers to help you prepare for Uncertainty at Work (and Life)

1. Run slower.
2. See what’s invisible.
3. Get lost.
4. Start with trust.
5. Know your “enough.”
6. Create your portfolio career.
7. Be all the more human.
8. Let go of the future.

Watch Karin Hurt and April Rinne on Asking For a Friend LIVE

What inspired this book?

1:30 April recounts the moment over 25 years ago when her parents passed away from a car accident while she was in college.

4:00 How do you live your life prepared for whatever happens (not just respond.)

4:15 We tend to think about reacting to change. That’s not how flux works. It is about reshaping our relationship to change from the inside out. Change can be relentless.

5:15 People tend to think of resilience as elastic. It can also be plastic/clay. You are shaping new forms. Flux is more like plastic – we are forging new territory. There will be long periods of experimentation and iteration.

6:54 A look at getting grounded in yin. From a leadership perspective, the problems come from yang overdose. We need to balance that with more yin. Every person has yin and yang.

Let’s Talk about the Flux Superpowers

9:40 Eight superpowers to thrive during uncertainty at work.

10:15 April’s favorite superpower especially for this audience. The one that pulls them all together is “Start with Trust.”

11:30 “Learning How to Create Your Portfolio Career” is about seeing your career not as a path to pursue but a portfolio to curate

12:12 “Know Your Enough” gets at the heart of our obsession with more. It’s about what is your point of sufficiency – about not having to constantly strive for more (i.e. income, lifestyle, power.)

16:16 The Portfolio Career – set a directional intention but be open to emerging possibilities along the way; travel in a “cattywamply” way – purposeful toward a destination yet unknown

22:24 Don’t be the best, be the only. (Jerry Garcia) Only you are the combination of skills that you have.

24:20 What do you recommend to people who have been burned by negative circumstances in the past? When trust seems broken, assume good intent. Reset your default assumptions. “The average individual is trustworthy.” Also thinking about why/how the mistrust happened is helpful for growth and the future.

29:13 The book will be released August 24, 2021 (already available in audiobook.)

We are in a world in flux. There will be uncertainty at work. When everything is in flux, everything can benefit from a flux mindset.

See These Other Resources For Dealing with Uncertainty at Work and Life

7 Ways to Lead Well During Times of Uncertainty and Change

What’s Going to Happen Next

Your turn.

What would you add as #9? How do you prepare your heart and mind for uncertainty at work (and life)?

The post How Do I Help My Team Thrive During Uncertainty at Work? appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.

Today on Asking For a Friend, we continue the conversation we started in Thriving in the New Abnormal, How to Support Your Team about how to support your team as we transition to the new abnormal.

3:35 We’re so close …  and yet as we look at the next 6 months it’s not looking particularly normal

:50 Dr. Leo Flanagan on Resiliency. We need to prepare for the new abnormal. Just because people are physically safe does not mean they’re feeling psychologically safe. And we need to recognize that people are coming off a period of intense stress and change.

1:17 According to the CDC 41% of us are dealing with signs of anxiety and depression. It’s not going to go away in an instant with a second vaccine.

2:10 How are you helping your team move into this next phase?

1. Make it safe for people to talk about their feelings (including anonymously).
2. Include people in the planning.
3. Give people agency in the future they are creating.
4. Ask them for their ideas.

How Do I Support My Team in This New Normal That Isn’t Normal?

Related Articles on How to Support Your Team

Psychological Safety: Why People Don’t Speak Up at Work

Psychological Safety or More Courage: What Your Team Needs Now

Thriving Through the Ongoing Pandemic

The post How to Best Support Your Team (Asking For a Friend Video) appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.

If 2020 has left you reeling, we want to encourage you with hope.

Recently, I interviewed someone who knows adversity well. Jason Redman is a retired Navy Seal who was shot several times and severely wounded when he and his team found themselves in an ambush. Following that ambush and a business failure, Jason became a student of resiliency and how to overcome adversity.

Whether the pandemic slammed your business or you face some other monumental, unexpected setback, you have to find a way to move beyond anger, guilt, emptiness, or pain. It’s not only possible to overcome adversity, but it’s imperative. In the full interview, Jason shared a five-step REACT process that gives you the tools to accept your circumstance, choose action over inaction, and triumph over adversity.

REACT Method to Overcome Adversity

R: Recognize – that you’re in a crisis.

Name it. It’s too easy to keep pushing or live in denial of the crisis. Stop, and acknowledge reality so that you can deal with it.

E: Evaluate – your assets and position.

What tools do you have in your toolbox to help with this problem? And remember your team here – you don’t need all the answers. Bring your team together and ask the right questions to help them contribute answers.

A: Assess – your option and outcomes.

Pause. Take a beat. With the time you have, breathe and consider your options and the possible consequences of each. Don’t rush to action without this pause.

C: Choose – a direction and communicate it.

When you commit to a course of action and use that 5×5 communication to ensure your team knows the direction, you will boost morale and energy (yours and your team’s).

T: Take action – follow-through.

It’s time to act. Movement builds momentum. You decided with the best information you had available. Get moving!

You can listen to the full interview here:

Take Care

Redman’s REACT process doesn’t mean you should ignore your emotions.

Some of the challenges life gives us are incredibly difficult, and you need to allow your grief, frustration, anger, and sadness to do their work. Maybe at the moment, you use REACT to get through the immediate crisis, but be aware that you will need to take care of your whole self and process the emotions of those challenges.

Do what you need to take care of yourself.

Your Turn

We’d love to hear from you: when you’re faced with those unexpected crises, what is your best strategy to overcome adversity, restore your confidence, and build momentum?

The post 5 Steps to Overcome Adversity and Thrive in the New Year appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.

The post Overcoming Adversity – Interview with Jason Redman appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.

The rocky mountain air was crisp with fall chill–a perfect time for a fire in the wood-burning stove. We placed the logs on top of the kindling, held the flame beneath the wood, and … nothing happened. Our fire-to-be had the same problem that plagues many leaders who want a more resilient and creative team.

The logs were too close together.

Fire needs oxygen to ignite and spread, but the tightly packed wood didn’t allow the air to move freely through them. We removed two logs, rearranged the others into a more open stack, and within seconds had a warm and inviting fire.

Oxygen for Teams

As we wrote Courageous Cultures, we spoke with Jason Fried, co-founder of Basecamp, about how leaders can build more creative teams.

He observed that leaders who are frustrated when people don’t creatively solve problems should pay attention to workload.

Creative problem solving, he said, “requires time to think, consider, and marinate. In most companies, there’s no time for that. Calendars are chock full and leaders don’t understand that they’ve spread people too thin.”

For teams working remotely or under heavy pandemic-induced workloads, this tendency to pack the day with wall-to-wall appointments increased.

Like the logs packed too tightly to catch flame, calendars packed too tightly don’t permit creative problem-solving. It also erodes resiliency by taking away the recovery time people need to process their emotions and catch their breath.

Creativity and resiliency require margin—space in the calendar to think, reflect, solve problems, and build relationships.

How to Create Margin for a More Resilient and Creative Team

1) Start with Self-Reflection: How do you view margin?

There are no easy answers to how you can build in a margin for reflection, but to start making this shift, consider how you would react if you encountered a productive team member standing at the window, staring into space.

You ask, “Hey, what are you up to?” and they reply, “Thinking.”

Consider how your words and actions reinforce that making time for white space to think is not just okay, but a valuable part of many of your employee’s jobs.

2) Take Action

We’ve worked with leaders and teams around the globe who have found different ways to create more margin and, ultimately, more creativity and resiliency. Here are a few strategies they’ve used and that you can use:

• Meeting-free days or half-days
• 90-minute interruption-free blocks of time each morning and/or afternoon
• For teams across time-zones: no meetings scheduled before or after specific hours.
• Scheduling all meetings in 10- or 15-minute increments (eg: a 40-minute meeting rather than 60) to create automatic buffer time between appointments at the top or bottom of the hour
• Schedule white space – make appointments on your calendar for the thinking time needed to solve problems and perform work on projects
• Limit single-issue interruptions
• Celebrate and highlight different ways people use their margin. Eg “I found Gale staring out the window yesterday and she was thinking about how we might improve the information we give our suppliers so they can respond more quickly. It was a great idea and …”
• Flexible schedules that allow people to work when they can be their most productive. The time spent between work on other life-tasks provides time to reflect and think about work-related challenges.
• Workload reviews during one-on-ones. Pay attention to deadlines, expected workloads, margin needed to allow for interruptions and emerging issues.
• Mini-team masterminds (we share more about this technique here).

You may even want to bring your team together and use the U.G.L.Y. technique to address this strategic issue. Begin by asking these four questions: “With regard to creating more margin in our schedules …”

3) Follow Through

As with any intention, schedule the finish. Create a specific time you will meet with your team to evaluate how your new intentions are working – perhaps one week after you implement them.

Be prepared to offer both encouragement and accountability to help everyone internalize that “this is how people like us” do things. If you’ve had a no-margin culture, it will take time to get everyone used to breathing again. Stick with it—you’ll have a more resilient and creative team.

Your Turn

We’d love to hear from you: What is your favorite way to create more margin for your team to think, reflect, process, and recover?

The post One Way to Cultivate a More Resilient and Creative Team appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.

Welcome back to the Let’s Grow Leaders Frontline Festival. This month’s festival is about overcoming setbacks, resiliency, and lessons learned. Thanks to Joy and Tom Guthrie of Vizwerx Group for the great pic and to all our contributors!

Resiliency and Overcoming Setbacks

2021 Update on Resiliency

According to Chip Bell of Chip Bell Group, customers love service providers with a “never say die” attitude. When that resilience is part of their manner, customers feel they have an advocates working on their behalf. He shares a guest post he wrote for Eileen McDargh with more on the topic of “Service Resiliance.”  Follow Chip

Susan Mazza of Random Acts of Leadership  reminds us that if we want to set ourselves up to be resilient enough to pursue dreams through to realization, it is critical that we get clear about more than just goals–but also why those goals truly matter.  Follow Susan.

On the best books I’ve read on resiliency is Option B by Sheryl Sanburg and Adam Grant. What concept I found particularly useful was the 3 traps that sabotage resliency: Permanance, pervasiveness, and personalization. You can read more about the 3 Ps In Eileen McDargh’s post as well.

Given the horrific parade of disasters in recent times, this post from Eileen McDargh of The Energizer looks at what survivors can do AND what those who wish to help others can do. Follow Eileen.

In this 20 minute podcast interview, Jesse Stoner of Seapoint Center for Collaborative Leadership interviews Eileen McDargh, who explains how resiliency is a life skill that supports you not only during challenges and times of adversity, but also during times of opportunity and growth. Resiliency is not about bouncing back, it’s about bouncing forward.   Follow Jesse.

Julie Winkle Giulioni of DesignArounds advises that the ability to learn, develop and grow is today’s only sustainable competitive advantage. As a result, effective leaders appreciate the need for learning agility.  Follow Julie

Sean Glaze of Great Results Teambuilding advises that we apply and repeat three amazingly simple ways to help our team, so they will be far more likely to thrive through change and overcome common pitfalls often encountered on the path to progress. He also provides a second post about invisible fences that limit your team.  Follow Sean.

John Hunter of Curious Cat Management Improvement thinks the key is to actively seek to learn and create robust systems.  The best way to be resilient and overcome setbacks is to actively seek knowledge and improve.  Don’t try to explain why failures were unavoidable or blame others (which are both common) or ignore them.  Instead seek out the reasons why the causes of the result (systems in the organization, your thought process, the actions you took…) led to the problem and seek to change so the future will have better results.   Follow John.

Lisa Kohn from Thoughtful Leaders Blog presents leadership lessons of yellow birds, where she shares that there are always simple ways available to us to find meaning and motivation to be the best leader — and person — we can be. We just have to be open and look for them.  Follow Lisa.

Paula Kiger of Big Green Pen shares an anecdote about how she and her daughter tackled replacing a doorknob together,  rather than hiring a locksmith. It gave them renewed confidence, mother-daughter bonding, and lessons that applied to more than home repair. Follow Paula.

Alli Polin of Break the Frame advises that we can never predict when life will feel like it’s crashing down. She offers encouragement to open the window to what’s next with these three lessons on resilience and change.  Follow Alli.

Jon Mertz of Thin Difference gives a charge: Leaders, take note. There is enough chaos in the world. We do not need to create more. Good leaders know how to find the center in chaos and focus on what matters most. That’s how we can make positive change. Follow Jon.

Lessons and Learning

On her recent trip to Scotland, Shelley Row of Shelley Row Associates applied some important concepts to scaling difficult tasks. Follow Shelley

Mike Kappel of Patriot Software shares his hard-learned lessons on working with a team and how small business leaders can improve their team building skills.  Follow Mike

Thomas Mangum of ThomasMangum.com shares about how power doesn’t make you a leader, caring does.  Follow Thomas.

Beth Beutler of H.O.P.E. Unlimited offers some ponderings about the time when the mistake–was hers.  Follow Beth.

Wally Bock of Three Star Leadership shares what he learned–and didn’t learn–from his worst boss ever.  Follow Wally.

David Grossman of The Grossman Group shares a leadership lesson he learned about inspiration and aspiration from Disney’s Moana.

See Also:

One Way to Cultivate a More Resilient and Creative Team

The post Leaders Share about Resiliency (with video): A Frontline Festival appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.

In a recent Winning Well interview, Bob Morris asked “You talk about Winning Well, but what does it mean to lose well? David and I both laughed the kind of half-hearted chuckle that comes only after enough distance from the pain.

And as timing would have it, I’ve recently been helping both of my children process through disappointing losses on the college political front and the baseball field.

The truth is, you can’t win well, without losing well–repeatedly. If you’re not losing some of the time, you’re not winning.

Getting good at resilience and recovery is all part of the Winning Well game.

As we answered his questions, we began sharing stories of times we’d lost, and had to rally our teams in the midst of severe disappointment.

7 Questions to Ask When You Don’t Win–This Time

“I never thought of losing, but now that it’ s happened, the only thing is to do it right. That’s my obligation to all the people who believe in me. We all have to take defeats in life.” -Muhammad Ali

As with most leadership challenges, there’s hardly a better strategy for helping your team lose well than asking great questions. Here are a few questions to get you started.

1. What are we feeling now and why?
   Chances are this will be met with crickets–wait for it. Linger. Discuss. Process. Shut the door. Allow emotion. Before you open the door. It’s okay to share that you’re disappointed too, but do your best to role model a calm exploration and discussion of your feelings.
2. What are we most proud of?
   Even the worst defeats generally come with moments of success, smart plays, and even ingenious effort. Help your team to step back and celebrate the elements of good.
3. What must we do to show up as gracious losers?
   In order to win well the next time, it’s so important to not show up as bad sports. Help your team brainstorm the most important behaviors here. Perhaps it’s a congratulatory phone call or two, or a simple offering of “How can I help?” Remember Winning Well is a marathon.
4. What can we learn here?
   This is the most important question, but resist the urge to jump in and start with this one. You’ll get better thinking if you start with 1 and 2.
5. How can we invest in (and build bridges with) the winners?
   Our current political arena gives us plenty of examples of how to do this well–and how to screw it up.
6. How do we stay focused on our MIT (Most Important Thing)?
   You may have lost a battle, but don’t give up on your bigger vision. This is a vital question to as before the final question…
7. What’s next?
   It’s not over. Help your team craft a clear path forward.

When you’re the most frustrated, chances are, so is your team. Most situations get better with conversation.

The post Losing Well: 7 Questions to Ask When You Don’t Get the Win appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.

It’s not a matter of if you’ll need career resiliency. It’s when.

Sometimes I could help. Many times, even the most energetic HR fairy dust couldn’t save them. The best I could offer suffering souls during these times was resiliency support.

If all’s well in your world, amen. Please contribute to this community by sharing your own lessons and stories. Brilliant recovery stories strengthen anguished adversity.

5 Ways to Build Career Resiliency

Resiliency is hardly ever about “returning to the original form after being bent, compressed, or stretched.” Chances are that the original form had something to do with the current predicament. It’s about gathering up the lessons and energy from the potentially crippling scene and emerging stronger, wiser … knowing you have the fortitude to recover the next time. There’s always a next time.

Narration

Your career is a story. Tragic events by nature scream “ending.” Rewrite them as the critical turning point … just before everything got better. Become the author of your own story. _________ happened. That sucked. But then _________. If _______ hadn’t happened I would never have ___________. Spend time considering the possibilities for the next chapter.

Interpretation

Okay, allow yourself to grieve, throw things, and yell at your mirror for a few minutes. Then work on interpretation. Why did this happen? Grab the lessons with eager fists. Hit yourself in the head with them if that feels better. Then try alternative views … “On the other hand, this is great news because____________. Generate as many answers to that question as you can. Put an asterisk next to the ones you most believe.

Navigation

When the wind is at your back, there’s little need or energy to adjust the compass. Don’t waste this scarce opportunity to let the sails flap for a while and consider your best direction.

Diversification

The natural scramble is to look for more of the same: a similar role, or industry. Consider all your gifts. Diversity builds future resiliency. Look for opportunities to pivot toward a role that will strengthen and stretch.

Preparation

Assume you’ll land on your feet and get ready for next time. You’ll face tricky situations again. Take some time to write down your key learnings. Build your network (by giving first). Save some money once you’re able.  Having some cash in the bank is the best way to reduce frenetic grasping and slow down for better options.

Your turn.  Share your ideas, advice and stories on resiliency.

The post 5 Ways To Build Career Resiliency appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.