By Robert Goldman, Photo: Unsplash, Psychology Today, August 20, 2023
“I am resilient, I went to medical school, don’t fix me, fix them.” This was recently stated to me at a resilience training for physicians. Similar words have been thought or stated by other employees tired of another wellness program they have been "asked" to attend. Under the great resignation, there has been an increased awareness and investment by companies on employee wellness programs. While well intentioned, they often miss the mark.
There has been much written and researched about individual resiliency, especially since COVID first appeared on the scene. The lines between individual resilience and a resilient workplace have become blurred. For that reason, it is necessary to differentiate between individual resilience and a resilient workplace.
Resiliency is the ability to bounce back and withstand life stressors. This ability has mostly been measured in terms of individual resilience. However, when it comes to teams and organizations such as sports, the term “resilience” also appears. For example, the story of the 1969 Mets and the 1980 USA Hockey “Miracle on Ice Team” are examples of how the respective teams defied the odds to “win it all.” But when it comes to work, much of the research and literature focuses on individual employee resilience as opposed to overall workplace resilience.
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