Habits That Build Resilience

Adopt a Morning and Evening Routine

You can start your day by eliminating indecision and taking control by adopting a morning routine. Adding an evening routine brings even more structure to your day and helps you wind down. We love the idea of journaling, meditating or reading, all of which allow you to lessen any stress you experienced during the day. You’d also be amazed how helpful these activities are in getting a good night’s sleep.

Practice Visualization Exercises

As you’ve probably experienced, stress can lead to irritability and fatigue. Visualization exercises, such imagining a tranquil setting, will help clear your head from anxiety and stress.

Express Gratitude

I’ve already devoted several articles to this important subject. If you take a little time to remind yourself of everything that you should be grateful for, this act of thankfulness will eliminate negativity and self-defeating thoughts of inadequacy. Don’t forget to express gratitude towards others as well!

Enjoy the Great Outdoors

Sometimes referred to as “ecotherapy,” spending time in nature is great for your physical and mental health, and helps build your mental and physical resilience. Get into the habit of taking a 30-minute walk, preferably in a park or near water, at least once a day, or even simply sitting outside appreciating the sun and breeze.

Hec Salgado, a well-known fitness and lifestyle coach, offers the following habits to adopt to build resilience:

Stay Healthy

Get regular exercise, eat healthy food and make sure you stay hydrated. You will find that before long, you’ll feel more fit and your mood will improve.

 Get Enough Sleep

 We all know getting at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night is good for you. If you have trouble sleeping, establishing a pre-bed routine such as meditating and stretching. And remember the obvious advice: try not to eat less than two hours before hitting the sack, and turn off all electronics at least one hour before.

Find Your Purpose

Take a pause and consider the big picture, asking yourself what your purpose is and why. For a quick refresher, take another look at my articles on “Purpose.”

Create Strong Relationships

According to Salgado, “the most resilient people are the best at asking for help. They understand that they cannot do it on their own.” Take the time to reread what I have written about “Connection.”

The Arts Quotient

Dr. Sangeetha Rajan and Swati Apte, founders of the Arts Quotient, a leadership development company, write, “Resilience is a process of adaptation and consists of behavior, thought patterns and habits that anyone can adopt and practice.  Further, the habits you adopt can also influence your personality over a period of time, changing how you view the world, your approach to task or people, etc. Then, resilience is simply like any muscle – with targeted training and regular exercise, it can be cultivated and made stronger.”

They teach that if you nurture certain elements, and strengthen them through regular habits, you can “replenish your resilience reservoir” and will be better able to cope with stress.

Body

Stress can make you physically as well as psychologically exhausted. Regular physical activity can help build stamina as well as help you handle stress by lowering the stress hormone and increasing the “happy” hormones.

Mind

From engaging in exercises that stimulate you intellectually to learning new things that can give you a sense of achievement, you can learn how to better focus you mind and energy.

Heart

Replenishing yourself emotionally and staying emotionally connected will improve your senee of well-being. You can try this by using social media less, practicing anger management techniques, or doing something compassionate for other people.

Soul

This involves your self of self-worth and purpose. Any habit involving self-reflection such as writing or meditating will help you clarify your roles and define your priorities.

Rajan and Apte write, “One can take a cross-training mind-set to help build resilience. You can start by mapping out which of the above-mentioned four elements you feel most depleted in. Then, take that weak muscle and bring it back to functionality…With these small tweaks and habits, you can build yourself to better handle the maelstrom we find ourselves in at the moment.”