Management 13th Edition by John Schermerhorn,Daniel Bachrach

Exercise 17

LEARN ABOUT YOURSELF
"Resilient people are like trees bending in the wind.... They bounce back."
Resiliency Offers Strength from Within
M anagerial control is all about how to increase the probability that things go right for organizations even as they deal with an increasing number of operational complexities. It's the same for us-every day, in our work and personal lives. We need to spot and understand where things are going according to plan or going off course. We need to have the courage and confidence to change approaches that aren't working well. Our success, simply put, depends a lot on resiliency -the ability to call on inner strength and keep moving forward even when things are tough.
Th ink of resiliency in personal terms-caring for an aging parent with a terrible disease or single parenthood with small children. Think of it in career terms-juggling personal and work responsibilities, continuously attending to e-mails, voice mails, instant messages, and rushing to many scheduled and unscheduled meetings. We need to be managed, we need to exercise control, and we need staying power to perform over the long term. Resiliency helps us hold on and keep things moving forward even in the face of personal and professional adversity.
Resilient people face up to challenges; they don't hide or back away from them. They develop strategies, make plans, and find opportunity even in challenging situations. Dr. Steven M. Southwick, professor of psychiatry at Yale University, says "Resilient people are like trees bending in the wind.... They bounce back." Does this description fit you... or not Why
Resiliency Quick Test
Score yourself from 1 5 don't at all agree, to 5 5 totally agree, on the following items:
• I am an upbeat person for the most part.
• Uncertainty and ambiguity don't much bother me.
• I tend to adapt quickly as things change.
• I can see positives even when things go wrong.
• I am good at learning from experience.
• I am good at problem solving.
• I am strong and hold up well when times are tough.
• I have been able to turn bad situations into positive gains.
GET TO KNOW YOURSELF BETTER
Take the Resiliency Quick Test. A score of 35 or better suggests you are highly resilient; with any lower score you should question how well you hold up under pressure. Double-check the test results by looking at your behavior. Write notes on how you handle situations like a poor grade at school, a put-down from a friend, a denial letter from a job application, or criticism from a supervisor or co-worker on your job. Summarize what you've learned in a memo to yourself about how you might benefit from showing more resiliency in difficult situations.