Having started 2016 with a series of tweets tracking an A-Z of Resilience here are all 26 tweets in one article. The original daily tweets on building Resilience were based on our research with the University of Westminster, London, Business Psychology MSc programme, where Gary Austin is a visiting lecturer.

The A-Z

A = Adaptability. Key to building more Resilience. Stay true to your personal values but adapt to new situations and new experiences as they happen. Be prepared to do things differently.
B = Behaviour. A key skill is the ability to flex and change your style of behaviour to manage different circumstances or different/new people, but staying true to who you are as an individual.
C = Curious. Be curious and open to new experiences. Read a different kind of book than what you would normally, watch a different TV channel or programme, travel a different route, read a different newspaper or magazine… The more new experiences you have the more you have to draw on when you need to.
D = Dialogue. Always keep talking, ask questions if you are unsure, know what you do not know and find out! Use your social networks, both in and out of work. Communication is key, talk, chat, discuss, debate and dialogue.
E = Elasticity. The ability to return to original form or shape, even after being stretched by circumstances or people around you, and to do so quickly.
F = Focus. Focus on the big picture. Try to look up out of the detail every now an again, understand the big picture, how you fit in it and what you need to do to achieve the big picture.
G = Growth. Seize every opportunity to expand, extend or grow personally and professionally. Increase your capability, capacity, confidence and competence, the more you grow the more Resilient you’ll become.
H = Human. Don’t forget that you are! You’re allowed to make mistakes and learn from them. No-one is perfect and the only thing we all have in common is that we are all unique and that’s the gift of diversity.
I = Intuition. Sometimes it’s good to rely on good old gut feel and intuition. Your past experiences and knowledge will stand you in good stead and inform your intuition.
J = Juggling. Often the ability to juggle several things at once serves better than just focusing on one. But try not to spread yourself too thin.
K= Karma. All actions have consequences. Make sure you carve out your own destiny. Do things how they should be done, treat people like you would want to be treated yourself.
L = Learning. Treat everything, seemingly good or bad, as an opportunity to learn, either what should you do or what you should not. We never stop learning, try looking at things from a different perspective to gain new insights.
M= Meaning. Actively seek to understand the meaning and rationale of what you are experiencing and what you are doing. Try to understand the big picture and end vision or goal, why it’s important to get there and what would happen if you don’t?
N = Networks. Make as much use of your ‘social’ networks as you can. Work, personal and family networks are there to support you and they can all help, sometimes when you least expect it.
O = Open. Be open to new experiences, new ideas, new ways of working. Be open to doing things differently, to being creative and resourceful, be open to the answer being different to what you might have thought initially.
P = Plan. As much as possible plan ahead. Be structured, be organised, be focused and be disciplined in your planning. Plan for success and have a contingency plan too. But don’t be afraid to step away from your plan if you need to flex and be adaptable.
Q = Question. If you know you do not know then ask! Good questions at the right time will always help, don’t leave it too late and don’t not ask. Try not to leave a conversation with a question that you do not know how to answer or who can answer it for you, and remember, some of the best questions emerge after going away and thinking about them more. Keep asking good questions of both yourself and others and keep exploring ways to find the answers too!
R = Recognise. Recognise your own talents and strengths, be aware of how they can help you. Use your full armoury to its best. But also be aware of where you might need to extend or develop and who or what can help you do this.
S = Self. You need good self-awareness, self-confidence and self-reflection and correction. Be true to and believe in yourself.
T = Turbulence. There is no such thing as sustained stability, be ready for constant turbulence and strive for dynamic balance/equilibrium. When hit by turbulence, how best can you achieve dynamic balance again?
U = Understand. Understand the big picture and where and how you fit in to it, and more importantly if you even want to? Understand how the other players fit and how they can help you or you can help them.
V = Values. Stay true to your personal values, but flex and adapt your behaviour as and when necessary or appropriate. Spend time reflecting on what your personal values are, which are ‘absolutes’ and which you can flex.
W = Work. Focus on what your priorities are, work on these first, try not to get distracted by stuff that is not a priority. Maintain a good work-life balance, switch off when you should, both work and devices!
X = Xplore. Tenuous I know, but how many words beginning with X do you know! But use every opportunity to xplore, seek out new things, new learning’s and new ways of doing stuff. The current way might not be the best way.
Y = You. You are often the best tool you have available in the box; in fact, you are often the only tool you have available. Stay sharp, continually develop and be kind to yourself!
Z = Zest. Try your hardest to keep up your energy, enthusiasm and momentum, even when you feel down or low. Stay fit and healthy, eat well, sleep well, be well and stay positive.

The A-Z of Resilience is a tool we use to summarise learning when exploring resilience. This is grounded in the research we carried out with the Business Psychology MSc programme at the University of Westminster, London and helped us develop a ‘Five Key Characteristics of Resilience’ model.

Whilst carrying out our research, although our model initially focused on the individual/personal level, it soon became apparent that the model could be applied to teams and organisations as well. We have used it successfully to help assess individual, team and organisational levels of Resilience and helped them build resilience for future change.

If you would like to know more about our research and our ‘five key characteristics of Resilience’ model then please do get in touch with us at https://www.circleindigo.com/what-we-do/facilitating-meetings-workshops/ https://www.circleindigo.com/what-we-do/facilitating-meetings-workshops/