Intern Series-Resilience and Performance
Resilience is a process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or significant sources of stress – such as family and relationship problems, serious health problems, or workplace and financial stressors (APA, 2020).
As a student-athlete I have had moments of falling behind in athletic competition. During those difficult situations, I try to be resilient by relying on my social support (coaches) and the comforts of my routine, For example, every match the “Cool-Blue” Gatorade serves as my comfort. Leaning on my social support and a familiar routine contribute to my rhythm of resilience over the years.
Coutu (2020), claims that resilience comes from the first building block (1) Facing Down Reality. This is spot on. Resilience has to do with optimism, but don’t let that distort your sense of reality (Coutu, 4). It is from experiencing the difficulty that I was able to grow and remind myself of the athlete that I have become. As a young athlete I had difficulty reacting in the same, tough, clear-headed, goal-oriented way. I fell into the trap of saying that if I was not naturally optimist, I couldn’t be resilient. This fallacy is problematic. It is about accepting your reality and having an open mind to change it.
The second building block is (2) The Search For Meaning. Coutu claims that one must make meaning of terrible times (Coutu, 5). It takes a lot of work to pick yourself up and come back better than ever. It has a lot to do with not caring about the outcome. As much as you want to think this is a “live or die” moment, it really has to do with doing your best. Instead of focusing on “why this is happening to me?” Focus on how far you have come and that this is just a part of the process. How you will react in the face of adversity comes from within, although I had much support from coaches, family, and friends to get there. It is about reminding yourself of the work that it took you to get there and the steps you are willing to take to complete the end goal.
The third building block is (3) Ritualized Ingenuity. Coutu claims that it is the ability to make do with whatever is at hand (Coutu, 6). Looking through a psychological lens, as Buddha says, you are what you think about. That shift in mindset of telling yourself that you have worked hard to get to this moment, and that you are not going to let troubles get in your way is the strength that comes from resilience. “Resilience is neither good nor bad. It is merely the skill and the capacity to be robust under conditions of enormous stress and change” (Coutu, 6). Resilience is about focusing on the positive outcomes rather than the negative. Even though there may be more negative outcomes that pile up on the seesaw, your job is to focus your attention on and believe in the power to manifest those positives ones again.
Alessia Girardin is a publishing intern at Legacy Consulting & Research Group LLC. Alessia is a student-athlete at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, IL. Alessia is an English major with a. minor in Psychology. After graduation, Alessia hopes to pursue a career in journalism with an emphasis on psychological research and human behavior.
Citations:
American Psychological Association. (2020, February 1). Building your resilience. http://www.apa.org/topics/resilience
Coutu, D. L. (2002). How resilience works. Harvard business review, 80(5), 46-56.
