Thriving not just Surviving Today’s Business Environment

ANNE P. TESSIEN, M.S.

Senior Consultant

Korn Ferry International

Anne.Tessien@kornferry.com

kornferry.com

Topic: Human Resources

Many of us in the fast lane of business and life know that we need energy, resilience, and stamina. Our own efficiency, our own sustainability demands that we have these elements of resilience. The demand will always be there, to do more, with less in less time. How can we sustain this pace, this level of demand, this level of ultimate efficiency? In truth, we really can’t. We are human, we need to be resilient, to thrive not just survive, and to have capacity to sustain this for the long run.

As Vice President of Sales at his company, John pushes through his day with a nature that others describe as Driven, Focused and Intense. He has attained a level in his organization that seems to demand these as core characteristics for any that strive to succeed. John has done just that, succeeded. By all accounts, he has the position, the influence and the financial rewards that go with his fast track and highly efficient professional life. John is not yet 40. Yet, just like the increases in responsibility and influence, John’s weight has also been on the increase. His blood pressure, cholesterol as well as blood sugar levels are also nearing what his physician considers dangerous. John has come to believe that his is just “a minor price to pay for his success”.

Down another corridor is Bill. Bill has much of the Drive, Intensity, Focus and Results Orientation as his counterpart John in sales. Bill, however, close in age to John, is not showing any of the physical or behavioral signs of stress or strain that John is. Bill is a very healthy 42 year old male, friendly and actually somewhat fun to be around. His counterparts admire his ability to be in this same intense environment and hit the same measure of success while seemingly thriving not just surviving.

What does Bill have that John lacks, what’s the difference? Is it diet, is it exercise, is it a magic pill? Is Bill just a lucky guy, it that he has natural resilience is he just wired differently? Is he resilient through his practices or just lucky? The answer lies somewhere in all of these factors. These questions have been asked for years, and unfortunately there is not necessarily an easy answer, there is however are characteristics that those like Bill possess, beliefs that help to propel them toward greater resilience and therefore less stress and strain.

In the early 80’s, theorists on the impact of the fast pace at that time noted that there were dissimilar factors in those that sustain and thrive under intense circumstances and those that , in the same environments, suffered from the many negative effects of strain and stress. Many companies at this time focused on wellness in their employee base for the first time. They installed fitness facilities, brown bag seminars on healthy eating, meditation, relaxation, etc…. The statistics remained relatively the same. However, there were three very notable differences in the thriving executives. These variances were supported by the healthy behaviors, but were actually much more around their mindsets and beliefs on their own abilities to adapt and to impact their lives. The variables focused upon the beliefs held by the resilience executives regarding Control, Challenge and Commitment.

Thriving with the Three C’s of Resilience:

Control, challenge and commitment. Bill practices these things daily, yet they are so innate to his life that he may not even be aware of it. He takes on roles and responsibilities as readily as John. He attains results that propel him and his career forward. Bill knows how to and when he can assert his ability to control, whether it be modifying timelines, prioritizing initiatives or just taking the breather midday to recover from the intense pace of the morning.

John’s demeanor, seemingly similar in behavior on the outside, is most different when compared to Bill on the inside. John is not in control, he is response to most all aspects of his life. He is a time stressed and pressure-prompted responder, getting things done just under the deadline. He puts similar demands for and expectations at the last minute on his direct reports. They too are showing the signs of stress from their lack of ability to assert control and resent the increasing sense of powerlessness.

To have control is the opposite of feeling powerless. Bill may not have control in the extreme sense, none of us do. To have control is not to be in control, nor is it to be controlling. Resilient control is truly knowing where, when, how and with whom we may have control and acting there, as well as knowing where, when, how and with whom we don’t.

The sense of confidence that Bill has is not arrogance, rather it is a realistic perspective on his abilities and that of his desire for personal growth. In terms of innate intelligence, he may not be nor is the smartest, however, Bill is innovative, seeing challenges not as threats, rather as new endeavors or assignments to be undertaken with a sense of curiosity and opportunity to try and to attain something new. He is also committed to his work. He has true purpose in the people he responsible for and is driven to help to create mutual and integrated success. To have challenge is to not feel threatened and to be committed is to have purpose as opposed to alienation. Not easy to attain, but essential to have. The elements of each are in our personal perspectives, our beliefs that we do have choice and options (control), are able to (challenge) and find purpose in the pursuit of (commitment).

Bill and John, just like all of us are living and working in a fast paced, high expectations environment. This will not abate. Developing greater resilience to meet the ongoing challenges essential, sustaining and maintaining is the even more so. Pause to reflect on what it is you can control, how and in what way your challenges can be met and toward what outcomes you are committed. The return of energy for your investment in the positive is much greater and will be the key to thriving and not just surviving. Shifting our thoughts and beliefs has shown to be the most effective way to build, sustain and maintain our resilience as we continue to meet and hopefully exceed and thrive.