Skill 3: Resilience, Flexibility, and Agility

This article series explores each of the Top 10 Skills of 2023 identified by the World Economic Forum, offering a roadmap to make them accessible to every individual. In this article, we will delve into the third skill, “Resilience, Flexibility, and Agility”. For information on the second skill, please refer to Creative Thinking.

According to the Oxford dictionary:

“Resilience is the ability to recover easily or adapt quickly to changes.”

Regarding flexibility, Mind Tools:

“Flexibility is the ability to adjust to short-term changes quickly and calmly, to effectively deal with unexpected problems or tasks.”

Wikipedia defines agility as:

“Being flexible, being quick to adapt and respond to a constantly changing world.”

Should We Really Focus on Developing Resilience and Adaptability?

Labeling resilience and adaptability as skills can lead to a misunderstanding, suggesting that these characteristics can be acquired similarly to learning the basics of playing the piano. The idea of “acquiring resilience” or “developing flexible and agile thinking” is challenging, as it is intrinsically linked to our personality and individual identity, as well as the innate abilities we possess.

Examining the Big Five theory, we observe that dimensions correlated with resilient and adaptable individuals include a low Neuroticism index, high Openness to Experience, and an average Conscientiousness value.

Being resilient and adaptable are crucial human attributes, especially in the face of constant changes in the future of work. The only constant in the world is change, and the ability to effectively deal with these changes provides a natural competitive advantage. However, developing this mindset requires constant attention to how individuals can demonstrate these characteristics.

Encouraging mental agility may involve the constant introduction of changes so that a person becomes resilient to grief and anger often associated with uncertainty. For others, it may mean guiding them through a single change, modeling the emotional journey necessary to accept that adaptation. In summary, these are not skills with a prescribed set of behaviors that can be learned by following rules. These innate qualities require the learner to understand themselves and comprehend how, as individuals, they can evolve mentally to cope with the permacrisis.

How to Encourage Employees to Develop Resilience and Adaptability

The key to helping employees develop mental resilience is to create an environment and opportunities that promote this quality in life and work. Employers can establish systems and expectations that encourage balance, such as adopting a four-day workweek or requiring a minimum number of vacation days.

Similarly, employers can create an environment in which the employee takes responsibility for their career development and the learning and development necessary to remain relevant in the future. Offering people the opportunity to create a personal learning plan related to their career and understanding of the future places the responsibility for adaptability on the individual.

It is crucial to understand that a company can create the environment and expectations for these qualities in individuals. However, the individual’s mindset is “crucial” in determining whether they can be resilient and adaptable. By allowing the individual to be an agent of change, relinquishing control, and rewarding positive attitudes, a company can become a place where these qualities are evident in everyone.

Conclusion

• Resilience, flexibility, and agility are not skills but innate qualities in all of us;
• Employers can create an environment where the professionals can evolve this mindset and attitude;
• Individuals need to be empowered as agents of change if they want to develop these behaviors.

Written by: Ederson Corbari