Build resilience and believe in yourself

My all-time favourite author, Maya Angelou, had a great insight about resilience and the importance of having people who love, believe in and support us.

I just LOVE the wisdom of this woman!

It is important to understand what resilience really is. Resilience is often described as our capacity to adapt to and recover from difficulties. Resilience can look different for each of us and can develop and change throughout our lives and experiences.

I wholeheartedly agree with Maya Angelou’s underlying message that support from other people can play an important role in helping us develop resilience, belief in ourselves and self-esteem.

Resilience can be supported by having:

• People we care about.
• People who care about us.
• People who believe in us and our abilities.
• The opportunity to participate in something meaningful – having a purpose.
• Opportunities to make decisions and contribute our talents to the world.

One of my greatest beliefs is that it takes a village to raise a child. Guess what, that child, even as an adult, still needs the village. The villagers may come and go and change over time, yet the village atmosphere remains. We can feel stronger when we know we have the support of others.

Thinking about resilience, I immediately think of a beautiful flower breaking through the strongest concrete, despite all adversity.

How can we bring this into our everyday lives to be as strong as that little flower?

As well as having the support of others, I share my top three tips on how you too can support your self-esteem and resilience, helping you in your journey of success!

1. Create a clear vision of the future

Having clarity of your vision can be a useful way to build confidence and support your resilience. A clear vision can help you stay focused when obstacles crop up and give you a sense of what you're working towards.

A well-defined vision allows you to focus on creating a purpose, which can then help shape your goals.

2. Learn to embrace change

Change is a guarantee in life, and learning to become more flexible and adaptable can support our resilience.

Learning how to be more adaptable may help equip you with ways to respond when you face adversity. Being resilient doesn't mean that change will always be easy; it can mean finding ways to adjust, seek support and consider different options when challenges arise.

Think of a time when you handled change really well. Ask yourself:

• What were you doing?
• What were you saying?
• How were you feeling?

You have now reminded yourself of the fact that you have handled change before. Think about what helped you at that time and whether you can draw on any of those resources the next time you face change.

3. Believe in yourself and your abilities

Remind yourself of just how uniquely brilliant you are by creating your own personal 'brilliance list'. Be proud and celebrate your achievements and your strengths.

Create your brilliance list by making a list of:

• Your achievements throughout time (training, qualifications, education, personal achievements, etc.).
• Your personal strengths and skills.
• Your talents.

Being resilient is important to us as human beings, and it is often one of those areas that is neglected. When dealing with difficult life situations, including tragedy, trauma and grief, we may need time, support and different ways of coping.

Resilience doesn't mean simply bouncing back; it can involve finding ways to adapt and move forward at our own pace.

There are so many practices that you can incorporate into your daily rituals/practices that may support your resilience. These three tips are a great starting point, as they only need a small amount of time invested in you looking within to reconnect with your inner brilliance, your resilience.

Here’s to your resilience.

Be brilliant, be true, be YOU!