Resilience was a hot word when I was in social work school.
We often pondered why some people were capable of weathering all kinds of hardships and others were not.
Was resilience an intrinsic skill or something we could actually teach?
What about you? How is your resilience?
Take an inventory of your life right now. How are you holding up?
Could you use a few tips?
Resilience, like most things, is a muscle that benefits from strengthening.
So here’s my top 5 list:
1. Carry On Regardless
This is a line straight out of a Van Morrison song from the album Magic Time. In the tune, Van sort of rants about the idiocies of the world then reminds us to carry on to “satisfy your soul.”
This is about attitude. It’s about strengthening your resolve to be a fighter and a winner.
It’s about not falling into wallowing, into a victim place, but instead, standing strong in the face of adversity, recognizing that you deserve everything -perfect health, happiness, and prosperity.
Take a look around, there are countless examples of people making lemonade out of lemons.
COVID-19 is an international invitation to get creative and rethink our global paradigm. Don’t you agree?
How can your life change for the better? What is your soul asking of you?
2. Embody Your Body
Our bodies often pay the price of our negative thoughts or feelings. Don’t you agree?
It’s like you feel anxious, so you eat a bag of Doritos, or walk for 5 miles or binge watch the entire three seasons of Anne of Green Gables, and then your back is sore…
Know what I’m talking about?
Check in with your physical body. Is there a way you could be kinder to your body right now?
Do you need to stretch more, or go for daily walks?
Would you benefit from a nice long soak in the tub?
How about some deep belly breaths? Would that help?
Jot down what comes to you.
3. Deepen Your Spiritual Practice
If you don’t have a practice, now is a critical time to start. Don’t roll your eyes, or feel like you neither have the time nor the inclination.
Here’s the thing.
A practice is just that, a practice. It isn’t a test. It isn’t perfection.
It’s a willingness to connect to something deeper within yourself.
And you can do this in all sorts of ways.
Singing, chanting, mindful walking, following your breath, meditation, yoga, dance, EFT (tapping), prayer, ritual, poetry, church or temple service…
The list is endless. Choose something that resonates with you. And commit to 5 minutes a day.
A spiritual practice will relieve anxiety, stress and fear. It helps you hold the pain and suffering more easily. It nurtures your soul and orients you towards what’s really real.
What’s on your list?
4. Connect
We all crave connection with ourselves, with other people and with nature. And in this time when we are solely relying on technology to connect us, it has brought that need right to the surface. We crave touch, hugs, smiles, interaction, a communion with trees, animals, loved ones.
How can you connect more with people who uplift, inspire and hold you?
5. Have Fun
It’s easy to get super serious about the crisis we face. And I certainly am not belittling suffering here.
Having fun is about strengthening your resolve and resilience. It’s about reminding us why we are here at all. We are here to be the embodiment of love, of happiness, of joy. And that is a reason to celebrate. Isn’t celebration about having fun?
What’s one way you could have more fun in your life right now?
You have everything you need to succeed just as you are.
You are whole and perfect.
You are special and loved.
You are strong and capable.
You are resilient.
Keep strengthening that muscle.