Point A to B

Point A to B 

Points of Interest. Shortest Point. Get the Point.

Resiliency Has Many Faces But Only One Action: 

Getting Back Up.

Photo from Autism Aspirations 

As someone who has faced her share of personal adversity, I find the conversation of resiliency in business an interesting one. If we don't learn from our personal experiences, how could we hope to stay strong in business? BUT if experience is our only guide, we certainly will not be resilient.

Rosabeth Moss Kanter wrote an interesting post for the Harvard Business Review about surprises and bouncing back in business. There's a lot of research leading to business advice, particularly for leaders to be persons who exhibit resiliency because they show everyone else that things will be okay, that they will turn out in the end. From my perspective, I would define downturns and upturns as a normal business cycle and I wouldn't equate senior level experience with being resilient; but I would view a leader who is humbled and learning and who honestly talks about the business failings as someone who is capable of resiliency because it is those learnings that will give you the hope to get up again.

Resiliency is, for me, more than experience. Some things you will have to try at, fail and try again; other things may be beyond your point of reference. How many of us are prepared for, and knowledgeable about, how to counteract geopolitical upheaval? But the desire to get up and go forward separates the leaders from the followers. The leader will know that everyone must rise; the followers will wait to hear the call to action.

So what place does resiliency have in small businesses, often owned by women? We touch so many people. We set examples for our children. We are seen by our neighbours. We are the influence least measured but most often felt. We embody the human spirit which is to go on. Science has narrowly identified this as biology; don't believe it. It is our desires, our examples PLUS our experiences of the world that tell us to get back up, go back out and reset our business aims. Why do women go into business anyway? Because we can do good with it and we know it, so we do. No, resiliency is not just our experience; it is our spirit and our desire to do more and many, many women exhibit this trait.