Skip to main content
  • Personal
  • Business
  • Foundation
    Close
    • Global
    • India
    • MENA
  • mySHRM Login
  • MySHRM
    • Dashboard
    • Account
    • Logout
SHRM
  • Membership
    • Membership

      As a SHRM Member®, you’ll pave the path of your success with invaluable resources, world-class educational opportunities and premier events.

      Membership Tiers
      • Professional
      • Student
      • Global
      • Executive
      • Enterprise
      Membership Benefits
  • Certification
    • SHRM Certification

      Demonstrate your ability to apply HR principles to real-life situations.

      • How to Get Certified
      • Eligibility Criteria
      • Exam Fees & Options
      • SHRM-CP
      • SHRM-SCP
      • Which Certification is Best for Me?
      • Recertification
      Prepare for the Exam
      • Exam Preparation
      • SHRM BASK
      • SHRM Learning System
      • Instructor-Led Learning
      • Self-Study
      Specialty Credentials

      Demonstrate targeted competence and enhance your HR credibility.

      Qualifications

      Gain a deeper understanding and develop critical skills.

      Seminars

      Stand out from among your HR peers with the skills obtained from a SHRM Seminar.

  • Events & Education
    • Events

      Demonstrate your ability to apply HR principles to real-life situations.

      • SHRM26 Annual Conference
      • BLUEPRINT 2025
      • Talent Conference & Expo
      • Linkage Institute
      • The AI+HI Project 2026
      State Conferences

      Attend a SHRM state event to network with other HR professionals and learn more about the future of work.

      Seminars

      Stand out from among your HR peers with the skills obtained from a SHRM Seminar.

      Webinars
  • Resources
    • Resources

      Stay up to date with news and leverage our vast library of resources.

      • Flagships
      • HR Research
      • Legal & Compliance
      • Latest News & Trends
      • Tools & Guides
      • Webinars
      HR Topics
      • AI in the Workplace
      • Civility at Work
      • Compensation & Benefits
      • Inclusion & Diversity
      • Talent Acquisition
      • Workplace Technology
      • Workplace Violence Prevention
      Educational Programs

      Designed and delivered by HR experts to empower you with the knowledge and tools you need to drive lasting change in the workplace.

  • Community
    • Find a SHRM Chapter

      Easily find a local professional or student chapter in your area.

      • SHRM Northern California
      SHRM Connect

      Post polls, get crowdsourced answers to your questions and network with other HR professionals online.

      Membership Councils

      Learn about SHRM's five regional councils and the Membership Advisory Council (MAC).

      Volunteers

      Learn about volunteer opportunities with SHRM.

  • Shop
    • SHRM Store

      Shop for HR certifications, credentials, learning, events, merchandise and more.

      Workplace Essentials
      • SHRM Memberships
      • SHRM Certification
      • Specialty Credentials
      • HR Tools & Tech
      Education
      • Seminars
      • eLearning
      • Books
      Merchandise
      • Accessories
      • Apparel
      • Office & Home
Become a Member
Renew
Rejoin Now
Renew
Book a Speaker
Close
  • Personal
  • Business
  • Foundation
  • Membership
    back
    Membership
    • Membership

      As a SHRM Member®, you’ll pave the path of your success with invaluable resources, world-class educational opportunities and premier events.

      Membership Tiers
      • Professional
      • Student
      • Global
      • Executive
      • Enterprise
      Membership Benefits
  • Certification
    back
    Certification
    • SHRM Certification

      Demonstrate your ability to apply HR principles to real-life situations.

      • How to Get Certified
      • Eligibility Criteria
      • Exam Fees & Options
      • SHRM-CP
      • SHRM-SCP
      • Which Certification is Best for Me?
      • Recertification
      Prepare for the Exam
      • Exam Preparation
      • SHRM BASK
      • SHRM Learning System
      • Instructor-Led Learning
      • Self-Study
      Specialty Credentials

      Demonstrate targeted competence and enhance your HR credibility.

      Qualifications

      Gain a deeper understanding and develop critical skills.

      Seminars

      Stand out from among your HR peers with the skills obtained from a SHRM Seminar.

  • Events & Education
    back
    Events & Education
    • Events

      Demonstrate your ability to apply HR principles to real-life situations.

      • SHRM26 Annual Conference
      • BLUEPRINT 2025
      • Talent Conference & Expo
      • Linkage Institute
      • The AI+HI Project 2026
      State Conferences

      Attend a SHRM state event to network with other HR professionals and learn more about the future of work.

      Seminars

      Stand out from among your HR peers with the skills obtained from a SHRM Seminar.

      Webinars
  • Resources
    back
    Resources
    • Resources

      Stay up to date with news and leverage our vast library of resources.

      • Flagships
      • HR Research
      • Legal & Compliance
      • Latest News & Trends
      • Tools & Guides
      • Webinars
      HR Topics
      • AI in the Workplace
      • Civility at Work
      • Compensation & Benefits
      • Inclusion & Diversity
      • Talent Acquisition
      • Workplace Technology
      • Workplace Violence Prevention
      Educational Programs

      Designed and delivered by HR experts to empower you with the knowledge and tools you need to drive lasting change in the workplace.

  • Community
    back
    Community
    • Find a SHRM Chapter

      Easily find a local professional or student chapter in your area.

      • SHRM Northern California
      SHRM Connect

      Post polls, get crowdsourced answers to your questions and network with other HR professionals online.

      Membership Councils

      Learn about SHRM's five regional councils and the Membership Advisory Council (MAC).

      Volunteers

      Learn about volunteer opportunities with SHRM.

  • Shop
    back
    Shop
    • SHRM Store

      Shop for HR certifications, credentials, learning, events, merchandise and more.

      Workplace Essentials
      • SHRM Memberships
      • SHRM Certification
      • Specialty Credentials
      • HR Tools & Tech
      Education
      • Seminars
      • eLearning
      • Books
      Merchandise
      • Accessories
      • Apparel
      • Office & Home
Become a Member
Renew
Rejoin Now
Renew
Book a Speaker
    • Global
    • India
    • MENA
SHRM
mySHRM Login
  • MySHRM
    • Dashboard
    • Account
    • Logout
Close

  1. Topics & Tools
  2. Workplace News & Trends
  3. Managing Smart
  4. Building Resilience: Helping Workers Handle Stress for the Long Haul
Share
  • Linked In
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Email

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Vivamus convallis sem tellus, vitae egestas felis vestibule ut.


Error message details.

Copy button
Reuse Permissions

Request permission to republish or redistribute SHRM content and materials.


Learn More
News

Building Resilience: Helping Workers Handle Stress for the Long Haul

January 12, 2021 | Kathleen Doheny

A person writing the word resiliency on a notebook.


​Athletes often talk about resiliency when they've bounced back from a defeat or a less-than-ideal training day. But resiliency is also sorely needed in the workplace, especially in these times of uncertainty, anxiety and economic worries amid the pandemic.

What Is Resiliency?

Resiliency isn't quite the same as stress management. Stress management tends to be reactive, the damage control needed when a crisis hits. Resilience is more proactive, teaching people to build ability and skills so they're prepared for the next crisis, and the one after that.

As a manager, you can explain to your workers that resilience training means learning how to deal with challenges and setbacks in a different way than they may have learned before. Becoming resilient, experts say, doesn't just help you get through a stressful time, but can also empower you to learn how to stay resilient for the long haul, and in the process experience personal growth and improve your life. 

"Typically, resilience is defined as the ability to bounce back, but I think it's more than that," said Brenna Sniderman, executive director of the Center for Integrated Research at Deloitte Services LP in Philadelphia, which focuses on developing fresh perspectives on critical business issues. "It's the ability to … emerge from a crisis in a better position." Sniderman is coauthor of the report, "Bridge across uncertainty," which discusses how crisis leadership with a human focus can support business resilience.

"The word I hear most often associated with resilience is empowerment," said Paula Davis-Laack, founder and CEO of the Stress & Resilience Institute, a Milwaukee-based training and consulting firm. "Learning to be resilient puts you back in the driver's seat. You can be taught skills that develop resilience muscles." 

While levels of resilience vary from person to person, everyone starts with some, said Dr. Gail Gazelle, assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and executive coach for physicians. She wrote Everyday Resilience: A Practical Guide to Build Inner Strength and Weather Life's Challenges (Rockridge Press, 2020) and views resilience as ''a deep well of resources that we all have within us.''

Among the ways to build resilience:

Rethink reactions to stress. Urge workers to stop ''catastrophizing" when something negative happens at work, said Davis-Laack, whose forthcoming book is Teaming Up Against Burnout from Wharton School Press. To help workers do that, a manager needs to be more transparent in everyday interactions. For instance, instead of messaging a worker to, "Come see me in my office," try, "Please come by to talk about questions I have on your report."

As a manager, you should also aim to be more transparent about the company, its status, its expectations of workers and its future plans, Davis-Laack said.

She added that managers can encourage workers to take three steps to reduce catastrophizing about a situation:

  1. Write down the worst-case scenario.
  2. Write down the best-case scenario.
  3. Identify the most likely scenario.

Sniderman tells managers: "Make sure your workforce feels comfortable coming to you with questions." That builds feelings of psychological safety, in turn building resilience. That kind of support, she said, ''shouldn't end with the crisis itself," but needs to be ongoing.

Encourage connections. Staying connected is crucial for resiliency, and a manager can help foster those connections. Davis-Laack recalled a lawyer who got promoted, then felt her colleagues cooled toward her because she was now "the boss." Then the lawyer's mentor retired, and she felt her support network was gone. "Having people you can reach out to for support is one of the most fundamental cornerstones of resilience," Davis-Laack said.

One way managers can foster that connection is to recognize and talk about small wins—not just the annual awards or the goals that took many years—and celebrate those small victories regularly, she added.

Simple, brief check-ins with workers during the workday, "showing an interest in who they are versus what they do, is a powerful way to ensure resiliency on a personal and professional level," said Joanne Heyob, senior vice president of operation strategy and design for WD Partners, a strategy, design and architectural firm in Columbus, Ohio.

Pay attention to self-care and well-being. It's difficult to feel resilient when you are exhausted, depressed or anxious. Managers should destigmatize the use of well-being programs, including mental health offerings, Sniderman said.

Stay in the moment. Learn and practice mindfulness, said Phillis Morgan, founder of Resilient at Work, a consultancy in Alexandria, Va., that helps organizations tackle workplace conflict and stress. Try one of the several mindfulness apps out now.

Focus on strengths. Pointing out a worker's strengths and accomplishments builds resiliency. Gazelle said workers at all levels need this—from the physicians she coaches to a shelf stocker at the market. One of Gazelle's doctor clients had a backlog of 350 charts to complete. Gazelle found out that the doctor's manager berated her for the backlog, while dismissing her excellent care for patients. Once the doctor's manager took suggestions from Gazelle and focused on the doctor's strengths—and asked what she could do to help with the charts—the doctor got the resilience she needed to tackle the backlog.

Kathleen Doheny is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles.  


Labor & Employee Relations
Management Skills
Skills Training


Artificial Intelligence in the Workplace

​An organization run by AI is not a futuristic concept. Such technology is already a part of many workplaces and will continue to shape the labor market and HR. Here's how employers and employees can successfully manage generative AI and other AI-powered systems.



Related Content

Kelly Dobbs Bunting speaks onstage at SHRM24
(opens in a new tab)
News
Why AI+HI Is Essential to Compliance

HR must always include human intelligence and oversight of AI in decision-making in hiring and firing, a legal expert said at SHRM24. She added that HR can ensure compliance by meeting the strictest AI standards, which will be in Colorado’s upcoming AI law.

(opens in a new tab)
News
A 4-Day Workweek? AI-Fueled Efficiencies Could Make It Happen

The proliferation of artificial intelligence in the workplace, and the ensuing expected increase in productivity and efficiency, could help usher in the four-day workweek, some experts predict.

(opens in a new tab)
News
How One Company Uses Digital Tools to Boost Employee Well-Being

Learn how Marsh McLennan successfully boosts staff well-being with digital tools, improving productivity and work satisfaction for more than 20,000 employees.

HR Daily Newsletter

Stay up to date with the latest HR news, trends, and expert advice each business day.

Success title

Success caption

Manage Subscriptions
Our Brands

SHRM Foundation Logo
SHRM Executive Network Logo
CEO Circle Logo
SHRM Business Logo
SHRM Linkage Logo
SHRM Labs
Overview

  • About SHRM
  • Careers at SHRM
  • Press Room
  • Contact SHRM
  • Book a SHRM Executive Speaker
  • Advertise with Us
  • Post a Job
Advocacy

  • Workforce Development
  • Workplace Inclusion
  • Workplace Flexibility & Leave
  • Workplace Governance
  • Workplace Health Care
  • Workplace Immigration
  • State Affairs
  • Global Policy
  • Advocacy Team
  • Take Action
  • Generation Cares
  • The Section 127 Coalition
Member Resources

  • Ask An Advisor
  • SHRM Newsletters
  • SHRM Flagships
  • Topics & Tools
  • Find an HR Job
  • Vendor Directory

© 2025 SHRM. All Rights Reserved
SHRM provides content as a service to its readers and members. It does not offer legal advice, and cannot guarantee the accuracy or suitability of its content for a particular purpose. Disclaimer

Follow Us

  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube

  1. Privacy Policy

  2. Terms of Use

  3. Accessibility

Join SHRM for Exclusive Access to Member Content

SHRM Members enjoy unlimited access to articles and exclusive member resources.

Already a member?
Free Article
Limit Reached

Get unlimited access to articles and member-exclusive resources.

You've reached the limit of 1 free article this month. Join to access unlimited articles and member-only resources.

Already a member?
Free Article
Exclusive Executive-Level Content

This content is for the SHRM Executive Network and Executive Content Subscription members only.

You've reached the limit of 1 free article this month. Join the Executive Network and enjoy unlimited content.

Already a member?
Free Article
Exclusive Executive-Level Content

This content is for the SHRM Executive Network and Executive Content Subscription members only.

You've reached the limit of 1 free article this month. Join and enjoy unlimited access to SHRM Executive Network Content.

Already a member?
Unlock Your Career with SHRM Membership

Please enjoy this free resource! Join SHRM for unlimited access to exclusive articles and tools.

Already a member?

Your membership is almost expired! Renew today for unlimited access to member content.

Renew now

Your membership has expired. Renew today for unlimited access to member content.

Renew Now

Your Executive Network membership is nearing its expiration. Renew now to maintain access.

Renew Now

Your membership has expired. Renew your Executive Network benefits today.

Renew Now