In trying times, resilience is required. Resilience refers to the ability to adapt in times of pressure and 
stress and emerge strengthened from them. Resilience, in turn, is composed of various protective 
factors. One of these factors is authentic relationships. What makes them up, and how can coaches 
assist their clients in forming authentic relationships?

Resilience is being widely talked about. But what exactly is resilience, and how can authentic 
relationships help strengthen it? Furthermore, how can coaches support their clients in cultivating 
authentic relationships?

The term “psychological safety” is thrown around a lot these days.

What do Thomas Edison, Frida Kahlo, and Michael Jackson have in common?

That they were famous? That they were resilient? Yes and more. They are all examples in a great book that I keep diving back into when looking for good ways to kickstart my creativity. Or a good hack that is based on neuroscience. The book is called:

Wired to Create: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Creative Mind

Scholar and author Scott Barry Kaufman ( psychologist) and creativity expert Carolyn Gregoire merge both psychology and neuroscience to examine some of history’s finest “messy minds” aka creatives. The result is a fascinating look at the often contradictory habits and practices of creative people. Warning: this is not your usual how-to book. The authors take a deep-dive into the scientific underpinnings into how creativity can be understood:

”The creative process requires disciplined switching between rational and imaginative thinking, each of which is supported by distinct networks in the brain. The creative person harbors paradoxes, prefers complexity, extracts order from disorders, takes risks, perseveres, and feels passion”

And lest you think the book is too abstract. The authors also report on the 10 habits on how to instill and drive creativity. Here are 4 that you can start with today:

1. Make time for your own space and enjoy solitude. For all the benefits of collaboration, open offices, and constant connection, we can easily forget the value of solitude. And there are many, including the opportunity to find flow, daydream constructively, and think about the meaning of your life. For optimal creativity, set aside time for solitude -- from taking a walk, to carving out moments when you’re fully removed from social distractions and really present to what is.

2. Contradict yourself! Think differently – intentionally. Creative people are nonconformists. The most original contributions in any field don’t result from efforts to please the crowd. Research by neuroscientist Gregory Berns suggests that innovative thinkers “bombard the brain with new experiences,” in order to mix existing categories and forge new connections. And the more intentional we are, the better. One study of more than 3,000 entrepreneurs and business executives found that innovators spend 50 percent more time trying to think differently -- and these intentional efforts sparked new ideas and associations.

3. Try meditation. We’ve all heard the benefits of meditation and I can personally attest to it. But research by Italian cognitive scientist Lorenza Colzato and her colleagues shows one type of meditation is particularly effective for creative thinking. It’s called “open-monitoring” meditation – in which you are receptive to your thoughts and emotions without focusing intensely on, say, your breath or a mantra. The more traditional focused-attention meditation was better for “convergent thinking” (coming up with a single best solution to a problem). So depending on where you are in your creative process, try to make time for at least a 15-minute meditation a day.

4. Fail fast and often. Embrace adversity. History’s creative geniuses weren’t necessarily tortured souls. But they were all good at finding meaning and guidance from their setbacks. Some of the greatest creators did have a seeming disadvantage -- a disability, mental illness, or loss of a parent -- which they channeled into their art, writing, or entrepreneurship.

For many leaders, it’s a daily reality: They are under a great deal of pressure. This is no coincidence, as job requirements and the complexity of their work have been rapidly increasing in the last few years. In addition, they must adapt to working conditions that have significantly changed in the hybrid context. They must develop solutions to problems that have never even existed before. Here, the traditional understanding of roles, where the leader is seen as a confident decision-maker who always has a solution at hand, no longer applies. Much rather, it’s essential to make use of the “know-how” of every member of the team, to create new ideas and solutions to pending problems. In theory, this seems obvious to most, but at the same time, the old understanding of roles in leadership is still very present – both the expectation within the minds of many leaders themselves and an expectation from employees who still wait for their boss to lead the way and tell them what to do.

Wherever people come together or work together, conflicts can arise. But the healthy handling of 
conflicts can be trained.

Whenever people come together or work together, there can be situations where different 
viewpoints, interests, and needs collide. Sometimes this also leads to conflicts. A respectful 
approach to others may be a first step.

Recently, I described to a department head what happens during coaching. In response, he told me 
how he goes about handling his employees: he constantly must explain to them what they are 
supposed to do and how they should go about doing it. And how he would do all of this with the 
patience of an angel. Even the smallest, most mundane things, they can’t manage on their own, he 
told me. 

Have you heard of Susanne Cain’s Quiet Revolution? While doing some research for our book, I came across her intriguing work; Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking. Ms Cain is an activist, bestselling author, a former corporate lawyer and a self-described introvert. She claims that 1/3 to 1/2 of the population, or one-out-of-two or three people you know, are introverts! That’s huge! A kind of quiet minority!

Resilient individuals demonstrate durability and not only navigate through crises unscathed but often emerge from them even stronger. Coach Harald Gabriel explains the role of one's life story in enhancing personal resilience.

How do you deal with setbacks and how can you break through negative thought patterns? Coach Uta Nachbaur shows how to train mental agility.