Bouncebackability

Given the current global situation, few questions that are universally prevalent-
When will the world get back to normal ? When will the economy improve ? What will be the job scenario ?

This post is not to discuss the answer to these, but to share something that is in our control.

I came across a pertinent word 'Bouncebackability' while reading Simon Taufel's book- "Finding the Gaps: Transferable Skills to Be the Best You Can Be".

Bouncebackability is the #skill of having a setback or #failure and being able to regroup, refocus, and get back on track to face the next challenge.

Most people have a negativity bias and the effects that Covid19 has thrust upon us feeds on this bias. I found the word Bouncebackability provide a breath of fresh air.

Sharing below (and in the #sketchnote) some more nuggets from the book that i found useful:

1. The way you speak to yourself matters. We need to show ourselves that we care, but not through the language and tone that puts us in a negative spin.

2. Don't allow negative thoughts and events to continue in your mind. You cannot look ahead when you are looking behind at the same time.

3. Writing your thoughts down provides more clarity and objectivity when it comes to working through the setback.

Sketchnote summary:

Some more nuggets from the book:

Bouncebackability is the skill of having a setback or failure and being able to regroup, refocus, and get back on track to face the next challenge.

Mental toughness is the ability to control your thoughts and emotions and not let them control you.

Majority of any sport is predominantly played out in the space between the ears.

There are three places your mind can be- past, present or future. You need to be aware of what is happening around and remain grounded in present.

Staying in present is a skill and it requires hardwork and practice.

Changing the self-talk
The way you speak to yourself matters. We need to show ourselves that we care, but not through the language and tone that puts us intona negative spin.
'Its OK, these things happen, are you alright? Let's get back on and have another try.'

Move-on: Don't Dwell
Don't allow negative thoughts and events to continue in your mind.
You cannot look ahead when you are looking behind at the same time.

Focus on the process, not on the outcomes
If you create robust and correct processes, committed to them, worked hard, practised and executed with purpose, the outcomes would take care of themselves.

HOW TO MOVE ON FROM SETBACK FASTER:
1. Acknowledgement:
Acknowledgement often takes the heat and anger out of the situation faster.
Having courage, internal or external, to be honest, and admit it is one of the first steps to being able to move on and bounce back by focusing on what comes next.
It is vital to acknowledge the error as it allows the door to learning to be opened.
Denial or dishonesty is, therefore, one of the roadblocks of being open to learning opportunities.
Put your hand-up and take responsibility.
Ownership of the setback, the error, or the situation comes down to you. Take responsibility of what is working and what is not in your game/

2. Release: Let it go
Because I was holding on to the setbacks, my brain was stuck in the past, still thinking about why and what impact it would have.
Letting go of negative thoughts and event sounds easy, but it is not.

Two tips:
a. Write it down:
Writing provides more clarity and objectivity when it comes to work through the setback. Writing detailed and specific self-assessments from each match provided me with an opportunity to download what worked, what didn't and ideas for what i needed to work on for the next match.

Writing it down showed me objectively and rationally where I was going wrong, how many times, and where the commonality may have existed.

b. Talk about it:
share the setbacks more with the people around you, your team.
It shows a professional approach to learning, a vulnerability that no one is perfect, that we all make mistakes, and offers an opportunity for others to provide input on the setback that may help us to move on faster.

3. Imprint: Visualize the right thing to do
Visualizing getting the task right helps building self-belief. It needs to be supported with positive self-talk.

4. Acceptance

The reality is, making mistakes is a part of the job and you have to learn to accept this to minimise the impact the errors have on your mental health

LinkedIn post:
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/anujmagazine_skills-skill-failure-activity-6659844602805268480-W428

Twitter post:
https://twitter.com/anujmagazine/status/1254091364519669760?s=20