Not quite myself

I’ve been feeling a bit out of sorts lately. I’m not entirely sure why, but I’ve definitely felt more anxious, more emotional, and not like myself at all. I don’t like feeling this way and I’ve been wracking my brain for a reason why this should be the case. On the face of things I should be feeling happy and content with my life; I have a great husband and we’ve just celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary, we have a wonderful young son, a lovely circle of friends, supportive family, and a job that allows me the flexibility to spend time with my son.

Building resilience

Building resilience skills has been shown to significantly reduce depression and improve performance and life satisfaction – across years and years. It takes more than a strong brand and the intention to engage with and create a positive experience for employees. Organisations need to be resilient, with flexible and resourceful leaders, to create a productive and engaging work environment for its people. Let’s face it, we’ve all had that one boss who’s lost it at an inappropriate moment – I once worked for a director who just couldn’t handle a design agency telling him his ideas were a bit passé, so he just flipped and started shouting at everyone to get out! - and that doesn’t instil a great deal of confidence in their ability to lead your team.

Being grateful builds resilience

I spotted the image above as l flicked through my Facebook timeline today. It made me laugh, then it made me think… why is it we seem quicker to complain than we are to express gratitude? We all complain. Even those of you who believe you’re the happiest, most grateful, of people you probably complain sometimes.

Many managers may assume that the people in their teams would prefer to work less, but the reality is that many people would in fact like a more challenging role or job. A survey by global talent mobility firm Lee Hecht Harrison found that 62% of people surveyed feel they are often under-utilised in their jobs, with 24% saying they do sometimes. This may be because some of them are over qualified – a study by economist Richard Vedder, from Ohio University, found that almost half of working Americans with a college degree are in jobs that don't really require a degree. Take, for instance, retail sales staff – it found that 25% had a bachelor's degree in 2010 as opposed to fewer than 5% in 1970.