Build Your Resilience in the Face of a Crisis

During times of crisis the mind’s tendency to wander and get trapped in negative thinking is exacerbated. You can become hooked by obsessive thinking and feelings of fear and helplessness. The way to overcome this is to build our mental resilience through mindfulness.

During times of crisis the mind’s tendency to wander and get trapped in negative thinking is exacerbated. You can become hooked by obsessive thinking and feelings of fear and helplessness.

When your mind gets stuck in this state, a chain reaction begins. Fear begins to narrow your field of vision, and it becomes harder to see the bigger picture and the positive, creative possibilities in front of you. As perspective shrinks, so too does your tendency to connect with others. Right now, the realities of how the coronavirus spreads can play into our worst fears about others and increase our feelings of isolation, which only adds fuel to our worries.

The way to overcome this is to build our mental resilience through mindfulness. Mental resilience is the skill of noticing our own thoughts, unhooking from the nonconstructive ones and rebalancing quickly. This skill can be nurtured and trained. Here are three effective strategies:

FIRST, CALM THE MIND: When you focus on calming and clearing your mind, you can catch your thoughts when they start to run away toward doomsday scenarios. You can hold your focus on what you choose (“Isn’t it a gift to be able to work from home!”) versus what pulls at you with each breaking news notification. This calm and present state is crucial. It helps keep the mind from wandering and reduces the pits of stress and worry that we can easily get stuck in. Even more important, the continued practice of unhooking and focusing our minds builds a muscle of resilience that will serve us again and again.

LOOK OUT THE WINDOW: Despair and fear can lead to overreactions. Often, it feels better to be doing something — anything — rather than sitting with uncomfortable emotions. Your mind needs space to unhook from the swirl of bad news and to settle into a more stable position from which good planning can emerge. Look out your window and reflect. In doing so, you may find clearer answers about how to move forward.

CONNECT WITH OTHERS: Many of the circles of community that provide support in times of stress are now closed off to us as cities and governments work to contain the spread of the virus. The natural byproduct of this is a growing sense of isolation. The present climate of fear can also create stigmas and judgments about who is to blame and who is to be avoided, along with a dark, survivalist mindset. But meaningful connection can occur even from the recommended 6 feet of social distance between you and your neighbor — and it begins with compassion. Practically speaking, compassion starts by asking yourself one question as you go about your day and connect, virtually and in person, with others: How can I help this person have a better day?

With that simple question, amazing things begin to happen. The mind expands, the eyes open and we see possibilities for ourselves and others that are rich with hope and ripe with opportunity.

Copyright 2020 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. Distributed by The New York Times Syndicate.