Resilience is a valuable trait in any role. In sales, especially, it helps you stay motivated when deals fall through and retain your energy even after tough quarters. When you’re resilient, it’s easier to start fresh and keep going, even when you’re under pressure.

Great Place To Work’s Ted Kitterman says many teams are facing a resilience deficit due to factors like economic uncertainty and increased loneliness at work. He says it’s not enough to encourage a keep-your-chin-up mentality. Instead, leaders should create the kind of workplace where people have the resources to adapt and thrive. We share his ideas for doing this in this issue of PromoPro Daily.

  1. Change what gets valued in reviews. Performance reviews matter. That’s why it’s so powerful if you start rewarding different things. For example, what if to celebrate well-being, you give an extra PTO day to employees who use their available days? Or what if you reward managers when their teams take their full vacation allotment? This is how you can begin to change the culture.

  2. Track analytics to measure leadership behaviors. Kitterman recommends exploring different tools and surveys to evaluate how leaders are impacting their team’s resilience. He says the technology is out there when you want to monitor employee experience and learn how managers impact their organization’s resilience.

  3. Allow employees a voice in crafting their own role. People want to do work they enjoy, so as much as possible, make sure they’re in roles that play to their strengths. Kitterman points out that when Google allowed employees to spend just 20% of their time on personal passion projects, it led to numerous successful projects, including Gmail and Google Maps.

  4. Increase communication in times of uncertainty. Even when you have bad news, like a difficult performance review, it’s better to share than to say nothing. Kitterman says that simply increasing communication can build resilience. This is because clarity is a crucial antidote to uncertainty.

You can help your team build resilience. It’s not about protecting them from stress or telling them to be stronger, but giving them clarity and opportunities to use their strengths. Start by evaluating your performance reviews and taking a closer look at how leaders positively or negatively impact resilience. If possible, give your employees a bigger say in their roles and responsibilities. And always communicate — even when you have tough news to share. The more you nurture resilience, the stronger your team becomes.

Compiled by Audrey Sellers
Source: Ted Kitterman is a content manager for Great Place To Work.