One of the important ways we get ourselves through difficult times is to identify and turn to our healthy connections. These connections are a key component to your resilience plan — your strategies to thrive no matter what life throws at you.
And since life has been throwing a whole lot at us lately, taking a moment for a proactive check of your healthy connections would be wise. Knowing who you can turn to in different situations will help you cope more easily and quickly. You can also identify what connections are missing, and fill in the connections you may need in the future.
There are three types of healthy connections.
1. We need experts to turn to.
Both at work and in your personal life, you need experts in their field, such as advisors, therapists, healers, counselors, and coaches to call on when you need advice, strategies, and guidance. Whether that means a financial advisor, therapist, life coach, or nutritionist, who can you turn to for expert advice you can trust when making decisions and choices? Identify the experts you have in your life, so you’re sure you have them before you need them.
2. We need people who’ve been through it already.
Along with experts to turn to for advice, connecting with people who’ve been through or are going through what you’re going through is vital. Simply knowing you’re not alone adds to the power of your resilience. And hearing the real-life experience of someone who’s gone through the dark tunnel and come out the other side can give you ideas, insights, and confidence that you can do it, too.
3. We need friends we can count on.
As much as you may want to be completely independent or hate asking for help, we all need someone — just one person — we can call when we can’t do it alone. This can be a different person for each type of situation, but you need to know who you can count on. You need a “flat tire friend” for different scenarios in your life. Who are the people you can count on when you’re stranded or your heart just got broken or you need 3 eggs for a recipe? Figure out your support system, and who you can trust, before the need arises.
Building Resilience
Utilizing your healthy connections is an important aspect of resilience, along with using your strengths, being your authentic self, mindfulness, and becoming a benefit finder. For more on these topics, read the 3-part Resilience series here on Your Spirited Life. You can start here with “I Found A Tick and Other Reasons To Become More Resilient”.
All My Best,
