Agile but underperforming
While this seems like a paradox, the answers lie in the interaction of two constructs which are often lumped together but which in fact are distinct and complementary. Agility is the ability to react and adapt quickly to changing conditions. Resilience is the ability to rebound psychologically (and physically) from challenging situations, like today’s chaotic and ever-changing business landscape.
Strivers suffer a risk of burnout that is seven times higher (44%) than the burnout risk of someone who is both highly agile and highly resilient (6%). They also have a 27% higher risk of depression, a 54% higher risk of performance-harming anxiety, and an average increase in absenteeism of 5.7 days a year. Lacking resilience skills, these highly motivated employees are at risk of losing more than a week of work time every year.
Resilience supports agile skills
Highly resilient people are 28% better able to adapt to changing circumstances and score significantly higher than peers on attributes associated with agility: critical thinking, creativity and willingness to learn. High resilience scores correlate to a 30% higher ability to respond quickly to unforeseen challenges, boosting that all-important agile quality — speed.
