Developing a Mentally Tough Workforce

SEMINAR

If you're interested in developing a mentally tough workforce, join us at the Institute of Directors on the 8th January 2007 to discover how!

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Mental Toughness: ‘Someone who is mentally tough tends to be sociable and outgoing, can remain calm and relaxed, they are competitive in many situations and have lower anxiety levels than others. They have a sense of self-belief and an unshakeable faith that they control their own destiny. These individuals can remain relatively unaffected by competition or adversity’.

Mental Toughness can be developed

Sara Burks, MD of Adaptis explains: “The first thing you need to develop for Mental Toughness is a clear understanding of yourself and how you react to stressors in your life, whether these be stressors from within yourself, organisational stressors such as the pace of change, the values within your organisation or stressors from your family, society etc. Using tools such as Strength Deployment Inventory (SDI) can give you an idea of where you derive your self esteem and what behaviours you are likely to display in any pressure situation.” 

Developing a Mentally Tough Workforce

“To add to the self-knowledge we can also measure, via a Questionnaire developed by Dr Peter Clough here in the UK , your current level of Mental Toughness.  And because this is not a trait but a competence, any gaps can then be developed. The measured scales are:

• Emotional control – the ability to keep anxieties in check and not reveal your emotional state to others.
• Life control – a belief that you control your life and can make a difference.
• Challenge or Change Orientation – the extent you see problems as opportunities.
• Commitment – your resilience or ‘stickability’. How easily and confidently can you carry out tasks despite problems or obstacles encountered.
• Confidence – self belief, the value you place on yourself, your optimism, your assertiveness.

“So developing Mental Toughness takes a two-pronged approach. We look at your personality style, your level of Mental Toughness and then introduce a variety of techniques to develop your Mental Toughness. 

“And the benefits? Well with the forever increasing rate and pace of change, wouldn’t it be great to increase the percentage of those in our organisations who are ready, willing and able to meet that pace?”

Sara Burks