“When you first learned to walk, you couldn’t do it instantly, could you?” were my Design Technology teacher’s words of wisdom as 13-year-old me masterfully failed at building a bird box. He continued; “and, when you learn to drive, you won’t know how to drive straight away. But you will get there eventually.” Quite ironically, I passed third time, in case you were wondering, and that comment still resonates with me seven years later every time I feel as though something is impossible.
Mental resilience is undoubtedly one of the most important skills to develop, for a number of reasons. Failure and adversity are key facets of life, and improved mental resilience provides you with the skillset necessary to adapt in the face of both minor and major setbacks. Resilience further allows you the opportunity to process and ‘bounce-back’ from burnout, challenges, and stress, supporting mental growth and development throughout. Through promoting and aiding such personal growth, resilience can, therefore, contribute to a more positive outlook on life. This growth and outlook can also be transferred not only towards our own life experiences, but also to our relationships with others, curating a more positive and healthy environment all around.
The online age has prioritised an emphasis, rightfully so, on mental health and the importance of building a support system and taking time off, marking an incredibly warming and welcomed change. However, the minor drawback is that such reverence often tends to tilt towards a culture of over-reliance on others, and neglect of mental resilience. The ultimate reality, however, is that the one constant thing in life is yourself, and building a framework in which you know how to adapt yourself in a crisis, is the ultimate lesson of life. To be able to provide yourself with the skillset to push through adversity is a tricky feat that can — somewhat annoyingly — only be learnt through trial and error, and exists without a helpful handbook to follow.
Speaking to students about how they improve their mental resilience, many emphasised prioritising a range of hobbies: increased physical (but non-strenuous) activity, yoga, reading, and arts and crafts. These are all commonly viewed as ‘slow’ hobbies — providing a great opportunity to detach yourself from the overwhelming nature of life, and fully plunge your passion and energy into a fulfilling hobby. Most importantly, I have found a great method is additionally practicing lower-screen time in these hobbies, particularly walking or running. It allows you to ground yourself away from the hyper-connectivity and hyper-activity of online spaces, which can often feel suffocating. Journaling was one of the most mentioned activities, as often the physical act of writing down the ins and outs of your struggles allows you to properly consider, reason with, and reflect on the issues. This helps strengthen mental resilience.
Ultimately, awareness and emphasis on mental health is important, but equally important is curating a culture that also highlights the importance of mental resilience. It provides you with the ability to reflect, ground yourself, and persevere through life’s many challenges; moving cities, academic pressure, break-ups or even, worst of all, building a birdbox.
Photo by Alex Shute on Unsplash.