Within professional member associations, resilience is a quality that is often held up as the hallmark of a good leader, but it’s often misunderstood. Resilience doesn’t mean that you need to push though at all costs or be endlessly tough in the face of adversity. While this may appear an excellent tactic at face value, it does not nurture sustainable leadership.
At Cygnul, we see resilience as something deeper and more compassionate. Leadership is about adaptability, self-awareness, and the ability to pause and regroup as an organisation.
Redefine Resilience in Your Organisation
Resilience should be a method of adapting and recovering, as opposed to just ‘coping’. Speak with your management team and define resilience in a way that feels authentic and aligned with your organisation’s values.
Not only will this help shoulder the burden of stress but will help to view resilience as a shared organisational capacity, rather than an individual issue.
Recovery, Not Just Resilience Training
There’s a lot of focus in the corporate world about how to handle stress, but very little about recovery. It’s important to incorporate practices within your organisation that encourages rest and reflection. It can be extremely helpful for management members to be able to step away from day-to-day operations and reconnect with their purpose and drive.
Lead by Example
Leaders shape culture. When leaders are always available, respond to emails at all hours, or neglect their own well-being in favour of their organisation, it can send the wrong message to the rest of team.
Modelling healthy boundaries, saying no when needed, and prioritising work-life balance can be one of the most powerful resilience practices a leader can demonstrate to their team.
Be Honest
Resilience grows when leaders feel able to speak openly about challenges, doubts and mistakes. This isn’t just about the concept of psychological safety, but embedding it into regular, everyday practices in order to create a space for honest dialogue.
- Consider regular check-ins with the management team
- Reflect when in meetings – what’s been particularly tricky, or what are you stuck on?
- Be open – if you’re unable to provide an answer to a query, be honest and brainstorm a solution with your peers
Incorporating these tactics into your day-to-day leadership will help to make resilience an ongoing practice, not a one-off intervention.
How We Can Help
While there are a huge number of benefits to being part of a professional membership associations management committee, it’s important to realise that there are heavy responsibilities. Many tasks can seem quite daunting or time consuming, which is why it’s important to work alongside a reliable administration management team.
At Cygnul we work in partnership with our clients and are seen as trusted advisors to the Board. We can undertake the full range of membership, secretarial and bookkeeping services as well as offering advice and support to associations around the UK. If you want to explore how these services could help your organisation, please get in touch with us.