Page 229 - How Great Leaders Build Abundant Organizations That Win

HOW DO I RESPOND TO DISPOSABILITY AND CHANGE? (GROWTH, LEARNING, AND RESILIENCE)

• • Humor: He used self-deprecating humor and storytell-
ing to put people at ease.
• • Magnanimity: He held no grudges against those who
disagreed with him.
• • Generosity of spirit: He publicly admitted mistakes and
took blame for administrative errors.
• • Perspective: He put things in context, always seeing the
big picture.
• • Self-control: He controlled his public emotions, some-
times by writing a letter to himself and then tearing it up.
• • Balance: He was able to relax and entertain friends even
in the midst of stress.
• • Social conscience: He tirelessly worked to serve others. 8

Lincoln’s resilience enabled him to cope with huge set-
backs and try again, somehow maintaining the perspective
that he had enough and to spare of what it would take to
succeed.
Consider three sources of resilience that leaders manage
to create meaning from loss or failure: personal, social, and
organizational.

Personal Resilience

Leaders facing the same challenge may respond with despair
or resilience. Personal resilience, the ability to bounce back
from defeat, increases when leaders can do the following:

• • Maintain an optimistic attitude. Resilient leaders
see opportunity even in the midst of dramatic change.
Lincoln used humor and stories to communicate opti-
mism in the face of the enormous challenges facing the

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