In my last article, I discussed three strategies you can follow right now to build career resiliency, even during the pandemic. For how you can still grow your network, see setbacks and crises as opportunities, and how to accept change, see the previous article link.

As a brief reminder, career resilience is the ability to adapt to changes and developments, even stressful ones, at your work or in your professional field. The benefits of building this type of resiliency are obvious, especially at a time of job losses and economic uncertainty.

Here are four more strategies you can use to help build this.

Strategy 4: Move Towards Your Goals

Stressful events make us retreat from opportunity. When things are falling apart around us, it is tempting to only focus on the immediately important things. While this may be comforting, it does not help your resilience.

You should be able to identify the milestones and objectives you want to achieve. These professional achievements might be getting a promotion, adding a skill to your resume, or obtaining a new qualification. Don’t put these off. In fact, right now is the best time to work towards your goals. With less commuting, we have more time which can be put to good use.

Setting easy, measurable, and quickly achievable goals will help. If you have ‘learn a programming language’ as a goal, that may be daunting and off-putting. Instead, break that goal down into minor components and spend 30 minutes a day practicing. It’ll help keep you on track and give you a sense of accomplishment.

Strategy 5: Become a Lifelong Learner

Follow your curiosity. This can lead to interesting new discoveries that can be applied to your professional life. History is full of examples of how people just tinkering around and producing something that was seemingly useless at first, had a major impact on our world. James Clerk Maxwell messed around with electricity, discovering several interesting properties that weren’t put to use until Marconi invented the radio.

While your discoveries might not be world-shattering, they can alter your world. Thirsting after new knowledge is directly useful in your professional life too. As with anything, practice will make it easier. But if you approach life and work with the attitude of a lifelong learner, you will keep on developing new skills that add to your career resilience.

Strategy 6: Be Positive and Hopeful

It is easy to take a pessimistic view of the world now. That will affect your motivation and desire to develop new skills, grow your network, and build your career resiliency. A positive attitude will make fulfilling those things much easier.

And there is much to be positive about too. We have adapted with astonishing speed to the new realities of the pandemic. Scientists are moving closer each day to a vaccine. The world is discussing how to use this crisis as an opportunity (strategy 2) to build a recovery that will help the planet and prevent more climate change.

Look at the changes in your own life and celebrate what you can. Be positive. Keep going. It will get better.

Strategy 7: Take Care of Yourself

Finally, look out for yourself. Practice self-care and identify when you need a break. Burnout is a very real thing and it can get you. Working from home can make it difficult to escape work. The laptop is always there. Emails can always be checked.

Take a step back. Relax. Enjoy life. Take a long walk. Drink a glass of water. Stretch. Taking care of yourself will make you better able to tackle the changes we are all experiencing. It’s necessary to do to keep your spirits up and your stress down.

With all the strategies in hand, you can build up your career resiliency and be ready for whatever may happen. Being open and ready to learn and adapt makes you a more agile worker who can move with the times and adjust your career as needed to stay current and ahead of the curve of your career.