Resilience: The Underestimated Success Factor
- Dominique Giger
- Sep 22
- 5 min read
Protective Factors, Cognitive Traps, and Evidence-Based Tools for a Sustainable High-Performance Culture
Organizations are under constant pressure to adapt: global crises, talent shortages, digital disruption, and rising expectations from clients and employees make painstakingly built structures appear fragile. The key question is: How can leaders and teams find stability in the midst of such collapse – and not only rebuild the house of cards, but make it stronger and more resilient than before?
The answer is resilience. And it is far more than a psychological buzzword. Resilience is a tangible competitive factor that determines whether leaders and organizations can withstand crises, enable innovation, and remain successful in the long term.
Why Resilience Is Not a “Soft Skill”
Resilience is often confused with toughness: the ability to suppress emotions or always appear “strong.” Yet research shows: those who suppress emotions risk stress-related illness, burnout, and poor decisions. True resilience does not mean avoiding stress but dealing with it constructively.
A national AXA study reveals that nearly half of the Swiss population regularly feels stressed, one-third experiences high performance pressure, and two-thirds of SMEs are affected by stress-related absences. The Office of Economic Affairs of the Canton of Zurich estimates the annual costs of psychological illness and absences at more than two billion Swiss francs. These numbers make it clear: resilience is no longer just a psychological matter - it is an economic one.
Four Protective Factors That Strengthen Leaders
Resilience can be trained. Four protective factors are particularly crucial:
1. Self-Awareness and Self-Regulation
Leadership begins with the ability to recognize one’s own reactions: Which thoughts arise under pressure? What physical signals (racing heart, tightness) occur? Those who notice these signs early can intervene by using breathing techniques, taking short breaks, or consciously delegating tasks. Psychological health research shows that self-awareness is a key factor for long-term resilience.
2. Mental Agility
Mental agility means shifting perspectives and seeing multiple courses of action. Instead of clinging to a rigid plan, leaders must remain flexible. Research on digital leadership demonstrates that agile leaders foster innovation and adaptability within organizations.
3. Realistic Optimism
Optimism without reality checks leads to misjudgments. Realistic optimism means remaining solution-oriented even in difficult situations. It focuses attention on controllable factors and gives leaders back a sense of agency.
4. Self-Efficacy
Self-efficacy is the belief that one’s own actions make a difference. Studies show that people with higher self-efficacy respond more resiliently to stress and are more likely to take constructive steps.
These four protective factors form the foundation. Yet in daily practice, leaders repeatedly fall into cognitive traps that weaken resilience.
The Five Classic Cognitive Traps
1. Mind Reading
We assume we know what others think – usually negative.
Examples: “My boss thinks I’m incompetent.” or “She doesn’t respect me.”
Result: misunderstandings, isolation, conflicts.
Tool: Evidence Check
Write down assumptions
Collect evidence for and against them
Seek feedback through direct questions
This method creates clarity and dissolves false beliefs.
2. The Me Trap
We blame ourselves for everything: “It’s all my fault.”
Result: guilt, self-doubt, burnout risk.
3. The Them Trap
We consistently blame others: “Management is incapable.”
Result: anger, conflict, stagnation.
Tool: Responsibility Check
List external causes
Practice perspective-taking: “What would a neutral view look like?”
Define clearly: “This was my part. This was not.”
The responsibility check prevents both self-overload and blame-shifting.
4. Catastrophizing
The mental cinema runs: always the worst-case scenario.
Example: “One mistake, and I’ll lose my job.”
Result: fear, insomnia, paralysis.
Tool: Three-Scenario Technique
Worst Case: What’s the worst possible outcome?
Best Case: What’s the best possible outcome?
Most Likely Case: What is most probable?
Develop an action plan for the most likely case.
This technique defuses drama and restores a sense of control.
5. Helplessness
The feeling that nothing can be changed.
Examples: “There’s no point anyway.” – “I’ll never change.”
Result: resignation, paralysis, loss of motivation.
Tools: Shades-of-Grey Method and Positive Check
Shades-of-Grey Method (against black-and-white thinking):
Notice absolute words like “always” or “never.”
Identify intermediate results.
Evaluate realistically between 0 and 100 percent.
Positive Check (against selective perception):
Keep a success journal.
Put results in perspective.
Practice gratitude.
Both approaches broaden perspective, strengthen self-efficacy, and prevent resignation.
Why the Tools Work: A Neuropsychological View
These methods are more than simple tricks – they are neuropsychologically effective:
Evidence Check activates the prefrontal cortex, responsible for rational analysis, while calming the amygdala, which triggers fear responses.
Responsibility Check reduces unhealthy guilt stress while reinforcing personal accountability.
Three-Scenario Technique helps relativize catastrophic images and fosters solution-oriented action.
Shades-of-Grey Method and Positive Check deliberately train optimism – not as illusion, but as a learnable mental habit.
The Economic Value of Resilience
Resilience is measurable:
According to AXA, 64 percent of Swiss SMEs face stress-related absences.
The Canton of Zurich estimates annual costs of over two billion Swiss francs due to mental health-related absences.
International programs like the Penn Resilience Program demonstrate that resilience training reduces depressive symptoms and promotes cognitive flexibility.
Organizations that invest in resilience not only reduce costs but also strengthen innovation, adaptability, and team cohesion.
Conclusion
Resilience is no buzzword. It determines whether leaders freeze in crises or emerge stronger from them. The five cognitive traps show how easily we can block ourselves. The tools presented offer concrete ways to regain agency and stability.
For organizations, resilience is an investment in the future: fewer absences, more innovation, stronger teams. For leaders, it ultimately means one thing above all: the ability to find stability when the house of cards collapses.
About the Author
Dominique Giger holds an MSc in Computer Science (ETH Zurich) and has more than 18 years of international experience in transformation and change management. She combines deep technical expertise with insights from neuroscience and psychology.
Her focus is on empowering leaders and teams to navigate uncertainty with clarity and focus, drive continuous improvement, emerge stronger from crises, build mental strength, and create a healthy, high-performing organizational culture.
Dominique works with both SMEs and international corporations, conducts workshops, and delivers keynotes on topics such as resilience, leadership, team transformation, and sustainable high-performance culture.
Her unique value proposition lies in the rare combination of technical expertise, extensive practical experience in transformation, and scientifically grounded insights into human behavior and resilience.
Learn More - Podcast Episode
Dominique Giger expands on these ideas in her latest podcast episode:“Resilience: How to Find Stability When Your House of Cards Collapses.”
Listen here:
References
AXA Switzerland (2022): Mind Health Report. Press release, January 25, 2022
AXA Switzerland (2023): SME Study: 64 percent of SMEs are affected by stress-related absences
Office of Economic Affairs, Canton of Zurich (2025): Work and Health in Transition. Press release, June 2025
TellMed (2023): Stress Study: Swiss employees increasingly stressed
Huang, H. & Kou, C. (2025): Learning agility, self-efficacy and resilience. Frontiers in Psychology
Albannai, A. et al. (2024): Digital leadership and its impact on agility and resilience in organisations. Benchmarking: An International Journal
Penn Positive Psychology Center (2024): Penn Resilience Program (PRP). University of Pennsylvania
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