Finkelstein, the Steven Roth Professor of Management and the associate dean for executive education at Tuck, says resilience is “often the secret sauce that separates the highest achievers from the mass of people who are perfectly capable, but not exceptional. If doctors could prescribe resilience, we’d all want it.”
It is important for people to be resilient in both their professional and their personal lives, says Finkelstein. “Resilience is not just about getting up off the floor, but also being ready for whatever comes next. Even when you don’t know what it is. Failures, setbacks and falling down on the ice in front of millions of people are no longer unusual events, but regular features of a dynamic, competitive, and highly demanding work environment. Getting up to finish your skate is no longer optional.”
Read the full opinion piece, published 2/20/14 by the BBC.