Nelson Mandela once said, “Do not judge me by my success, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.” What he was describing is resilience: the ability to recover from failure and move beyond adversity.

Throughout history, business entrepreneurs have demonstrated the importance of resiliency in achieving goals. Those who can withstand, recover and bounce back amid stress and ever-changing circumstances have learned to “be resilient,” which is the fourth key in @BizPrivy’s “The Twelve Keys to Success.”

As travel professionals, we continually face disruption and uncertainty. Disastrous weather events, travel alerts, strikes, government shutdowns, political uprisings, pandemics and the ever-changing economy can send our industry into a tailspin.

Developing resilience goes beyond coping with life’s sudden twists and turns; it also arms you with the tenacity it takes to glide through constant change in the long term.

Those who are resilient by nature find solutions and keep moving toward their goals. Resiliency, however, can also be developed by changing your mindset.

Here are the three elements to developing a resilient mindset:

Challenge

When a failure or setback occurs, view the situation as a challenge instead of a devastating, paralyzing event. This will help you move beyond the failure or setback, enabling you to focus on finding a solution.

Flexibility

Most things in life don’t go as planned. Finding a solution to a problem might mean changing direction, but it’s important to keep in mind that a detour doesn’t stop you from pursuing your goals and reaching your final destination.

Personal Control

Spending time and energy focusing on events that you have no control over is a waste of time and can plunge you into a hole of helplessness. When you focus your efforts on where you have the most impact, your confidence will increase, which will propel you forward toward your goals.

The more you leverage challenges as opportunities, the more your resilience will grow. In turn, you’ll push yourself to evolve and become better at overcoming obstacles in your path. When times get tough, remember the words of Benjamin Franklin, “The things which hurt, instruct.”