Fall 7 times, get up 8  

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There’s a Japanese proverb that perfectly captures what resilience means to me: “Fall seven times, get up eight.” Not just bouncing back after setbacks, but actually finding ways to advance despite them. 

Resilience has been on my mind a lot lately. Between the inevitable aging parent health concerns, making sure “the kids are all right,” and navigating the constantly shifting business landscape (seriously, there is a reason they call us the sandwich generation!) I’ve been thinking about how we build that muscle—not just to survive challenges but to grow stronger through them. 

I wanted to share some thoughts on building resilience across the many dimensions of our lives—because let’s face it, the only constant is change, and we all need strategies to keep moving forward. 

Personal resilience: Know your North Star 

I think resilience starts with being clear about your core values; they are your map when everything is swirling and you feel lost. 

I saw this with my brother recently. He’s an integrative doctor with a growing practice, helping patients with chronic conditions like Lyme disease. His practice had gotten so busy that he started burning out. He realized that if he didn’t prioritize his own self-care, he wouldn’t be able to help anyone else. (There’s a reason flight attendants remind you to put on your own oxygen mask first!) 

That’s the foundation of resilience right there—understanding what matters most to you and making choices that align with those values, especially when things get tough. It’s not always easy. 

I’ve learned this in past toxic work environments. Looking back, even painful experiences taught me important lessons. Each one made me more clear about what I didn’t want and helped me become more discerning about what was right for me. 

When you’re clear on your values, you can weather almost any storm because you have an internal compass guiding you. 

Team resilience: Create psychological safety 

Team resilience builds on personal resilience, but it’s about creating an environment where everyone can thrive together. 

At FINN, our weekly status meetings sometimes turn into emotional check-ins, especially after difficult world events. There are times when we spend the entire hour talking about how we’re feeling, supporting each other through life’s challenges. Sure, the work is critical, but we see each other as human beings first. This psychological safety is vital. It allows us to be vulnerable, to fail without fear, and to learn together. 

Another aspect of team resilience is embracing diverse perspectives. Our team spans nearly every generation, from boomers to millennials to Gen Z, with team members across the country and around the world. This diversity creates an incredible symbiotic learning environment where we all teach each other. 

Organizational resilience: Clarity in your mission 

What makes organizations resilient? It comes down to clarity around mission, and an almost stubborn practice of values—that North Star principle again, but at the organizational level. We’ve built a culture of communication where leadership is honest about challenges and potential risks, and are very committed to our principles. We’ve remained steady; we’re a safe harbor in the storm because we have utter clarity about who we are and what we stand for. 

This reminds me of companies that jumped on the DEI bandwagon without genuine commitment. When pressure started to mount, they abandoned these initiatives because they had been responding rather than operating from core values. True organizational resilience requires authenticity—knowing what you stand for and sticking to it—even when it’s hard. 

Another crucial element is having a brain trust—eyes and ears beyond your core team. You need people connected to your culture and customers, who can tell you what’s really happening. Are there trends or threats on the horizon? What’s the client feedback saying? What are best practices we’re missing? 

You can’t be resilient if you’re not willing to subject yourself to unfiltered truth. You need to see blind spots before they become bigger problems. 

Brand resilience: Anticipate challenges 

I’ve noticed that when we prepare for the worst, the worst seldom happens. Brand resilience is like that. How brands interrogate their purpose, weather storms and maintain trust through difficulties requires a huge amount of planning and soul-searching. Companies that do the hard work of anticipating challenges, examining vulnerabilities, and shoring up weaknesses are going to emerge from crises, perhaps even growing in the process. 

One interesting approach is to anticipate your organization’s worst-case scenarios, real monster-under-the-bed situations, and working through those potential crises before disaster hits. This proactive stance means analyzing the data and asking tough questions. How transparent should you be about vulnerabilities while still projecting strength? What resilience stories will resonate most with your stakeholders? 

I experienced this firsthand at a previous agency. As marketing lead, I had to stand in front of the company weekly, reporting on new business pitches we consistently lost because, despite our best marketing efforts, the executive leadership wasn’t truly committed to investing in the necessary resources to level up. I tried to put the best face on things, sharing messages of hope while knowing behind the scenes that fundamental changes weren’t happening. 

It taught me that transparency has its limits in leadership. You need to be transparent enough that people feel secure, but sometimes you need to carry certain burdens yourself. Finding that balance is part of resilience. 

The resilience mindset 

Resilience isn’t about never falling—we all fall. It’s about finding the lesson in each setback and using it to move forward with greater wisdom and strength. 

So when you face your next challenge—whether personal, professional, or somewhere in between—remember: Each time you get up again, you’re not just returning to where you were before, you’re moving toward somewhere new. 

Celia Jones is global chief marketing officer at FINN Partners. 

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