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11 March 2021

Uni success is about more than just hitting the books – you also need resilience

‘Resilience’ is a term used by many people over the last 12 months, as we all faced multiple challenges and new situations brought about by COVID-19. You probably also heard the word ‘unprecedented’ a LOT, too!

While we all needed to find bucketloads of resilience to get through 2020, the start of 2021 has shown that we’re likely to face further hiccups and adjustments in this new ‘COVID-Normal’ landscape.

How have you been coping with everything? Do you ever struggle to manage stressful situations, or are you worried about how new study commitments will affect your wellbeing?

Well, the good news is that you can learn resilience by developing and building habits that increase your flexibility and strength.

Picture a rubber ball …

Associate Professor Marcus O’Donnell, Director at Deakin’s Cloud Learning Futures, likens resilience to a rubber ball:

The reason it bounces is because it’s flexible. It’s pliant. And it’s also incredibly strong. Because of this, it regains its shape very quickly. But one of the interesting things about a rubber ball is that it can bounce up and down or it can bounce forward. So resilience is also about gaining that sense of direction or forward thrust in your life.

Ways to build resilience

It’s important to take care of all aspects of your life – your study, mind, body and environment – so follow these tips to develop your resilience:

Help is here!

We’ve put together a few resources you can use to develop your resilience and succeed at your studies:



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