Exercise 5 TCL4 - Risk and resilience
Resilience questionnaire
Read each scenario then pick one answer which most closely fits you/your situation
1
You’re faced with some boring, routine tasks at home, ones that you have done many times
before, ones you don’t particularly enjoy but know they are necessary. How do you cope?
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2
It’s Friday afternoon and you’ve invited 10 friends for dinner this evening. You have to stay late
at work, get caught in traffic and only have 2 hours to get everything together – groceries, wine
hoover round, shower and change. How do you deal with this pressure?
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3
Oh no, I hate change, I’ll leave my job rather than do this
I view it as an unwelcome change to my regular routine
I don’t mind too much – it will be a nice change in some ways
It’s great, I’m ready for a change so I’m really pleased
Your family has been looking forward to a holiday abroad. You meet up with your teenage
daughter at the airport and just as you go to check in she realises she has forgotten her passport.
What do you do?
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5
I nearly have a nervous breakdown. What was I thinking planning such a big thing?
I get a bit flustered, but manage to keep my panic from overwhelming me.
I’m realistic and take it in my stride, what’s the very worst that can happen?
I thrive on the adrenaline rush, this kind of challenge is fun, not stressful for me.
I take the opportunity to try to beat my record for how fast I can get all this done.
As part of a College restructuring programme you have been transferred to another department
and asked to teach on an unfamiliar course. How do you feel?
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4
I don’t do them and just hope someone else will
I put them off, then do them grudgingly, moaning and groaning
I just get on with them and do them as quickly as I can
I try to make them enjoyable by listening to music, challenging myself to work faster, or
planning a reward for myself
Send her home to get it whilst I get on the plane with the rest of the family
Make the whole family miss the flight while she goes home to get it
I completely lose my temper and shout at her in the queue, she’s ruined the holiday
Send the rest of the family ahead and welcome some time alone with her whilst I drive
her back home to get it
You’re out at the pub having a drink with some friends and the subject of health comes up.
What would you say?
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I eat a healthy diet and I take regular exercise
I know I’m a bit overweight but I still feel fit for my age
I’ve always got niggly aches and pains, my eyesight’s deteriorating and I get quite out of
breath sometimes
It’s hopeless, I’m overweight, eat too much and it’s a struggle to get out of bed in the
mornings
Exercise 5 TCL4 - Risk and resilience
6
You’re at home on your own cooking the evening meal when a neighbour comes to the door,
the dog goes mad and your mobile starts ringing all at the same time. How do you react?
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7
When walking down the street in your local town you see an elderly man get knocked down as
he starts to cross the road. What do you do?
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8
Pretend I didn’t see anything and keep walking, I’m no good in an emergency
Rush over and start calling an ambulance
Be pro-active - go straight over and take the opportunity to use my First Aid skills
Stand and stare whilst other people rally round him
Faint because I don’t like the sight of blood
Everyone has set backs, the odd failure and things that go wrong. Mostly your view of these is
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9
I can’t do more than one thing at a time and I fly into a complete panic
I deal with one thing at a time, turn the cooker off, shoo the dog out and let the
neighbour in, the phone can wait
I’m quite calm, I know I can handle more than one thing at a time
I ignore it all and carry on cooking
It’s a challenge, I stay motivated and do my best to overcome them
I sink into a depression, feel really low and find it hard to rise above these put downs
An opportunity to do something I hadn’t planned and it might turn out for the best
I get angry and blame somebody else
When thinking about your family, friends and relationships you would describe yourself as
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Relaxed, a wide circle of friends, a close supportive family and healthy relationships
Pretty average – some close friends and family – most of us get along alright
A bit of a party animal, lots of friends and acquaintances, an extended family and social
functions most weekends
A bit of a loner – most of my family live away, I’ve a few close friends but I don’t
socialise much
10 Somebody was talking about work/life balance the other day
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Even if I’m having a bad day I wouldn’t want to be doing anything different
I never have enough time for my hobbies
I feel disconnected from what it is I’m doing with my life at the moment
I have hobbies, interests and activities that I enjoy as well as my work
I hate my life and everything about it, I could walk away and just live on an island
I feel stuck in my job, in life really, but don’t know what to do about it