I Asked Ed Wisniowski to Boost Your Resilience Today!

I Asked Ed Wisniowski to Boost Your Resilience Today!
"Resilience is NOT about heroic postures" - EW
"Resilience is NOT about heroic postures or phony displays of machismo; it is about suffering failure, humiliation, and disappointment and having the strength to persist."

Today we have resilience pro-tips from a leader I've learned a ton from.

Meet Ed Wisniowski, a software development veteran and coach. He specializes in improving organization product ownership, helps developers become better artisans, and scales agile in organizations.

I read Ed's blog every week. His writing combines hindsight, foresight and personal vulnerability. Such courageous cocktail gives us readers an informed glance on global economy, business agility, software development, leadership, and philosophy.

So, without further ado, let's talk about resilience –the ability to bounce back from external shocks and adversity.

Alberto C. Blanco (A.B.): Tell me about two regular practices that are unique to you and help you stay resilient and show up for others as a leader.

Edward Wisniowski (E.W.): The first is I write a diary where I make an entry at least once or twice a day. It allows me to test ideas, process emotions, and record events for future reflection. 

The second is I work with a career coach with a background in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. The hardest part of leadership for me is dealing with the loneliness and emotional labor of the job. My coach has made me a significantly better leader since I started seeing her. 

(A.B.): How did you arrive at such practices?

(E.W.): I was encouraged to keep a journal in high school, but did not do it seriously until I graduated college. I have over thirty years of journals now in my archives. From time to time, I go back and look at how I have changed over the years. 

The coach was something I have been doing off and on for the last 15 years, but when my father died in 2024, I decided to get serious about it. The EMDR helped me become more deliberate with my emotions and deal with the isolation that comes from leadership. I also rehearse conflict management strategies and coaching approaches for my job. I devote an hour a week to this kind of effort. 

(A.B.): What might Leadsticks readers do to cultivate a resilient mind?

(E.W.): Resilience is NOT about heroic postures or phony displays of machismo; it is about suffering failure, humiliation, and disappointment and having the strength to persist.

Failure is a thousand times more informative than success, and resilience is taking those lessons and applying them to your life and work. It is not glamorous, but the ability to take a punch and keep struggling is the best form of resilience. 

(A.B.): Anything else you want to say to Leadsticks readers?

(E.W.): Read!

I read non-fiction and fiction and enjoy trashy novels and serious literature. The process teaches you to focus and helps satisfy intellectual curiosity. It will also provide you with ideas and perspectives, which will help you inspire your people. It also allows you to put yourself in someone else's shoes. 

Here are some books that have inspired me over the last 10 years: 

The Experience Mindset by Tiffani Bova
Radical Candor by Kim Scott
Turn the Ship Around by David Marquet
Coaching Agile Teams by Lyssa Adkins
Doing Capitalism in the Innovation Economy by William H. Janeway 
The Rebel by Albert Camus
The Myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camus
The Unaccountability Machine by Dan Davies
The Parable of the Sower by Octavia Buttler
Man's Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl
Simulacra and Simulation by Jean Baudrillard
The Archaeology of Knowledge by Michel Foucault
Dune by Frank Herbert

(A.B.): This is Gold Ed!! Thank you one more time 😃

(E.W.): My pleasure!


There you go dear reader. I hope this newsletter issue elevates your resilience practice and helps you stay a different successful leader.

All best,

Alberto

To Connect with Ed:
📝 Blog
🎥 YouTube
💼 LinkedIn
🦣 Mastodon

To Connect with me:
🌐 Website
💌 Newsletter
💼 LinkedIn
🦣 Mastodon


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