January 27, 2026

Resilience Isn’t Grit: It’s Better Work Design

Resilience at work is often framed as “grit”—the ability for someone to push harder, bounce back faster, or do more with less. But asking people to absorb stress without reducing unnecessary stressors, clarifying expectations, or providing real support is a form of toxic resilience—and it doesn’t benefit employees in the long run.

Today’s workplace pressures seem relentless: AI shifts, rising expectations, and manager burden, just to name a few. Lyra’s 2026 Workforce Mental Health Trends Forecast shows that individual resilience is cracking under this strain, evidenced by a surge in mental health-related leaves and more complex conditions.

Resilience training can help employees manage stress and adversity, but only when the workplace makes recovery and growth possible.

What is resilience training?

Resilience allows people to identify their stress and understand how they can adapt and effectively cope. It’s not something individual employees can create alone. Resilience training is most effective when the workplace culture supports the true definition of resilience, thus making it a shared strength instead of an individual burden.

When done well, resilience training in the workplace can:

• Help people understand and manage stress responses
• Reduce burnout and increase productivity
• Provide strategies for coping with high-pressure situations
• Support healthier, more flexible ways of thinking and behaving

Why most resilience training fails—and how to fix it

Some companies invest in resilience training for employees but see little change. Here’s where programs miss the mark and what to do instead.

1. Resilience training that isn’t relevant

Many “stress management” workshops are too broad to feel personally relevant. A software engineer, sales leader, and customer support agent face different pressures, so one-size-fits-all guidance rarely sticks. 

The fix: Tailor training to specific roles, stressors, and scenarios. Focus on psychological safety, clear communication, and supportive leadership, rather than generic tips.

2. One-and-done resilience training 

Resilience isn’t built in an afternoon. The information from a single session can fail to be applied  as soon as people return to pressure-filled workloads. 

The fix: Embed resilience training into everyday workplace occurrences, including onboarding, leadership development, management discussions, and change management practices. 

3. Individual resilience can’t fix an unsupportive culture

The biggest mistake is expecting employees to “resilience” their way out of chronic stress. Often, this can mean an expectation to ignore, minimize, or overlook difficult situations while maintaining an outward appearance of being “fine.” A single workshop nor constant positivity will fix unmanageable workloads or unclear roles. And these stressors can impact both mental and physical health, as well as retention and the organization’s overall culture.  

The fix: Improve the environment. Solve workload issues, clarify expectations, and address unhealthy team dynamics. Acknowledge the impact of unavoidable or unchangeable difficulties without rushing to eliminate emotions that come with them. Resilience grows when stressors are acknowledged and work expectations are realistic and sustainable.

What a truly resilient workplace looks like

Workforce resilience requires more than training. It’s a combination of skills, systems, and support.

Managers equipped to lead resilient teams

Managers are often the first to notice burnout and other types of distress. Unfortunately, managers are also under enormous strain. Before they can support their teams, they need tools, training, and coaching that reduce emotional labor, not add to it.

This isn’t “more resilience training.” It’s leadership enablement.

Equip managers to:

• Foster psychological safety
• Model healthy boundaries 
• Clarify priorities and remove low-impact work
• Understand and access support for their own stress

Peer support and community

Social connection is one of our greatest tools to buffer stress. Peer networks, ERGs, and community spaces help employees feel supported and less alone. These spaces can also offer validation and empowerment for those who are part of communities that experience unique forms of workplace, identity-based, and environmental stress.  Feeling a sense of safety and support may make some employees more likely to ask for help, share solutions, and navigate challenges together.

Work design that prevents burnout

Resilience grows in sustainable systems, not high-pressure ones. Design work so employees can do their jobs without burning out:

• Normalize breaks, PTO, and focus time
• Maintain reasonable workloads and clear expectations
• Support autonomy and flexibility

Accessible, high-quality mental health care

Employees aren’t likely to endure major work challenges when unmanaged daily stress is seen as a cultural norm of their workplace. Offering and promoting easily accessible mental health support—including coaching, therapy, and digital tools—through a diverse, culturally responsive provider network reinforces the message that employees are not alone and that their health and well-being are worth the investment.

Invest in resilience, not constant positivity 

Resilience doesn't come from asking people to “push through” whatever trials they face. It comes from designing a workplace where people can actually recover, grow, and adapt. When you pair resilience training with strong leadership, healthy work design, and accessible mental health care, you build a workforce ready for whatever comes next.