How many changes have you experienced lately? From personal ones like moving house, starting a relationship or expanding your family to organisational ones like restructures, AI rollouts and shifting strategies, change is a fact of life. And many of us feel like it’s speeding up: Investors in People has found that one in five people feel worn down by the level of organisational change they are experiencing.
With Deloitte’s Human Capital Trends 2026 report revealing that only 27% of people believe their organisation manages change effectively, what steps can you take as an individual to boost your personal change resilience? How can you prevent yourself from becoming fatigued by transformation, instead of energised by it?
‘Take the emotion out of it and don’t write your own stories’
Duncan Targett has worked as an executive in businesses including Ted Baker, dunnhumby and Disney. Now a coach and co-founder of The Coaching Hut, he uses his experience navigating change to help others do the same. ‘Change right now is relentless,’ he says. Resilience is built through change, however, and there are steps you can take to insulate yourself and adjust your mindset.
Focus on facts
The first technique Targett advises is to deal in facts, not stories. This can be challenging: uncertainty causes rumours to swirl around organisations. ‘Rumours have a horrible effect of making people write their own stories – and they catastrophise,’ Targett says. But those imagined disasters – losing your job, facing financial ruin, never working again – often cause more stress than the change itself.
‘You have to pull yourself out of that,’ he says. ‘Say to yourself: I am only going to deal in facts. Take the emotion out of it and don’t write your own stories.’ If possible, go and find out what is actually happening by speaking to a manager. Make a simple ‘fact-or-fiction’ list to help you disentangle catastrophising thoughts from reality, however little you know.
‘Why can’t you be as kind to yourself as you’re being to someone else?’
Secondly, actively challenge any limiting beliefs. ‘People tell themselves: “I’ll never find another job”, “I’ll never thrive in that market” or “I can’t do that role”,’ says Targett. Rid yourself of unhelpful narratives by thinking back on what you’ve done previously and recalling similar situations you’ve already navigated as proof that you can do it again.
Reframe for resilience
Reframing is another powerful technique for building resilience. Ask what the opportunity is in the situation, rather than viewing it purely as a threat. Role play guiding a friend through something similar; people tend to be kinder and clearer advising others than doing so for themselves. As Targett says: ‘Why can’t you be as kind to yourself as you’re being to someone else?’
And if you’re feeling worn down by constant change, he advises breaking things down into a simple step-by-step plan: ‘It can help to have a plan and know you are going to put one foot in front of the other. Remember that resilience is built through resolving challenges.’
More information
Watch our video with Katie Jacobs, a journalist specialising in HR and the world of work, for tips on how to find meaning in what we do.
