Empower Your Workforce: Resilience Strategies for Leaders and Teams with Karen Colonna
Episode 12
When change hits hard and uncertainty becomes the norm, how can leaders truly support their teams—not just professionally, but personally?
In Episode 12 of The People Success Circle, I sit down with resilience expert Karen Colonna to talk about workplace resilience—what it really means, why it matters now more than ever, and how to build it into your team culture.
Karen shares her powerful personal story, introduces her Resilience Roadmap, and offers practical tips leaders can use to help employees bounce back stronger.
Listen in or keep reading for insight-packed takeaways you won’t want to miss.
In Episode 12 of The People Success Circle, I talk with resilience coach and speaker Karen Colonna about what it really takes to foster workplace resilience—not just in theory, but in practice. Here’s what we cover:
Karen’s deeply personal journey and how it led to her passion for teaching resilience in the workplace
The five-step “Resilience Roadmap” and how leaders can apply it to help teams adapt and grow
Common misconceptions about building resilient teams and why resilience is a collective, not just individual, responsibility
How leadership and resilience go hand in hand—especially during times of change and uncertainty
Ways to spot resilience gaps and have meaningful, supportive conversations with employees
The role of personalized self-care in sustaining long-term resilience at work
🎧 Tune in to hear how building a strong employee team can transform the way you lead—and help your people thrive.
🔗 Helpful Links
🌐 Mindy’s website for business consulting: https://www.limerockcareerco.com
🎧 Listen to the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts
Episode 12: Watch or Listen
Key Takeaways From My Conversation With Karen Colonna
Resilience Begins with the Individual—and the Organization
Karen reminded us that resilience in the workplace isn’t just about individual toughness. It’s about creating an environment where people feel seen, supported, and safe enough to grow through adversity. As leaders, we need to model transparency, acknowledge the uncertainty around us, and show employees they’re not alone.
The Resilience Roadmap Helps Teams Thrive
Karen shared her five-step “Resilience Roadmap,” which starts with identifying your personal resilience superpowers—traits like humor, grit, faith, and community that help people bounce back. This simple, repeatable framework gives employees language and tools to navigate challenges both inside and outside of work.
Leadership and Resilience Are Deeply Connected
One of the most powerful messages in this episode is that leadership and resilience go hand in hand. When leaders are equipped to spot signs of disengagement or struggle, they can step in with empathy and support—transforming what could be a setback into an opportunity for growth. Employee Engagement Starts With Clarity and Connection
Want to boost employee engagement? It’s not just about recognition—it starts with the basics. Do your team members know what’s expected of them? Do they have what they need to succeed? When employees feel seen, valued, and hopeful about their future, they’re more likely to stay engaged.
Building Resilient Teams Takes More Than a Wellness Program
Building resilient teams doesn’t happen by chance. Karen emphasized that it requires intentional conversations, a shift in mindset, and a willingness to invest in culture. That might look like starting every team meeting with a moment of connection or creating space for peer support.
People First, Profits Follow
If you’re struggling to get leadership buy-in, here’s what I remind my clients: when the people side of the business isn’t working, everything suffers. Sales, service, retention, culture—it’s all connected. When you invest in your people, you build the foundation for long-term success. And it all starts with seeing what’s really going on behind the curtain.
🎧 Want the full story, examples, and action steps?
Listen to the full episode of The People Success Circle for more insights on building a thriving culture that drives results.
Read the full transcript
Mindy:
Karen, thank you so much for coming to The People Success Circle podcast today. I am so glad you're here.
Karen:
Well, I am so excited for you to have me, and I love the journey of how we ended up here together. I'm sure that will come out in our conversation in a little bit. So thank you for asking.
Mindy:
Yeah, let's talk about it now. I met Karen through a cohort of women speakers. We were working together to perfect our keynote speaking and learn more about how to be a keynote speaker. So, four months of Zoom calls together, and we formed a friendship and were able to stay in touch. That led me to wanting you to be on my podcast today so others could learn about your topic and learn from you as well.
Karen:
Well, I think one of the things that I'll talk about when we talk about resilience—it is a cornerstone of what I share with folks—is creating a community of support in the different parts of you and knowing what you need to help you adapt and persevere through things. Having colleagues like you and others from our cohort has really helped lift me up. So we can talk about that here in a little bit.
Mindy:
Great. So can you share with me a little bit about your background and what led you to the work that you're doing today?
Karen:
I come naturally to speaking. I’ve spent the majority of my career in sales and nonprofit development, so I’ve been presenting in some capacity since I was 22 years old. I love a microphone—give me a microphone, and I’m in my happy place. But it was always my passion project, not my profession.
I found the courage—or maybe the desire—to make a career switch when I was downsized about 18 months ago from a position that I loved. I was getting married two weeks later, and my husband and I discussed it. He said, “Why not now? Why not take that passion and make it a profession?”
I came to my topic and what I do through the journey I faced almost 20 years ago. My oldest daughter was diagnosed with pediatric cancer, and she passed away. As you can imagine—especially if you're a parent—that is the ultimate, worst possible thing you can imagine. But what time healed and provided me was a journey of discovery, not just into grief but into my life. I realized I had already overcome so much, and each hardship made me stronger for the next one.
The word “resilience” kept coming up over and over again. So I paused, started researching it, and found myself wanting to share my story and empower others to realize they’ve overcome everything they’ve been through—and teach them how to leverage that.
Mindy:
I love that. I don't know that many people know this, but I’m a pediatric cancer survivor. I was diagnosed when I was eight years old. I have a different perspective of resilience but a very similar path. I can only imagine how hard that was.
Karen:
When I think of my daughter Caroline and the lessons she taught me in just seven and three-quarter years—her resilience, her grace—they always say children are resilient, and it’s true. She taught me so many lessons. Not just about medical resilience and navigating treatment, but about grace. That helped me walk forward and say, “Okay, this didn’t happen to me—it happened, and I have a choice about what I do with it.”
I don’t advocate telling someone in the depths of grief that there’s meaning in their suffering. I didn’t wake up the day after she passed away with that mindset. It came over time. Eventually, I realized I had lived this journey, I had owned how it impacted me, and now it was my job to share it. That’s where Shine Forward was born.
Mindy:
I love it. I love that you were able to turn a very hard situation into a positive impact that helps other people by sharing your journey and helping them learn about resilience too. So what inspired you to focus on resilience in the workplace?
Karen:
There were a couple of things, but there was really a defining moment. In one of my last professional roles, I was the head of development for the Alzheimer’s Association in Southwestern Ohio. One of our amazing board members was an executive VP at a bank—she managed millions of dollars every day. But her husband was in the early stages of Alzheimer’s, and I got to know her journey.
She shared how her management team supported her, what the culture looked like, and how they helped her adapt and navigate uncertainty with confidence. That’s the definition of resilience. When she was supported as a person—not just an employee—she was able to thrive, even while facing hardship. That experience showed me the power of culture and care in the workplace.
Mindy:
Yes. There’s so much uncertainty and change around us, even beyond work—global events, personal stressors. And building strong resilience skills can really help teams and individuals.
Karen:
It’s a skill and a trait. Some of it is natural, but a lot of it can be learned. I call them “resilience superpowers.” For me, those are faith, humor, grit, and community.
In one of my talks, I take people through an exercise called a “resilience inventory.” They list three or four hard things they’ve been through or succeeded at, and then identify what helped them get through it. Then, we flip the script—look at a new goal or dream—and guess what? The same list of superpowers usually applies.
That’s the point: we already have the skill set. We just need to see it and apply it intentionally in the workplace.
Mindy:
What’s one misconception people have about resilience in the workplace that you’d like to clear up?
Karen:
That it’s just an individual responsibility. Many organizations see resilience as something employees need to “figure out on their own.” But it’s not just personal—it’s cultural.
Strong individuals make strong teams. Strong teams create strong communities. And that’s how you build resilient cultures. It’s a small investment with a huge return—better retention, improved trust, and stronger communication.
And no, we’re not talking about trauma bonding at the water cooler. But when people feel safe enough to say, “I’m struggling,” you create priceless team chemistry.
Mindy:
That connection really fuels engagement, too. When people feel supported, they naturally perform better.
Karen:
Exactly. And I didn’t start off talking about resilience. It just emerged through my life experiences—my daughter’s illness, my divorce, bankruptcy, job loss. I call them badges of hardship, not badges of honor. But when I shared those stories, I noticed people would exhale. They felt seen. And when we show up vulnerable, we make space for others to do the same.
Mindy:
So many companies are navigating rapid change right now. What can leaders do to help their teams stay resilient during uncertain times?
Karen:
First, be transparent. Call out the reality of what’s happening. That alone builds trust.
Second, empower employees to understand what they personally need to stay emotionally, physically, and spiritually healthy. Everyone’s “triangle of balance” looks different. And when employees know how to self-regulate—what I sometimes call “self-soothing”—it takes pressure off HR. That benefits the entire organization.
Mindy:
As an HR leader, I agree—when leaders step up to support resilience, everyone wins.
Karen:
Yes! And don’t forget about your sales teams. They’re constantly hearing “no.” Helping them identify their own resilience superpowers—whether it’s humor, grit, or something else—gives them tools to recover quickly and keep going.
Mindy:
So how does someone discover their resilience superpowers?
Karen:
Start with a resilience inventory. Think about the hardest things you’ve faced or your biggest accomplishments. What helped you through those? Make a list.
Then, shift your mindset. Don’t just dwell on what happened—own how you got through it. That same list can help you navigate your next challenge. It’s empowering to realize, “I’ve already overcome this much—I can do it again.”
Mindy:
How can employees build their resilience when they’re feeling disengaged or uncertain?
Karen:
First, take care of yourself. You can’t pour from an empty cup.
Second, give yourself credit for everything you’ve overcome. That confidence helps you advocate for what you need at work—whether it’s help on a project or support during a transition. And finally, don’t go it alone. Share with the right people: a leader, a peer, a friend. Connection builds resilience.
Mindy:
It sounds like we need to move past “fake it till you make it” and instead focus on real communication.
Karen:
Absolutely. I always say: you have a choice. You can respond, or you can be responsible. When you know something that can make someone else’s journey easier, you have a responsibility to share it. That’s what Shine Forward is all about.
Mindy:
What would you say to someone who thinks resilience is just a buzzword?
Karen:
I get it. My story is hard. I’m not always positive. But resilience is my anchor. It didn’t happen overnight. It came from acknowledging where I was, how I got there, and what I wanted to do with it. I’m not a therapist—I’m here to offer practical tools people can use right at their desks or on their way home from work.
Mindy:
Gallup reports that workplace engagement is at an all-time low. How can companies improve engagement by focusing on resilience?
Karen:
Start by making it a priority—not just a word. Train your leaders to recognize gaps and understand the signs of disengagement. If someone who’s usually a high performer starts shrinking back, ask why. Support them. It could be as simple as a meaningful conversation or connecting them with someone who’s been through something similar.
Mindy:
That awareness makes such a difference. So if a company wanted to take one concrete step today toward building a resilient culture, where should they start?
Karen:
Start with transparency. Acknowledge the change and uncertainty. Then, build confidence in your team. Use tools like the Resilience Roadmap to help employees identify what makes them strong. Even adding 10 minutes of connection time to a meeting can make a big impact.
I also have a free Resilience Roadmap download on my website that walks people through the process. It’s quick, practical, and a great place to start.
Mindy:
I’ll be sure to include that link in the show notes. Thank you so much for joining me today, Karen. I personally learned a lot about framing my own resilience, and I believe your tips will help both employees and leaders build stronger, healthier workplaces.
Karen:
Thank you, thank you, thank you. And if folks want to learn more about the Resilience Roadmap or Shine Forward, they can find me on social media @KarenColonnaSpeaks or visit my website at karencolonna.com.
Mindy:
Great, thank you so much. We did it!
