Structure
The Prosilience framework includes a set of seven muscles we use to “resilience” our way through a wide range of challenges. This post focuses on the sixth of these muscles: Structure, which is about creating and maintaining systems, processes, and order. While this may not sound like much fun, it is actually an incredibly liberating element of the resilience tool kit.
Several of the resilience muscles are helpful in opening us up to new options and possibilities; it is often helpful to balance these with others that keep us focused and grounded. One of these is Priorities, which helps us align our energy with what is most important; another is Structure, which helps us use less energy on the systematic, predictable elements in the challenges we face so we have more available to meet the unexpected.
We create and use structure every day. Habits, routines, ways of organizing ideas and things—these form the often invisible infrastructure of our lives.
What are some of the structures that form the scaffolding for your world? Calendars, daily routines, filing systems, plans, agreements, budgets, and recipes are examples that come to mind in my own life.
The Benefits of Structure
I have to confess that this is my weakest resilience muscle. Although I can engage it effectively when needed, it sometimes feels effortful. This is not true for everyone—some people naturally gravitate toward and value it as a strength. Here are some of the outcomes I have observed when Structure is used well—they help me stay motivated in my efforts to build and use this muscle.
Efficiency—a good system or process helps us waste less energy. For example, when I take time to organize my office, establishing places where things belong and periodically taking time to put things away, I spend a lot less time trying to find things.
Predictability—a well-designed plan, schedule, itinerary, or other sequence helps us think through what will happen next, anticipate potential complications or setbacks, and clarify our own and others’ expectations of the future. For example, a project plan can help surface potential areas of interdependence between people or functional areas that can then be addressed in advance. An itinerary can help travelers identify points of potential complication in travel logistics and prepare options and alternatives in advance.
Coordination—when people need to work together to achieve a shared outcome, an agreed-upon timeline and clearly articulated responsibilities and expectations can help them mesh their efforts effectively. For example, I have found that when I share a vision with my team and assume that everyone has the same picture of how and when we are going to get there, we don’t perform nearly as well as when I take the time to lay out an initial roadmap and important milestones.
Readiness—all of the resilience muscles benefit from discipline and practice. When we create and apply systematic approaches to strengthening them in preparation for future challenges, we become stronger and more capable. For example, I know many people who have worked on strengthening their Positivity muscle by creating a daily gratitude practice.
Is this a muscle that you enjoy using? Who are your Structure role models? What examples can you think of where effective use of a system or structure has helped you use your energy more efficiently and/or effectively? What challenges are you facing in which the Structure muscle might be particularly helpful?
Structure in Action
Rather than focusing exclusively on the results of using the Structure muscle, I also find it helpful to envision what it looks like when we are (and aren’t) using it. Here are some of the core elements:
Categorizing—deciding how to group similar things together. This may include physically sorting things, and can also encompass naming and labeling—building a standard language or taxonomy that will be used over time. This is sometimes a struggle for me. I can often see multiple ways to put things in categories, and it can be hard to choose one and stick with it.
Sequencing—identifying the various steps or components of a process, and figuring out how to put them in order in the most effective way. Sometimes I find that if I can put the first few steps in place, the next ones will start to become clearer.
Estimating—realistically evaluating what it will take to get something done. When we can accurately predict cost, time, energy, and other resources needed to accomplish a goal, we can prioritize and sequence more effectively. I find that my strong Positivity muscle entices me to use best-case scenarios as the basis for my estimates; I’ve had to learn to inject a greater dose of realism.
Activating—designing triggers to initiate an activity, sequence, or habit. Whether it’s creating a recurring calendar reminder, setting an alarm, or asking someone to send you a note, this keeps you from having to hold everything in your head. One thing that works for me is to find an already existing activity and use it as a reminder for a practice I want to start. This post includes an example of how I found regular time to replenish my energy.
Systematizing—setting up standard ways of approaching recurring demands or tasks. Examples include building a checklist or template; choosing a framework, tool, or approach that someone else has created; and designing a tracking system. One of the places this has worked well for me is finding a standard calendar system that will work across all my electronic devices, rather than trying to keep several systems in sync.
—> Because I consider myself somewhat structure-impaired, I asked ChatGPT to give me some examples of structured approaches to recurring demands or tasks. It provided a helpful list which I have added to the bottom of this post as a bonus.
Externalizing—moving systems and structures from inside your head to the real, tangible world. Writing things down, creating filing systems, documenting the plans and decisions you have made, and physically organizing objects keep your wonderful structures from slipping away when the world around you gets crazy. I’ve found that this is a particular challenge for people who are very bright. They are used to being able to hold so much in their heads that they often overlook the value of moving them out of the conceptual space and into the physical realm. This is particularly important when other people are involved, as it makes it much easier to share and coordinate.
Maintaining—allocating time and energy to tend to, refresh, and update the approaches you have created. Examples include putting things away, adding events to your calendar, updating and revising plans, and showing others how to use the systems you have established. For some reason, this is the hardest thing for me! I have fun designing elegant systems, but get impatient with maintaining them. Of course when I do, I’m always glad I did.
What examples or situations come to mind as you think about each of these activities? Are there some that you find easier to do? More difficult? Where have you seen others engaging in the process of Structure? As you consider the challenges that are currently on your plate, where might you try applying some of these elements?
Strengthening Your Structure Muscle
It’s always easier to build resilience muscles when you’re not in the middle of a big challenge requiring you to use them. As with physical muscles, resilience strength gets built through practice, so finding small ways to engage with Structure is a good place to start. Here are a few ideas to get you going:
Reflect on past experience. Think of times and places where you have effectively put systems or plans in place. How did you recognize the need to do so? How did you go about it? What worked well, and what did you learn?
Design a workout. Select one or two aspects of structure you’d like to work on. Identify activities that would allow you to practice. For example, if you want to work on externalizing, you might get a notebook and spend 15 minutes once a week capturing writing ideas that are in your head. If you want to work on maintaining, you could set aside 10 minutes each morning to update your calendar and plans for the day. Put these activities on your schedule, and track your progress.
Build supporting skills. Underneath the Structure muscle lies a set of foundational skills, often grouped under the label of “executive function.” These include the ability to focus attention, tune out irrelevant information, control impulses, and hold multiple ideas in mind at once. These are things you can practice in your everyday activities.
Find a coach or mentor. Work with someone who is skilled in this area and can give you exercises to try, provide feedback on your progress, share examples, and offer encouragement.
Is Structure a muscle you would like to work on? What do you see as the potential benefit for doing so? Which of these activities sounds most appealing to you? What is the first small step you can take?
Role Models
I always find it helpful to look for role models—people who are particularly good at using one of the resilience muscles. When I think about Structure, my role models tend to be people who gracefully create a sense of order in the midst of chaos. They are able to look at a swirling set of ideas and options and begin to make sense of it in useful ways. They are able to balance the fluidity that’s needed to move through turbulence and uncertainty with the stability and sense of order that allows energy to be used efficiently and effectively.
Who are some of your role models for Structure? What inspires you about what they do? How do they integrate this muscle with some of the others—such as Positivity, Creativity, and Experimenting, that inspire greater openness and fluidity? How might you try some of their strategies in your own life?
Conclusion
Our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual energy fuels our resilience. We often face multiple challenges that have the potential to consume more energy than we have available. When we are able to put effective systems and processes in place to help us manage the predictable aspects of these challenges, we have more energy available for the uncertain, the fluid, and the unknown.
If you found this post helpful, you may also enjoy this one on Priorities!
A Little Something Extra
Here are some ideas for creating systematic approaches to manage recurring tasks and challenges, courtesy of ChatGPT.
1. Administrative or Operational Tasks
Examples: Weekly report preparation, invoicing, meeting scheduling
Checklists: Standardize steps in a checklist (e.g., “Weekly Report Template Checklist” in Notion, Google Docs, or Excel)
Recurring Calendar Events: Set reminders with deadlines and prep time (e.g., block out 30 minutes every Friday at 2 PM)
Automation Tools: Use tools like Zapier or Microsoft Power Automate to auto-generate and email reports
2. Team Check-Ins or Communications
Examples: Daily stand-ups, project status updates
Templates for Updates: Use shared formats (e.g., “What I did / What I’m doing / Blockers”)
Dedicated Channels: Use Slack or Teams with pinned formats and automated reminders
Rotating Facilitator Schedule: Assign team members to lead using a recurring rota
3. Client or Stakeholder Engagement
Examples: Monthly update calls, quarterly reviews
Shared Timeline or CRM Tool: Track engagement dates and next steps (e.g., in HubSpot or Airtable)
Pre-Call Brief Templates: Use a prep doc format to streamline agenda-setting and documentation
Recurring Meeting Invites with Prep Reminders: Include prep checklist in calendar notes
4. Maintenance and Compliance
Examples: Equipment checks, document updates, license renewals
Maintenance Calendar with Alerts: Schedule deadlines with buffer zones (e.g., 60/30/7-day reminders)
Centralized Task Tracker: Use tools like Trello or Asana to assign and track ownership
Color-Coded Dashboard: Visualize compliance timelines or status with clear signals (green/yellow/red)
5. Personal Productivity
Examples: Email triage, end-of-day wrap-up, goal tracking
Time Blocking: Reserve set times daily or weekly (e.g., 8:30–9:00 AM for email)
Habit Stacking: Attach tasks to existing routines (e.g., review goals every Friday before shutting down)
Digital Journals or Logs: Use apps like Day One, Evernote, or Obsidian with daily prompts
6. Knowledge Management and Content Curation
Examples: Curating articles, updating knowledge bases, publishing newsletters
Content Calendar: Map out content themes and deadlines over weeks/months
Curation Folder with Tags: Collect resources using tools like Pocket, Notion, or OneNote with tagging systems
Batch Work Sessions: Set dedicated time blocks (e.g., "curate 3 articles every Monday")