If you have these 3 habits, you’re more resilient than most people, experts say

Everyone experiences unexpected hardships. You can bounce back and learn from them with an important soft skill: resilience.

The more mentally resilient you are, the more quickly you can recover from challenges or persist in the face of them, according to Wharton psychologist Adam Grant. The trait helps you take smarter risks, beat burnout at work and live a happier life. Without it, you can more easily get stuck on your problems and fall into a negative mental state.

Building resilience takes time, but finding ways to foster wellness, healthy thinking and connection with others can help you strengthen your adaptability and mental flexibility, according to the American Psychological Association.

Here are three habits that can help you become highly resilient, experts say:

If your typical response to stress is to get away from it or shut down, you’re not alone. But resilience is all about finding ways through life’s stressors and learning from them, and creating social connections can help.

“We all know about fight-or-flight — the stress response that can occur when we encounter a perceived threat,” executive coach and author Jason Shen wrote for CNBC Make It in March. “But social scientists have uncovered a different and equally important stress response called ‘tend-and-befriend,’” which involves seeking contact with others when you’re facing a tough situation.

To cultivate this response, Shen recommends trying these activities:

• Schedule chats with friends or family to discuss the stressful situation, or simply boost your mood.
• Join a support group where you can discuss your problems, in depth, with people who might be experiencing similar circumstances.
• Give someone a hug. The action boosts “happy” chemicals like oxytocin and endorphins, which can help calm you down in the face of stress.

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