CASE STUDY
How We Help Develop Emotional Resilience in the Rigorous Research Environment
The Challenge
86% of the early-career researchers reported levels of anxiety.
67% of graduate students reported feeling too overwhelmed to be productive.
The Goals
Zhennovate’s coaching app was employed to help boost emotional resilience and productivity for a group of graduate students and postdocs as they worked through rigorous academic studies and research.
Our Approach
Step 1: Understand users’ struggles
We diagnosed the specific stressors experienced by the group of early-career researchers.
Step 2: Customize for users’ needs
To address relevant stressors, we customized our life coaching solution to support researchers on the following topics:
![self-discovery-blob](https://zhennovate.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/self-discovery-blob.png)
![support-blog](https://zhennovate.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/support-blog.png)
![purpose-blob](https://zhennovate.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/purpose-blob.png)
![imposter-blob](https://zhennovate.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/imposter-blob.png)
Step 3: Deliver micro-coaching to enable daily experiential learning, embedding emotional resilience skills-building in tiny moments
Zhennovate’s coaching app delivered the on-demand micro-coaching curriculum to help researchers work through their personal stressors.
Researchers spent 5-10 minutes a day working through the app’s coaching-like interactions at their own pace.
Results – Building resilience muscle one day at a time
Results happen as the app continuously reinforces researchers’ mindset and behavioral shifts in daily work.
In just 4 weeks of engagement, users experienced the following:
![awareness](https://zhennovate.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/awareness.png)
%
Gained unexpected blind spot awareness
![anxiety](https://zhennovate.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/anxiety.png)
%
Observed reduced anxiety level
![star emoji](https://zhennovate.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/star-emoji.png)
User satisfaction
rating
![thumbs up emoji](https://zhennovate.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/thumbs-up-emoji.png)
%
Would recommend it to others
A Sample of Aha Moments Experienced
Here’s a sample of anonymized transformative moments researchers articulated on the app as they worked through their personal stressors:
As a result of learning about my perfectionism, I decided to show my plan to my adviser before I make it perfect, because I am supposed to be learning, and if I get feedback earlier, I will be able to learn faster.
I understood how powerful my fictional heroines can be, and how motivating it is to think of them.
Through the program, I learned a bit better about how to reflect on my experiences – understand what my core values and and when I get frustrated about something, why it is – because it often doesn’t fit with my values; I also took more actions.
I was discouraged and caught up in thinking that my current job does not have any purpose. The lesson was very timely, I realized that I had ignored how my work in algebraic geometry is used by physicists and is therefore fundamentally meaningful.
Fear comes from inner critic, who is not necessarily my enemy, because I can gain insight from it.
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