All Things Inspired

Every adverse moment comes with the opportunity to benefit!

Every adverse moment, every failure experienced, every difficulty faced in your life comes with the opportunity to benefit from that which we first deemed to be disastrous. Many have said that it really isn't the adversity itself, but your reaction to the adversity that defines your resilience.

In the last article we used the analogy of a boxer's triangle method of dealing with adversity in the ring. I hope you reviewed the topics of coping, command, and countering several times last week. We also laid out several points toward developing psychological resilience. You will benefit from reviewing these steps again after the conclusion of this topic. Please revisit last week's article once again. But now, let's close out this topic by examining how you can use adversity to your benefit and how to overcome adversity.

An old African proverb states that smooth seas do not make a skillful sailor. The meaning behind this proverb is simple. When times are good and everything is smooth, while great and enjoyable as these times are, they do not prepare us, our skill to cope with the more challenging times we will face in life.

Using adversity to your benefit is important. It will prepare you for challenges and difficulties down the road of life. For no other reason than the absence of adversity, opportunities for growth and building resilience don't exist. Adversity is a great teacher. As this week's quote implies, adversity introduces you to yourself. It shows you who you really are. Without experiencing adversity, we would never experience the discovery of our inner strength and grit.

Adversity creates a fight or flight situation in most of us. We either shut down and let it defeat and define us, or we fight it and overcome it. If you're willing to fight, adversity can fuel the fire of your compassion. Using adversity to your benefit is turning challenges and difficulties into opportunities. That's the turning point for developing resilience.

How do you rise above and conquer adversity? Here are some factors to consider in overcoming adversity:

Be confident - believe in what you are capable of. You may not yet realize just how capable you are until you're tested. Adversity can be that test.
Reflect on previous experiences - you most likely have been through it before. Reflect on previous experiences and build your confidence through acknowledging and understanding that you made through the previous adversities. You can do it again!
Mental preparation - you've heard it before, "prepare for the worst, hope for the best". Prepare yourself mentally for every possible scenario to your adversity and apply what you know to overcome it.
Reaffirm your purpose - what's your passion? Why do you do what you do? Being steadfast in your values and purpose will give you strength to handle adversity.
Be at peace - you must make peace with the situation at hand. Remember the serenity prayer: Give me peace to accept the things that can't be changed, the courage to change the things that can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
Be insightful - we said that adversity is a great teacher. You must be insightful to ascertain the meaning of the lesson. Remember this, in school you are taught a lesson, then given a test. In life you are given a test that teaches you a lesson.
A dose of laughter - sometimes when you've exhausted all other means, the best solution to cope with the stress of adversity is just to laugh. The experts say that laughter releases endorphins and dopamine in your body creating nature's feel-good medicine.

We have now discovered that there is no education in life quite like adversity. To close out this topic, I'd like to share with you an actual account of my experience. A few years ago I was taking a flight home after a long and challenging week. I was physically and mentally exhausted from the adversity of the week. To top things off, the weather was a bit stormy, with much rain and darkness from the clouds. The perfect ending to an imperfect week.

However, it turned out to be one of the most beautiful things I'd ever seen. We departed down the runway and lifted off in the rainstorm. It was rainy and a little bumpy trying to ascend through the clouds. Suddenly it was as if we entered a portal to a new world. Once we rose above the clouds, there was the most beautiful sunshine seeming to rest upon pillows of crisp white clouds. You see, all it took was to rise above the storms to see the beauty of the day!

So, I leave you this week with a quote from author Roy T. Bennett; "Your hardest times often lead to the greatest moments in your life. Keep going. Tough situations build strong people in the end." As you go forward today, remember that facing adversity can also be overcome if you will...

Be inspired! Inspire others!