Life tests us. Pushes us to the brink. Adversity’s power is in shaping us, teaching us lessons, and pushing us to grow beyond our current selves. The situations we find ourselves in, where our values are put to the test… our resilience begins to show in the gap between the test, and our response. And each time, our character builds, decision by decision, act by act. Like strength training builds your muscles in the gym through resistance… Adversity becomes the resistance training for our character.
Why It’s So Important That We’re Tested
Examining Our Principles
Adversity puts us in situations that force us to examine our values and principles. For example, you may claim that you would “never, ever take a bribe”, but it is only when someone actually offers you a bribe, at a time when you’re faced with financial desperation, that you truly understand the strength of your convictions. Will you compromise your morals and accept the money, or will you hold firm to your principles? The challenge reveals us to ourselves.
Growing with Experience
Adversity is a powerful teacher. If we’re smart enough to learn and grow from it. If we never encounter adversity, we may never truly reach our full potential. Finding shortcuts and ignoring the main lessons any particular trial has for us will merely make the trial come back in another form… until we learn and grow from it. Unless it changes us. Each test we overcome provides us with valuable insight and wisdom.
How to Deal with Adversity
The Growth Mindset
Decide to approach every trial, everything that tests you, with the aim to grow from it. The tests won’t end, and if you’re going to keep getting it until you learn and grow from it… you may as well start now.
Get Support and Perspective
Learn from others. Find a mentor. Many have overcome the tests you’re facing now. You don’t have to do this alone, and it’s much easier to overcome an obstacle if you can find a blueprint from another who has already overcome it.
Practice Self-Reflection
Self-reflection is invaluable. Take time to analyse and understand your thoughts, emotions, and actions during difficult times. What did you learn from the experience? How did you handle the situation? What could you have done better? By reflecting on your responses to adversity, you can identify areas for improvement and develop a deeper understanding of your character.
In conclusion, adversity is the training ground for your character. Only through facing and overcoming challenges can we truly understand ourselves and grow. By embracing a growth mindset, seeking support, learning from role models, and practising self-reflection, we can navigate adversity with resilience and emerge stronger than before. Remember, life will continue to throw tests our way until we learn the lessons they offer.
Face it, learn from it, grow, overcome, become the best you.