Why Challenges Make Us Stronger
Life is full of challenges and it can feel overwhelming when we get hit with something unexpected. But I’m here to tell you that no matter what is happening in your life, no matter what your challenges are, they can make you stronger - if you let them.
For most of us, when our situation takes a twist and our daily lives become more difficult than normal, our natural tendency is to move through the situation as quickly as possible. We just want to get it over with and move on – and the sooner the better, right?
It’s easy to let our thoughts shift to focus on how much better life would be if our current situation had never happened in the first place. But I wonder if that’s really true.
Would we really be better off if
we never had to deal with life’s challenges?
I know for myself, without exception there has not been one difficult moment or experience that hasn’t helped me grow as a person in the long run. It may have taken me years to figure out the why, in fact I’m still asking why us, but I also know that…
I am who I am BECAUSE of everything that has happened, not in spite of it.
I watch people spend to much time and energy wishing for a better life, praying that things could be different. But instead of doing something about it, accepting what is or looking for the silver lining, they embrace a victim mentality and continue to act the same way and wishing things were different.
The result? They miss the good stuff – the magic that is there if you look hard enough.
In contrast, the people who embrace their “stuff”, the individuals who don’t spend their life wishing have a very different life experience are the people who are incredibly strong.
That individual fighting cancer that is smiling and soaking in every moment of every day.
The child with a disability that only sees the good in people.
The person who lost their job and happily takes the first thing that comes up to so they can feed their kids.
That family that seems to take hit after hit but still shows up in a positive way.
These are the people I look up to and try to emulate. These are the people who are strong, happy and moving forward in their lives, despite the hand they have been dealt.
These people – you know the one’s who make it look easy - don’t actually have it easier than you. They don’t have less challenges than you. The difference is they just understand that in order to live their best life, they need to grow from their experiences and then do the work to let them go…
Now compare that to the person always whining about money, career or their relationships – ask yourself – do they ALWAYS complain about the same thing? Don’t you just sigh and think…here they go again…? I know I do.
I don’t mean to sound harsh, but until you learn to accept your life – all of it – you can’t move on. And that’s a good thing.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to learn the same key lessons over and over because I allowed myself to get caught up in the life isn’t fair cycle rather than accepting what was and doing something about it. For years I was stuck in the “same crap different day” mindset and spent more time using the excuse that other people had it easier instead of getting off my butt and changing my situation.
For me it was boundaries and balance, for you it may be something different. Life happens and we all have tough times. But those who learn from them and become stronger in spite of them know something that I didn’t.
They know that who they are is a direct result of what they have been through. They embrace that fact, the good, the bad and the ugly and use it to motivate themselves and grow stronger.
And that… is something to aspire to.
What do you aspire to?
~Judy Davis is on a mission to help you stress less and improve your mental wellness. She is a motivational speaker, published author and mental wellness specialist with information, products and books that are go to resources to help people reduce stress and find balance in their lives. Connect with Judy at DavisInspired.com or on Instagram @Judy.Davis55