Adversity Is Our Teacher!

What?! Adversity? Our teacher? No way.

While it feels like a contraction, adversity is very much our teacher. Think about this ... what exactly do you learn from sitting on your well-worn sofa, eating buttered popcorn, and downing it down with a soda? Not much. And no, you don't learn about adversity by watching your favorite characters, on your favorite TV shows and movies as they go through divorces, get diagnosed with a rare illnesses (that some amazing doctors diagnoses and cures because he's thinking outside the box), plane crashes where they are the only survivor and survive. No, that's not adversity. That's entertainment. Maybe you sit on your couch and thank your lucky stars you weren't on that plane, or that you haven't been diagnosed with some rare illness, or that your spouse hasn't filed for divorce. At least not yet. But life is short, my friend. Any of those things, even several of those things, can happen to us. And I can bet you, they will teach us something.

Before you go and think, "God, what a negative Nancy," stop. First off, my name's not Nancy, but that's not the point. Bad things happen to all of us. No one goes unscathed.

I invite you to think back ... as far back as you can to all the "bad" things that have happened to you. If you're reading this, you obviously survived. I'm willing to bet, that you're better for it. Why? Because you learned something valuable. You were strengthened during that horrible time. You came out on the other side. Am I right?

The most daring and accomplished people on this earth have all undergone tremendous difficulty. And it appears that the more successful they became, the more they attributed their success to the lessons they learned during those challenging times.

When we view adversity as a guide, it's a game changer. While you're going through it, it may not feel too good, but it can and usually does guide you to greater inner growth.

We're on this earth to learn. And learning isn't always easy.

Next time you're faced with a challenge and think, Oh, my God, this is awful, say to yourself. It is awful, but it will pass. I will become better and stronger for it. I will internalize the lessons and make sure I put them to good use.

And then do!