The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur

August 27Adversity's Opportunity

Something pulled in her—and broke … But when the sun rose in the morning, she was far away. It was all behind her, and she knew that she would never cry like that again. People live through such pain only once; pain comes again, but it finds a tougher surface.

Willa Cather—The Song of the Lark (1915)

Adversity will come. It's only a matter of time and you can either dread it or make peace with it and mature. Adversity breeds resilience, and you're gonna need that.

But adversity also allows you to grow and appreciate the need to grow in order to achieve.

I'm not saying you should go looking for adversity; it's just that when you meet it, meet it as part of the recipe.

Hikers, when first taking up a trek, look to the steep climb with fear. Once they've gained the skill and conditioning required to make the climb, they go looking for greater climbs with greater anticipation.

And that's how it is with adversity: it's conditioning, it's an opportunity to get tougher, it's a means to understand how strong you are now.

You don't overcome adversity as much as you learn how to accept its lessons. You lose a job; do you solve the problem by getting another job, or do you receive it as an invitation to make your side hustle a front and center I'm-all-in hustle?

Sometimes we need a big dose of adversity to shake us awake and force us to embrace the life we were supposed to live. Of course, a good cry never hurt anyone either.

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