Work From Anywhere

CHAPTER 5CONFRONTING THE CHALLENGES

If you were asked to come up with the top three things you are most proud of in your life, what would you say they are?

Our friend and colleague Adam Fraser is an international keynote speaker and leading expert on grit and resilience.¹ Presenting to large audiences at conferences across a range of industries, Adam often poses this question: ‘What are you most proud of in your life?’

By now you're likely starting to consider what your responses might be. They could be connected to a successful project you delivered, the way your kids seek out adventure and challenges because of things that you've taught them, or a personal goal that you achieved.

Regardless of where you've landed or what things you are currently picking between, it's likely that the one thing your options have in common is that you had to overcome a challenge. We're most proud of the things that are hard, and which we had to find a way through. We're not proud of the mediocre tasks, or the easy ones, or even the lazy ones. Things that don't require a challenge simply don't make the list — for example, you're highly unlikely to be proud of opening the fridge door this morning, or the way you brushed your teeth (no matter how scientific and well‐practised your method). The everyday, the predictable and the mundane aren't the stories we share.

Every success, adventure and achievement ...