Estimated reading time: 5 minutes, 22 seconds
Every challenge that you overcome becomes evidence that you are the type of person that overcomes challenges.
The next weight might be heavier, but you won't be the same person lifting it.
Today’s visual is heavily inspired by Tainafi Lefono. Please consider checking out their work here.
We build physical strength by gradually carrying heavier weights.
Perhaps resilience works similarly.
The difficult things we carry today can prepare us to carry difficult things tomorrow.
Here’s a Saying from someone who knows a thing or two about facing challenges:
“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
Resilience isn't about becoming someone who never struggles.
It's knowing that when life knocks you down, you have evidence that you've stood back up before.
I've experienced several difficult seasons with my mental health over the years.
And while difficult thoughts and emotions can still show up, something is different now:
I'm not the same person experiencing them.
I've learned more about myself, I've developed ways of responding, and importantly, I have evidence that I've made it through difficult seasons before.
That's resilience.
It doesn't mean the next weight will be easy to lift. But perhaps you're stronger than you realise too.
So, here are 3 ways to grow your resilience:
Name the weight.
A setback is still a setback.
Don't pretend something isn't difficult just because you've faced difficulty before.
Acknowledge what you're facing, then lift it.
Remember what you've lifted.
Keep evidence of the challenges you've overcome.
Journalling gives me pages of reminders that things I once thought were overwhelming eventually became chapters I moved beyond.
Find your way of recording the challenges that you’ve already overcome.
Ask for a spotter.
Some weights are simply too heavy to lift alone.
Struggling doesn't mean that you're weak.
Sometimes resilience looks like recognising when you need someone else to help carry the load.
Let’s dive deeper into today’s wisdom with these 3 journal prompts:
What difficult thing have I already overcome?
What does that experience reveal about my ability to handle challenges?
What am I carrying now, and who might help me carry it well?
Today’s resource is a particularly moving book called Option B by Sheryl Sandberg & Adam Grant.
Written following the sudden death of Sandberg's husband, Option B explores adversity, resilience and what happens when life doesn't follow the path we expected.
One of its central ideas is that resilience isn't something we either have or don't have. It's something that we can build.
You can learn more about this book and why Sandberg and Grant wrote it in this video here:
And if you want to purchase a copy of this book, you can do so here:
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Thanks,
Michael