By Ahsan
“Just as nature takes every obstacle, every impediment, and works around it — turns it to its purposes, incorporates it into itself — so, too, a rational being can turn each setback into raw material and use it to achieve its goal.” Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
Imagine for a moment that you and a few friends and family members go off on a day trip that goes all wrong. I'm not talking about a country drive and a flat tire but instead being plunged into a situation of survival and impossible odds.
The two real-life incidents that I want to quickly point you to is the Antarctic Expedition in 1914-1917 that imperiled the crew of Ernest Shackleton. The second one is the unfortunate plane crash of an Uruguay Ruby team in 1972, where 16 survivors made it out of the Andes mountains by their fellow team member Nando Parrado. In the first case, the survival story spanned over 2 years, and in the second instance, it was 72 days. Unfortunately, both groups were assumed dead, and the search efforts by authorities were suspended.
A movie about the Andes plane crash survivors is available and came out in 1993. You can find the link here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P95R76Mstg4
Legend has it that Shackleton had posted an ad in a London newspaper looking to form a crew that described the ill-fated discovery expedition: "Men wanted for hazardous journey. Low wages, bitter cold, long hours of complete darkness. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in event of success."
So, what was the common thread in these two stories of survival? What drove these two men to take the lead and keep their friends alive long enough to be saved? How did they face the fear and the continuous disappointments they endured while trying to survive? How did they make the choices they had to make when their future looked so bleak, and their physical condition was worn down to skin and bones?
The resounding quality is RESILIENCE!
I recently listened to a keynote speech on Resilience by Dennis Mosely-Williams. You can find the link here http://www.seriousshiftsummit.com/dennis-free
(I think you will thoroughly enjoy it and profit from it all your life.)
My question to you is, what does the word RESILIENCE mean to you? What picture comes to mind? What experience might you identify with?
Here is the definition according to the dictionary: the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness.
But, as Dennis said, and I also wonder, did the definition match what you thought the word meant?
Resilience is not just about being strong or tough; it has more to do with bouncing back and not giving up when the tough gets going. When life's events don't go your way, you have two choices, and the best one is to not give up.
You have to have the ability to withstand adversity. It’s not a matter of not experiencing stress, sadness, difficulties, or bad luck; it’s simply getting on even when these things happen!
As the author of Warrior of Light, Paulo Coehlo, mentions: “Try to live with the same intensity as a child. He doesn’t ask for explanations; he dives into each day as if it were a new adventure and, at night, sleeps tired and happy.”
The good news is most of us will never be in a situation like Shackleton or Parrado; however, we do face our own challenges like the one the whole world is going through these days.
In the scheme of things, if you are on safe ground and can get out of your bed each day to face the world, regardless of your woes and difficulties, you should have the capacity of RESILIENCE if you dare to summon it. You can overcome hardship.
As always, here is a quick hit list of things you can do starting now to make yourself more RESILIENT
5 Things to do so you can have RESILIENCE in your life!
Believe in your capabilities and remain flexible to acquire more skills
Call on your Higher Power; the weight of the world does not need to be on your shoulders.
Reflect on your Purpose: As Dr. Alan Zimmerman, coach and author of Pivot, says: “the purpose of life is a life of purpose.” Plan your life out and go back to your plan when you feel lost!
Be future-based and grow. Don’t think about the past. Think about the Immediate next step and see yourself doing that thing. Keep doing this for every stage and keep making progress. Sing your songs while you work. Remember to live fully till the final curtain call.
Remain hopeful; “he/she who has hope has everything.” So fill up your gas tank every day with hope!
As we go collectively through this global challenge and become tired of it, rest assured that the antidote to getting on the other side is to be RESILIENT!
And remember, we DO need resilient societies and resilient support structures and it starts with you as an individual, developing your grit, persistence and endurance on a daily basis.
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