Adversities are a part of life. No matter who you are and what you do, there will be challenges that you will have to overcome. Now, the definition of challenges and struggles varies from one individual to another. What seems like adversity to you may be a regular thing for another person. The good news is – you can successfully overcome adversity and life’s challenges, irrespective of how big or small if you can acquire certain life skills.
All successful people have one thing in common. They know how to deal with adversities. You too can be successful if you are able to develop certain skillset. The skills I am about to discuss in this blog have allowed people over the years to take on challenges and emerge victorious in their lives.
Adopting these life skills can help you to overcome adversity:
Accepting your current situation
A lot of challenges can be overcome if we simply start accepting our current situations. It is not bad to dream about good things. Those dreams drive us to work toward something. However, you should dream while standing on the grounds of reality. If you do not address the current issues, you won’t be able to get over then and progress in life.
Acknowledge your current condition, your problems, the troubles, your emotional baggage, and how you want to make your life better. The first step towards solving a problem is acknowledging its existence. So, instead of ignoring your troubles and dreaming about a better life, accept the conditions you are in and then take steps towards betterment.
Have a plan
Even when you are aware of your current situation, certain challenges can be really daunting. However, it is possible to overcome adversity with proper planning and execution. You need to figure out the ways to tackle adversity. Instead of taking impulsive decisions, one should focus on developing a plan of action to overcome the hurdles.
If there’s a financial crisis, it will be better if you evaluate all the options you have to get out of the mess. You can take a loan from the bank, or sell some of your assets to overcome the financial crisis. It is not that this plan would be effective for every money-related crisis. Every situation demands a unique plan of action. So, you need to learn how to plan according to the situation.
Networking
It is not possible for everyone to face adversities alone. At times, you do need to reach out to other people for help. This is where your networking skill pays off. Depending on the situation and the magnitude of the adversity, you need to ask people for help. So, you should always try and get acquainted with people on every chance you get.
Networking or making connections is highly encouraged in the corporate world for the same reason. However, your acquaintances can also be helpful outside the corporate world. Never hesitate to ask for help. Of course, nothing comes for free. You will owe them a favor. But at the end of the day, your networking skills can save you from troubling situations.
Acquiring different perspectives
At times, the challenges are not as complex as we assume them to be. There are instances where the obstacles are nothing by mere misunderstandings and preconceptions that we have made about our circumstances. Also, our assumptions often cloud our judgments, making a normal situation adverse.
Thus, it is important to slowly shift our perspective and viewing the predicament from another person’s point of view. It is also recommended to use different framing and reframing techniques to help change the way you look at certain adversities. It will not happen in one day. So, you need to practice shifting your perspective according to the situations in order to tackle the problem.
Getting your priorities straight
While dealing with a crisis, it is absolutely important to get your priorities set. When there’s an earthquake in the town, you should focus on ensuring the safety of you and your loved ones. It is irrational to think about your desktop or your gaming console when your lives are at stake. Even though this example is a bit extreme, it does put the point across.
There are a lot of people who fail to prioritize the right things and turn a small problem into a huge crisis. So, whenever you are facing an obstacle, quickly set your priorities and then develop a plan of action. Again, one gets better at prioritizing things under adverse situations with practice. However, one should also focus on acquiring the knowledge and skills required to face life’s problems more effectively.
Take small steps
You may have heard the phrase that “Slow and steady wins the race”. Even though being slow at resolving a crisis rarely works in your favor, taking small steps in the right direction does ensure success in the long run. As you may realize, it is better to take small steps in the right direction and taking long strides in the wrong path.
For instance, if you wish to solve the water-logging problem in your area, you cannot solve it overnight. You need to inform the authorities responsible for sewer management and then raise awareness about putting the garbage in the right places. While it needs proper planning, you also need to break down your plan into small manageable steps to overcome the obstacle.
Overall
A wise man once said that the problems are just opportunities that haven’t presented themselves. These aforementioned skills and measures can help you to overcome adversity, take on the challenges of life, and succeed with confidence. At the same time, these challenges push your limits and hone your existing skills, making you more efficient at solving even bigger problems.
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A Year of Positive Thinking: Daily Inspiration, Wisdom, and Courage (A Year of Daily Reflections) (Paperback)Spiegel, Cyndie
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