Optimal Edge with Eugene Nwosu As the great English writer Samuel Johnson (1709 -1784) once said: “It is worth a thousand pounds a year to have the habit of looking on the bright side of things.”
When dealing with adversity, you should begin with analysing and accepting your situation for what it is. Few things in life are as bad as they seem at first. When adversity overtakes you, it pays to ‘look on the bright side of life’ and be thankful instead of worrying over your misfortune.
It ‘s certainly true that most of the time we are not asked to carry a load heavier than we can bear. But it sometimes helps us to appreciate that fact if we volunteer some of our time to help those who are less fortunate than we are.
No one rejoices in disappointment, but if you are success-conscious, you can turn the situation into a chance for improving your character, an opportunity you otherwise would have missed.
“No pessimist ever discovered the secrets of the stars, or sailed to an unchartered land, or opened a new heaven to the horizon of the spirit,” said Helen Keller.
Before opportunity crowns you with great success, it usually tests your mettle through adversity. Adversity provides the resistance necessary to develop the strength to overcome great obstacles. This strength consists of self-confidence, perseverance, and, very importantly, self-knowledge.
When we encounter a setback, it may be a clue to a personal weakness. We may have been hasty in judging a competitor, or we may have been too timid in our vision of what to do. Adversity, therefore, becomes our guide to understanding which qualities we need to cultivate and how we miss-stepped.
Learn from your failures, and move on to better things. When you are the unsuspecting, credulous and unwilling recipient of adverse and unpleasant moments, extract the useful lessons and then put the entire episode behind you.
It is from the failures that so chagrined and dismayed us that we learn the most lasting lessons. Your failure may prove to be an asset, provided you know why you failed.
There are a few occasions during our brief time on Earth when most of us experience great flashes of insight, great moments of truth that forever change the course of our lives. Most of those experiences result from spectacular failures, not from outstanding successes.
It is only when faced with the possibility of failure that we are willing to deal with radical change and take the risks that lead to great success. Failure is a blessing when it pushes us out of a cushioned seat of self-satisfaction and forces us to do something useful.
We need to recognise that we are all human, with the same faults and failings. If you carefully study your own life and those of achievers whom you admire, it is likely you will discover that the greatest opportunities often occurred during times of adversity.
Eugene Nwosu is founder of Optimal Edge. He is a trained life and business coach and author of two best-selling books Optimal Edge and Cut Your Own Firewood – The Ultimate Power to Succeed.
