“Leaders and teams get stuck at a plateau and can’t recognize it because they’re inside the bottle and can’t read the label.” – Mark Divine

With the outbreak of Coronavirus I know very well that many people and businesses all over the world are being adversely impacted in many ways.

Everywhere in the world people are living with stressful and precarious unknowns. I have been trying to offer hope to friends and family but I know very well that fear, worries and the unknown upsetting future engulf their hearts. I have been thinking of what to say to those who feel like they have lost their hope to move forward. 

In my search for words of I came across a book written by Mark Divine titles Staring down the wolf. In this book, Mark, a Retired Navy SEAL Commander, is telling all of us facing this fearful times that we face our deepest negative conditioned qualities, or fears, and then stare them down to reduce their impact on your life. Mark talks tells us about how to use this crisis to face down your fear wolf and use this enforced isolation to work on yourself and come out of this stronger.

Adversity is one of the most powerful forces in life. It can bring out your best or your worst. Ultimately, it is up to you.I have seen the approach to adversity play out in all walks of life and unfortunately the most common response to adversity is to try and make it go away. 

Here below are Tips to help you stay away at your adversity:

Take stock of all you’ve been through already.

They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. The hardships and misfortunes you’ve been through can give you confidence that you’re capable of handling whatever comes your way. You’ve been in tough times before. How did you overcome adversity that time? What got your through? Your past experiences can help you find your inner strength and resilience.

Author Maya Angelou said during an interview, “We may encounter many defeats, but we must not be defeated. It may even be necessary to encounter the defeat, so that we can know who we are. So that we can see, oh, that happened, and I rose. I did get knocked down flat in front of the whole world, and I rose. I didn’t run away — I rose right where I’d been knocked down. And then that’s how you get to know yourself.”

Be aware of, and accept that adversity is inevitable in life🌸🌸. As has already been pointed out, adversity is part of life. To avoid or resist it will only make it persist. Everywhere you look in the world there is unmistakable struggle. There are floods, tsunamis, wars, and calamities of all types. Even within your own circle of family and friends there is death, loss and tragedy. Although pain is inevitable, suffering is optional. So what do you do?

Maintain a positive attitude😇😇😇. No matter what has happened or is going to happen, it isn’t likely to be the end of the world. There is always light at the end of the tunnel. Choosing to not let negative thoughts rule your life will have a huge impact on your ability to move forward and view your future with optimism and hope.

Consider that Nelson Mandela spent 27 years in prison before he became the first democratically elected president in South Africa. Abraham Lincoln failed in business, had a nervous breakdown, and was defeated eight times in elections before becoming president. A boy born to a teenage alcoholic prostitute and an absentee father found himself in trouble throughout his childhood, eventually growing up to be Charles Manson.

Confess that you’re not okay😃😃. Don’t waste any more time or energy pretending to be fine when you’re really hurting, lonely, confused, or frightened because of your past pain. If your pain was caused by some sin of yours in the past, confess that to God, repent from the sin, and ask Him to forgive you. If your pain was caused by someone else sinning against you, admit to God that you need to forgive the person who hurt you, and ask God to empower you to do so. Ask God and some fellow believers you can trust to help you start the healing process.

Express your crisis💯💯 — and your responsibility.

Express the adversity, whether coronavirus, the hurt made you feel, whether it’s directly to the other person, or through just getting it out of your system (like venting to a friend, or writing in a journal, or writing a letter you never send to the other person). Get it all out of your system at once. Doing so will also help you understand what — specifically — your hurt is about.

We don’t live in a world of black and whites, even when sometimes it feels like we do. While you may not have had the same amount of responsibility for the hurt you experienced, there may have been a small part of the hurt that you are also partially responsible for. What could you have done differently next time? Are you an active participant in your own life, or simply a hopeless victim? Will you let your pain become your identity? Or are you someone deeper and more complex than that?

Mark in Staring down the Wolf 🐺  states that in the military,  a true soldier’s is not really known until they make the choice to put their own life at risk for the good of their brothers in arms. This is the ultimate test of character. Most people never serve in the military, but the example may help us to put our own life stressors into perspective. Most stressful events don’t involve potential serious bodily harm or death, but even during the roughest of times, we must strive to live up to our own standards of behaviour Remember: “Tough times don’t last, but tough 💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻people do. And I’ve been through some tough times, and I know a lot of people can recall tough times, and maybe are going through some tough times right now, but they don’t last.” — Alonzo Mourning. Life can be tough and may seem uncontrollable at times. But, no matter how tired you feel about having tired, you must go on. Go quietly, go slowly, go timidly, but go on.

NOW IT’S YOUR TURN

Where are you in your story? Are you currently facing challenging times?  If so, are you listening to it, dealing with it, or using it?  If you are using your pain for good, I have a favor to ask of you.  Could you offer a word of encouragement to others who are trying to listen or deal with it?  Write a few lines in the comment section below.  Thank you🙏🙏.