Best Tips for Overcoming Adversity

Best Tips for Overcoming Adversity

It’s inevitable that you will face adversity at some point. It might be a personal challenge or something that affects your family, your work, or your community. But no matter what it is, know that you are not alone. Overcoming adversity is a necessary step on the road to growth.

Countless inspiring individuals have achieved great things despite facing incredible obstacles. Overcomers have started from the most humble or challenging of circumstances and yet, they have gone on to be successful – examples for all of us to follow. What makes them so inspiring is their ability to turn adversity into an opportunity for growth.

Whatever adversity you are facing right now, remember that it is only a temporary hurdle between you and your goal. Don’t give up – keep pushing through and you will be able to overcome obstacles that come your way. Let overcomers be your inspiration, and know that you can do the same thing when you set your mind to it.

After going blind at 21-years-old while at university, I’ve faced my share of personal adversity. Today, I’m happier and more successful than when I could see, which is why I’m now a keynote speaker who finds joy and meaning in showing others how to overcome adversity.

So, what got me over the hump? How did I break free from the victim mindset that was holding me hostage and move towards a productive way of thinking?

Here are 5 Tips I Recommend for Overcoming Adversity.

1. Believe in Yourself.

The first step to overcoming adversity is to believe in yourself. When you face a challenge, it can be easy to doubt your abilities and question whether or not you can really overcome the obstacle. But if you want to succeed, you need to have faith in yourself and your ability to get through whatever adversity you’re facing.

Remember that you are capable of more than you think is possible. Each obstacle placed in your path is an opportunity for growth. Viewing adversity as a chance to grow is a way to reframe your approach to challenges, setting you up with greater self-confidence and, ultimately, outcomes.

2. Stay Positive.

It’s important to stay positive when adversity strikes. It might be tempting to give in to negative thoughts and feel like giving up, but that won’t help you overcome the challenges you’re facing. Instead, focus on the positives and keep your spirits high. This will help you stay motivated and keep moving forward towards your goals.

A key to staying positive is controlling your inner narrative for each obstacle. What’s the story you’re telling yourself about that obstacle? The meaning we attach to circumstances is far more important than the circumstances alone.

When I went blind, I could’ve told myself that I went blind because I had terrible luck, or, I could’ve told myself that I went blind because I’m strong enough to overcome it, and help others. Technically, both stories are true. The first story paints me as a victim, and the second, better story, reframes my disability as my strength, preparing me to take on more adversity.

As Friedrich Nietzsche said, “If you know the why, you can live any how.” Get a handle on your inner voices, tell yourself the right stories, and attach meaning to circumstances that carry you forward – avoid meaning and stories that keep you stuck in the victim mindset.

Another excellent way to stay positive is to stay light. Injecting a little humor into any situation makes it more digestible. We’re all in this human experience together, and none of us will get out alive. Of course we should take our work and goals seriously, but we need to have fun reaching for them. If it’s not fun, it will soon become overwhelming, so keep fun in your life to stay positive. For me, I like to say that now is a good time to go blind. It’s a lighthearted way to inject some good humor into my adversity.

3. Take Action.

To overcome adversity we need to take action. Don’t just sit around and wait for things to get better – do something to make them better. Figure out what you need to do in order to succeed, and then take the necessary steps to make it happen. The number one contributor to progress prevention is inaction.

I’ve managed to make progress after going blind because I took action to relearn how to learn, use and engineer software on my computer, run a business, write a book, give a keynote speech, ski black diamond terrain, and practice Brazilian Jiu Jitsu – all without being able to see.

But your next step doesn’t have to be groundbreaking. In fact, the prospect of taking the next step can be overwhelming, so stick to bite-size steps. The smaller the action, the more likely you are to follow through, and when you follow through, you teach your brain that progress is indeed possible – one small step at a time.

Then, linking several small steps together over time, you can achieve exponential growth. Greatness doesn’t come from a single giant action. It’s a collection of microactions built up over time.

4. Be Flexible.

One of the key things you need to remember when overcoming adversity is that you need to be flexible. Things are not always going to go according to plan, so you need to be prepared for change. Be willing to adjust your plans as needed and don’t be afraid to try new things. The more flexible you are, the easier it will be to overcome adversity. There are multiple paths to your goals, so be open to new ways of getting there.

We ask kids all the time what they want to be when they grow up, and none of them say they want to be a blind person. After mourning the death of my imagined future self, I had to rethink my future without ignoring the reality of my blindness. I had to be flexible and pivot based on new circumstances. If I can do it, you can too.

So, the next time you’re presented with an unchangeable basket of facts that’s not particularly palatable, take a step back and try to reimagine a future where you can make those unsavory circumstances work for you. How can you make them look good? IN what context can these unchangeable facts benefit you?

5. Never Give Up.

Finally, never give up on yourself or your goals. Despite the challenges you face, keep moving forward and never give up. There will be times when it feels like giving up is the best option, but don’t do it.

We’re not responsible for all of our circumstances, but we’ve got to be accountable for our outcomes. It’s my challenge, I’ve got to own it. It’s your challenge, you’ve got to own it. You own your response, your effort, so make the most of it.

Besides, there are no do-overs, so make the most of yours – life is short and the clock is ticking. And when your confidence gets rattled, remember why you started down this path in the first place, and don’t let obstacles get in the way of your success!

No matter what adversity you are facing in your life, remember that you can overcome it if you are unwilling to accept any other outcome.

Looking for a keynote speaker with experience in overcoming adversity? A keynote speaker with a talent for communicating, inspiring, and entertaining audiences with key learnings? A keynote speaker with an overcomer mindset who can help your team use adversity to their advantage? Submit your information in the Inquiry form to learn more about the below programs.