“Hold your ground and you will last long.  Die without perishing and your life will endure.”

–          Lao Tzu

 

 

At some point every single one of us will have to deal with adversity in our lives.  None of us are immune.  How we deal with it however can have a profound effect on our wellbeing and state of mind.

 

Here are three steps we can all use when adversity rears its ugly head.

 

1)      Accept It

Part of dealing with adversity means accepting it.  We accept it is coming (or has arrived) but also do our best to ride the punch that it delivers.  Taking as much sting out of it as possible.

We understand that adversity is part of life’s journey so to deal with it we must first accept its existence.

 

 

2)      Treat it as a Chance to Learn and Grow

 

Most of us actually learn more from our mistakes than we do when things are going swimmingly.  Our brains are wired that way to make sure we do our level best to avoid the same mistake again and again.  Self-preservation kicks in.

 

Adversity comes to us in many guises and may not have anything to do with mistakes we have personally made.  However, it is also a time that presents us with an opportunity to grow and learn.

 

 

3)      Hold Firm

Adversity will come and when it does we need to hold firm.

 

Hold firm to our values.

 

Hold firm to who we are.

 

Hold firm to who we want to be.

 

Hold firm to our dreams.

 

This is where a good support network of friends and family can come into its own.  People we can lean on in tough times.  People we can rely on to say the right thing and understand.  People to share with.

 

This support network acts like roots do for a tree.  The wind may blow and blow hard, the tree may give a little but the roots continue to hold it upright.

 

Your support network are your roots when adversity strikes.

 

 

I hope these steps help you deal with adversity a little better when it next comes knocking at your door.

 

 

Frictionless News

As well as the usual posts here at Frictionless Living you can also find posts by me at my home (away from homes) at the Huffington Post and Medium.

 

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