SPIRIT

BRING IT ON!

WRITER: TRACI BROSMAN // PHOTO ILLUSTRATOR: ANTHONY CASTO

Ibelieve how we deal with challenges and adversity shows the true measure of our character. Life tends to throw us some wicked curve balls and when we are hit, it hurts. It is easy to play the blame game and blame everybody and everything for what has gone wrong. This does not get us anywhere, though. Blaming others just keeps us stuck in the pain of what we are experiencing. When we accept things the way they are, without placing blame on others, and look for ways we can move forward, this is when we find the hidden gems I believe every challenge affords us.

When we focus on the problem that is all we will see. But many times, what we need to do is look for a solution to that problem. We may be stuck in our worries and fears, yet when we focus on finding a solution, we begin to think of ideas that might work. We begin to see possibilities, and as we explore these possibilities, we might just find what we thought was a problem is actually a blessing instead.

There are other times, though, when our challenges may seem too big and we cannot see anything good coming from them. We might find ourselves completely overwhelmed with feelings such as grief, sadness, anger, and/or fear. However, over time even these challenges will bring us gifts that will enrich our lives. These gifts may be in the form of getting us to stretch further than we believed we could, or learning valuable insight about ourselves. It is often as the years pass that we look back and say if that hadn’t happened I wouldn’t be where I am today, experiencing the beauty of my life as it is.

In my TV interviews, I have met many people who have faced extremely difficult diseases, and they have shared with me that getting ill was actually one of the best things that happened to them. It changed the direction of their lives and made them re-examine their values and belief systems in a way that has brought more joy, love, and peace.

It is easy to want to protect our children from anything that may hurt them, including the challenges that come their way. We do not want them to be in pain or to feel disappointed. What we must realize, though, is that there is a balance between protecting them and preparing them to deal with life’s obstacles. Yes, we must protect them from danger. Yet as parents, we must also prepare our children to be able to handle life’s challenges.

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Failure is a part of life, so why do we fear it?

I believe we are taught to fear failure. We are taught we must be perfect at all times. The thing is it is almost impossible to be perfect without practice and in order to get really good at something, we must first be really bad at something. This means we must fail first.

It is unfortunate that the fear of failure often paralyzes people from making any decisions at all. It prevents them from living the life they dream of having. Wouldn’t it be better to look at failure as a part of life, as lessons to help us improve? It is by making mistakes that we can see the opportunities for improvement.

We have also been taught that when we are uncomfortable we should stop and not move forward. I believe being uncomfortable is the perfect sign to move forward. Those feelings of discomfort, fear, and anxiety are signs that the area we are moving toward holds lots of growth.

Instead of stopping and doing nothing, look at the situation and evaluate what is the best possible scenario? Then ask, what is the worst possible scenario? Is the risk worth the reward? Oftentimes, the worst possible scenario is not that bad. It may mean starting over. It may mean some discomfort or tightening of the budget. However, without some risk you will never find any reward. Do not let the fear of failure stop you from living your best life. If you do fail, just pick yourself up and try again.

T. Harv Eker says, “How we do anything in life is how we do everything.” This means that how we handle obstacles, challenges, and failures is also how we will handle the good times and the successes in our life. How do you handle anything?

TRACI BROSMAN is co-founder of World Wellness Education, which is dedicated to encouraging and inspiring others to live healthier lives. On LakeFront TV’s World Wellness Education show, Brosman interviews others who are on a journey from sickness to health. Brosman also helps health and wellness professionals through her mastermind groups and success coaching. Contact her through www.holisticmarketingmentors.com or www.worldwellnesseducation.org.