Overcoming Obstacles
Life isn’t always easy. The unexpected happens when we least expect it. It starts with a goal. Then, you create a plan to achieve that goal.
Next, you take steps to implement your plan. Progress happens. You can see your goal in sight. Then, WHAM! Something happens. You may have seen it coming or it might have been a complete surprise. Nonetheless, you find yourself either stalled, sidelined or completely derailed. This is the moment that separates those who succeed from those who fail.
It isn’t the magnitude of the problem that counts. It’s how you respond to the situation that matters. Specifically, there is a vocabulary to failure and there is a vocabulary to success. Start by reframing how you label your dilemma. It is no longer a “problem”, but a “situation”. It is not a “disaster”. It is an “opportunity”. Instead of calling it a “failure”, call it a “chance to improve”. Delete the word “impossible” from your vocabulary. It has no value in your mental space. Stop labeling everything in negative terms. Words have power. Use them wisely and harness their upward propelling potential.
Second, force yourself to be a glass half full kind of person. Do not see the glass as half empty. Or, maybe, you have the wrong glass and just need a brand new glass. It’s an opportunity to change the glass! Look for the positives even in the midst of trials. Whenever a door closes, a window opens. Maybe you have an opportunity to go, or grow, in a new direction. Be flexible and embrace the change. Resisting a new angle for growth is not only tiring, but frustrating and counterproductive as well.
Third, Man or (Woman) Up! Things will happen despite your best efforts. When they do, you can sit around and feel sorry for yourself, or you can pick yourself up by your bootstraps and press on. You have inner strength. We were all born with it. Now find it. Dig deep. Dig deeper than you ever thought you could dig. Nobody can do your digging for you. Problems are just opportunities to find and activate that inner strength. Body builders get stronger by exercising their muscles. When you call upon and activate your inner strength, you are actually building your reserves so you have more to call upon when needed.
Overcoming challenges and reaching the finishing line for your goal begins with the right mindset. Rewrite your brain and you’ll rewrite your life. Whatever you repeat in your head will guide your actions. If those thoughts are steeped in negativity and unbelief, your actions will be limited and unfruitful at best. When your mind is positioned to be an overcomer, your actions will propel you to victory. Chose this day what you will believe.
