Transform Adversity into Opportunity

We tend to avoid adversity because we’ve been conditioned to see the difficulties not the benefits. However, the difficulty you face today may be the purifying furnace of transformation that leads to a better tomorrow.

Consider diamonds. They are beautiful gems but the formation process they go through on the way to becoming beautiful is rather adverse. They are formed deep inside the earth’s crust characterized by utter darkness, extremely high pressure and scorching heat. Without those conditions, there’d be no diamonds. Adversity produces something beautiful.

Consider how diamonds are formed: Deep in the earth's crust, utter darkness, extremely high pressure & scorching heat. No difficulty, no diamonds. Embrace adversity. Let it form something beautiful & strong in you. Click To Tweet

God desires to make something beautiful of our souls and adversity is a necessary environment.

The more we avoid adversity, the less likely we will become what God had in mind when He created us. “Jesus, though a Son, learned obedience by what he suffered.”

When we eliminate adversity from our lives, we miss out on powerful lessons and rich experiences of human formation.

In their professional and personal lives, leaders model the way for others by how they respond to adversity. They transform difficulty into opportunities for growth and strengthening character. Here are four things you can do to make the most of adversity:

Lean In. Each of us has a preferred way of responding to difficulty. Some try to avoid it. Others kick into survival mode; grit their teeth and hold on till it passes. Many try to manage adversity by minimizing its negative impact. But the best choice is to embrace it.

Embracing adversity requires a specific mindset. You see the difficulty of the current circumstance, but you focus on the opportunity. You embrace adversity because you know that one day you will look back on it with gratitude because it was a catalyst for critical learning, character formation and strengthening of virtue.

Focus on What You Can Influence. Think deeply about the adversity that is emerging. Make a list of everything causing you angst. Don’t edit as you write. Pay no attention to grammar or spelling or syntax or prioritizing. Just get everything on paper and out of your head.

Now, on separate piece of paper make two circles, label one ‘circle of concern’ for those things you are concerned about but can’t influence. The second circle you can label ‘circle of influence’ for those things that are concerning you but you can do something about them. Take the list of things worrying you and slot each item into one of those two circles. Continue this exercise until everything has been categorized.

Next prioritize the list of items in your circle of influence, 1, 2, 3 etc. Starting at 1,  ask yourself, “What is the next, best thing you can do to positively influence this dimension of the difficulty?” Make a simple plan to execute then move on to the next facet.  You will walk away from this exercise with a plan to overcome the adversity.

Be patient with yourself. It’s difficult climbing a mountain, but even more difficult when you are carry unnecessary weight. Discipline your mind to focus on what you can actually change.

Open Your Heart. Your relationship with adversity is key – do you see adversity as a friend or an enemy?

If you view adversity as an enemy, fear will strike. Anxiety triggers the primitive part of the brain called the amygdala, which controls our fight or flight response. Fighting against or flying from adversity is rarely a healthy choice – unless the adversity is a grizzly bear!

Also, anxiety releases cortisol which inhibits the higher brain functions such as curiosity and creativity. We need more, not less, high brain functioning when dealing with adversity. As we open our heart to the emerging adversity, recognizing the gift within it, we will move into a more relaxed state that will produce more positive outcomes.

Bring Jesus into the adversity through prayer. In Jesus, religion no longer remains man’s blind search for God but a response of faith to a God who has revealed Himself.

It is comforting to know that Jesus took on human flesh and lived a complete human life.  He was like us in all ways except sin. He encountered difficult situations. He can relate to all we experience when adversity emerges.

Too many of us fall into a pragmatic atheism when it comes to adversity, “God’s too busy to help me deal with this.” Or we take on an orphan mentality, convinced that Lord won’t guide us through. The truth is that He cares for every detail of your life, go to Him, let Him in!

Difficult times can produce good fruit. Lean in. Focus on what you can influence. Open your heart. Bring Jesus into the adversity through prayer.

The more we avoid adversity, the less we become what God had in mind when He created us. “Jesus, though a Son, learned obedience by what he suffered.” Click To Tweet Embracing adversity requires vision. You see problems, but focus on opportunities. You lean into it when confident of the adversity advantages - learning, character formation and strengthening of virtue. Click To Tweet Your relationship with adversity is key - do you see it as a friend or an enemy? Click To Tweet