Finding Strength and Ease Throughout Life’s Challenges

We all go through tough times and challenges its part of being human. Sometimes it feels like you are taking one step forward and two steps back.  However, as bad as they may seem during the moment we must have a sense of ease and peace of mind during our situation, reassured by the fact that these feelings will inevitably pass and are here to be experienced for a reason that may serve us now or later on in life.

We should instead, however, begin to see challenging times and failures as moments we can capitalize on and experiences to learn from. Think about this, how often do you look back at a tough time in your life where you considered yourself challenged or perhaps you feel you failed something, someone or yourself. Did it enable you to grow and learn as an individual? What were you able to learn or gain from the experience? Perhaps you discovered more about yourself- your mindset and mentality and that you’re stronger than what you may first think. Perhaps you learnt that you no longer like what you were trying to achieve as you have newfound interests. Its all about your perspective and how you choose to perceive a given moment.

You have the choice to decide how you want to feel about a situation in any given moment based on the perspective you have of it.

You could choose to perceive these times as failures and negative due to the stigma around ‘failing’ or not ‘succeeding’. Maybe you hear yourself saying such things internally like:

I’m unsuccessful.

I’m feeling so embarrassed, I can’t believe that happened?

I’m not worthy of that person’s attention, they don’t care about me.

I can never get what I want, it just never seems to work for me.

Why do I keep failing, why does this keep happening to me?

Does any of this negative self-talk sound familiar? What if I told you that the challenges and failures you experience could potentially be a gateway to success.

Challenges and failing = pathway to learning and success.

Yes, you heard me. Your perception around challenges and failure could be forever altered if you adopt the perspective that they are opportunities for growth and learning.

When one door shuts another one opens…

Perhaps that failure will lead to something greater and more amazing later down the track, more aligned with your life purpose and path. Maybe you didn’t get the date with the guy/girl you’ve been crushing on because your dream partner may be around the corner! You never know what life can throw at you and how things could change within very short periods of time, what is meant to be for you will be. The challenges and failures are there to serve you. This can help create ease during the uncomfortable moments where you feel challenged and gives you a greater sense of freedom to know that whatever occurred or is occurring for you is happening for a reason. You are meant to be going through these tough times for one reason or another. You can learn and choose to grow from this.

You are not defined by your failures or challenges nor do they define you. 

As a personal example, year 12 in high school was probably one of the most challenging years of my life I am yet to experience. I was studying like a madwoman and waking up early to study before school, staying up late after school. I didn’t get to spend time with my beautiful family and limited my time with friends due to the pressure I had put on myself to achieve results. Having just come out the other end of puberty I was battling body image thoughts and going to the gym and doing strenuous workouts and not nearly eating enough to fuel myself for what I was doing. This was incredibly damaging and harmful to my body not to mention how all the stress I was experiencing also was affecting me. Not only did this severely affect my energy levels, ability to concentrate, my hormones and mood it was counterproductive to what I was trying to achieve; good results.

This time taught me so much and more than many other lifestyle events could have ever taught me…

I learnt that my body and my mental health should be a number one priority in my life as without my health everything I do is limited in potential. I learnt how to better manage my stress and how to look after myself when doing large amounts of study and work. I learnt that exercising so much can be incredibly damaging to the body and has taken me to where I am now to appreciate, love and care for my body and mind. I also learnt that the results you get in your exams for year twelve don’t mean shit in the real world! LOL. But guys honestly, that was just the tip of the iceberg in terms of that year and what it has taught me about myself, my health and how to manage life.

Maybe you can relate to my story above in one way or another and have your own stories and tough times that have taught you well. During the moment they are incredibly hard but later on, down the track, they will serve you for the better and keep encouraging you onto the right life path. Failures and challenges have a purpose and are there to benefit you as an opportunity for growth and learning. Changing your perspective around these challenging times will help you master these moments when you’re feeling down, stressed, worried or anxious about certain situations enabling you to see the bigger picture and see them as a possibility for change.

You are not your success, failures, challenges good or bad times. you are a limitless being who is able to choose how each moment is perceived. You have the power to decide how you feel about your life and situations.

Everything you experience is only temporary…

Sending love as always, Amy xx