The Power to Respond Better to Situations You Face Lies with You

Charles R. Swindoll said something that rings very true. He said, “Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react”. Imagine having a day that starts with spilling coffee on your white shirt, you are running late for work, your car doesn’t start and you have a presentation to close a deal you dare not miss. You can either calm down and find an alternative on what to wear (wearing a brooch/lapel pin over the shirt or a blazer maybe) and book a ride or find yourself getting angry and your day is totally ruined. Taking a moment to calm down, breathe in and out and think might just do the trick.

However, there are other things that happen, like the loss of a loved one, that we cannot control. Still, you can decide to manage it the best way you can or let it have the best of you. There’s always the chance to choose how you respond or react to situations. Your attitude towards whatever happens to you is important. In the end, you are where you are as a result of what you did or did not do.

Life sometimes throws things at us that we did not prepare for but we have gone through it and come out at the other side. At the time, it seemed like an insurmountable mountain. What actually happens in that process is growth. We grow through certain things and when we look back at it now, it’s like it wasn’t such a big deal after all. You can choose to play the victim or not.

It may seem that some people are just naturally happy every single time you see them. It’s not because they have life running smoothly for them, but they have chosen not to let it get to them. You don’t have to offend anyone or commit any crime in life to face challenges, the very fact that you are living and breathing qualifies you for challenges. Why, you may ask, and the answer is simple- That’s how life is!

It is your attitude to life that determines what you get out of it. There are several stories of people from very poor backgrounds that refused to let that be a deciding factor for their future. Instead, they took the bull by the horn and made the world a better place for others and themselves. When they have risen to a place of financial dominance, people usually find it very hard to believe their stories when they realise those people came from poor backgrounds.

If you think the challenges life has put on your plate are too much, too scary or too difficult, make a decision today not to let fear or any other thing hold you down. It is not easy but it is possible. Yes, it is possible to rise above the challenges life throws at you. You have that power. Use it. Wishing you a beautiful day!