Overcoming Adversity
Think about a novel or movie that you found engaging. Why was it so? Conflict. Conflict
makes a story interesting, it moves the story forward, engages the reader/viewer, causes
the protagonist to stretch, grow, take risks.
Adversity is good—as long as you move through it to the other side.
There are many types of adversity. Check the ones you’re dealing with now:
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Human vs. Human
Human vs. Society
Human vs. Self
Human vs. Nature
Human vs. Universal Force/God/Higher Self
The GREAT news is that the only problem you’ll ever have is YOU. The BETTER news
is that YOU have all the solutions too. What you think and feel creates your world.
Here are some tools for moving through each one:
Human vs. Human:
When struggling with others it helps to do some self-inquiry followed by a two-step
process.
Self-Inquiry:
Why am I struggling with this person? Is that the real reason? What’s the benefit for me
to cling to that reason? Can I let that reason go?
Two-step process:
1) Equalize yourself with the other: see the two of you as equal, neither one is
above/below, good/bad, right/wrong, better/worse. Feels better, doesn’t it?
2) Exchange yourself with the other: consider how you might react in their situation,
with their point of view, their potentially limiting beliefs. Increases compassion a
little, doesn’t it?
Human vs. Society:
Overcoming Adversity
-1© 2006 Mighty Ventures, LLC · www.mightyventures.com
When struggling with society and societal mores and conditioning, it helps to do some
self-inquiry followed by a two-step process.
Self-Inquiry:
Why am I struggling with society? Is that the real reason? What’s the benefit for me to
cling to that reason? Can I let that reason go?
Two-step process:
1) Equalize yourself with society: see both society and you as equal, neither one
is above/below, good/bad, right/wrong, better/worse. Feels better, doesn’t it?
2) Exchange yourself with the other: consider how you might react in society’s
situation, with its prevalent point of view and potentially limiting beliefs.
Increases compassion a little, doesn’t it?
Human vs. Self:
When struggling with yourself, it helps to do some self-inquiry followed by a two-step
process.
Self-Inquiry:
Why am I struggling with myself? Is that the real reason? What’s the benefit for me to
cling to that reason? Can I let that reason go?
Two-step process:
1) Equalize yourself: see the parts of yourself that are in conflict as equal, neither
one is above/below, good/bad, right/wrong, better/worse. Feels better, doesn’t
it?
2) Exchange yourself with the other part of yourself: consider how you might
react were you to change places with the part of yourself you’re struggling
with, consider its prevalent point of view and potentially limiting beliefs.
Increases compassion a little, doesn’t it?
Human vs. Nature:
When struggling with nature, it helps to do some self-inquiry followed by a two-step
process.
Self-Inquiry:
Why am I struggling with nature? Is that the real reason? What’s the benefit for me to
cling to that reason? Can I let that reason go?
Two-step process:
Overcoming Adversity
-2© 2006 Mighty Ventures, LLC · www.mightyventures.com
1) Equalize yourself with nature: see both nature and yourself as equal, neither
one is above/below, good/bad, right/wrong, better/worse. Feels better, doesn’t
it?
2) Exchange yourself with nature: consider how you might react in nature’s
situation, with its need to preserve itself and its force that humans sometimes
cannot understand. Increases compassion a little, doesn’t it?
Human vs. God/Universal Force/Higher Self (insert your preferred term here)
When struggling with God, it helps to do some self-inquiry followed by a two-step
process.
Self-Inquiry:
Why am I struggling with God? Is that the real reason? What’s the benefit for me to cling
to that reason? Can I let that reason go?
Two-step process:
3) Equalize yourself with God: see both of you as equal, neither one is
above/below, good/bad, right/wrong, better/worse. Feels better, doesn’t it?
4) Exchange yourself with the other: consider how you might react in God’s
situation, this may be a stretch, but give it a shot! Increases compassion a
little, doesn’t it?
Remember: The GREAT news is that the only problem you’ll ever have is YOU. The
BETTER news is that YOU have all the solutions too. What you think and feel creates
your world.
Check out www.MindJet.com for free mind mapping software.
For more information on Overcoming Adversity, see Christine Comaford-Lynch’s book Rules
for Renegades (McGraw-Hill, Summer 2007).
Overcoming Adversity
-3© 2006 Mighty Ventures, LLC · www.mightyventures.com