Dear loyal (or perhaps begrudging?) reader,
Perhaps you're hear because you genuinely want some "snackable" growth. To that I say -- this is delightful! Or, perhaps you're here because you're tired of my spammy emails and want to digitally throw tomatoes. And to that I say -- throw away! In either case, I'm just glad you've decided to join us. Because today, we're talking about a biggie. We're talking about resilience.
If I could wave a magic wand, and give myself one enduring trait, it would have to be resilience. As you already know, my loyal reader that's one of 5 people (jk -- but not by much), I'm deep in my existential crisis. And, that's pushed me to start exploring some unusual pursuits -- namely, writing a book (though I have never wrote anything longer than a grocery list), and (2) starting a blog.
These pursuits aren't inherently difficult. I'm not crunching the numbers for ballistic missile trajectories or shooting atoms through particle accelerates. But, they are difficult from an emotional perspective. The things you care about -- I mean really care about -- always test you emotionally. If it's personally important to you, be prepared for it to press on all the buttons of your self-doubt. This is why, for the most part, I never felt I needed "resilience" at work. Because the truth is, I didn't and I don't.
I care about work. Works cool. And it definitely requires me to work hard. But it doesn't require me to work resilient. And that's how I know that my deepest desires for my life--my greatest ambitions-- do not live in my present career. My career is fine, but it's not the source of meaningfulness in my life. It's not what I long for in my core.
I long to create. And more recently, I long to write.
Quick introductions! Meet Resilience.
Resilience is currently the "new kid" in my class of psychological strengths. He's like the cute boy or girl you smile shyly at from afar. Take some tips from middle school you: IF YOU DON'T GO INTRODUCE YOURSELF, YOU'LL NEVER GO TO PROM / GET MARRIED / HAVE BABIES. Middle school really is a wealth of pre-pubescent wisdom, amiright?
I know what you're thinking though. You can't just "become friends" with Resilience. For starters, Resilience is all suave and brooding and mysterious. Resilience has a pretty heavy connotation. We're talking about determination and tenacity. Bloody willpower! I get it -- Resilience is hot shit. But, so are you. You're destined for one another.
So, let's find some common interests between you and your Resilience. I've asked this before, but it never hurts repeating -- what's the thing that you secretly want to do? What's the thing you fantasize about?
I've always had an answer to this question -- I just never said it aloud. I want to be a YouTube star! Your answer doesn't need to be so cliché (trust me, I wish mine wasn't). But, it can also be completely cliché. Either way, your answer just needs to be honest. It needs to be shameless.
Sit with that answer for a minute. If you haven't started taking steps towards whatever this "thing" is, ask yourself -- why? Your answer might be glazed in all types of disclaimers-- not enough time, not enough money, not enough skills, not sure it's what you really want....
You done yet? God that was mind numbing.
Whatever the reason you choose to tell yourself, Resilience has a much better answer. Resilience knows it has something, perhaps EVERYTHING, to do with you thinking that the "thing" is highly unlikely for you to achieve. Resilience recognizes this, but also won't tolerate that silly statistics crap.
So, let's pause here and get some sage words of wisdom from your Resilience: ditch the math, my friend. Forget about the probabilities. This isn't statistics. It's your life. And fun fact: the probabilities change as you adjust your behavior. How cool is that?
Uncovering your Interests
The other cool thing about resilience is that it actually helps you learn more about yourself. For the longest time, I was frustrated by the fact that I had no idea what I was "passionate" about. Then, I discovered YouTube and the joys of making videos. This was a great first clue. But, the more I did it, the more I learned about myself. I realized that it wasn't just about making videos -- it was broader than that. I loved the process of sharing and discussing. And videos were just one medium to engage with that delight.
I never thought that I wanted to be a writer. And yet now, when I dig into the reasons that I loved making YouTube videos, it feels so obvious that I would enjoy writing a book as well.
Resilience won't just keep you in ~hot pursuit~ of your dream pursuit -- it will actually help you learn more about the entire suite of interests you should consider driving towards. It helps keep you in the game long enough to start really understanding the nuances of your interests. You might find that what you think you're interested in now, is, in fact, a clue towards an even greater love affair. But, you gotta stick with it to find out.
So stop admiring your fantasies from afar. Introduce yourself to Resilience, and build that relationship. Sure, there will be times where you want to break up. But I promise you -- Resilience will stick with it as long as you do.
Also, you make a really cute couple. So isn't that reason enough?
Sincerely,
Sabra and her work-in-progress Resilience
Comentarios