Crisis As Opportunity

A high purpose lives against every species of opposition."
-Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell

I really like that quote. There really is a lot in those words. When I think of the most successful people I know they are not the people with the most education or the most credentials. They are usually the people with the most tenacity. I have often wondered where that tenacity comes from. It is not the people that were the most popular in school. It is not always the ones that made the best grades or were the most athletic. It seems to be the ones that have a special ability to take a licking and keep on ticking.

Where does this tenacity come from? From what I can figure out it comes from having a higher sense of purpose. A purpose that endures all kinds of hardships and simply will not quit. People with this sense of purpose seem willing to go through whatever it takes to achieve their goal. When they have setbacks they do not give up.They may get discouraged, but they will not quit. They do not see problems as bad. They do not see failure as permanent. They do not see times of crisis as a time to quit. They see crisis as opportunity. A chance to learn and grow, an opportunity to get better. Failure is not bad, they see it as experience. Problems and failure do not define who they are. It creates the opportunity to define who they will become. It is not always the strongest, smartest, most credentialed person, or the lucky who come out on top. It is the ones that have a purpose strong enough to allow them to endure. It is those that can adjust to change and those who refuse to let problems define who they are.