Obstacles Create Opportunities

Defined as something that “holds up progress” or “stands in the way of” – obstacles will always weave in and out of our lives – no matter how wise, rich or lucky one is.

A few years ago though, I realized that the best opportunities I have taken advantage of in my life have been bred by obstacles. When things are easy, we cruise and don’t need to push ourselves that hard. But when presented with challenging or painful situations – we may complain, kick and scream for a while – but eventually and hopefully, we get creative and take steps towards making a positive change. It’s easy to forget that life is not a straight line but filled with these difficult, purposeful twists and turns so that we can travel to new places, build stamina and learn more about ourselves. Take 5 minutes to think about your past and identify what ignited your greatest decisions. Were they blissful or difficult situations?

So if there’s something really challenging in your life right now weighing heavy on your chest – take a moment of pause, enjoy a few deep, delicious breaths and recognize that this obstacle is in your life for a reason and may even bring you something good if you choose to turn the negative into a positive. Ask what’s the lesson you’re learning and the decision you need to make because of it?

Make this your intention this week and if you need more motivation, remind yourself of the following 2 stories!

 

Lisa Oz on Resilience

President, Ozworks, LLC

The last film I produced did not get picked up for distribution. I was extremely disappointed but distracted myself by focusing on a treatment for a television show with my husband, Mehmet as the host. It got picked up by the Discovery Channel and launched his media career.

Alina Roytberg on Perseverance

Co-founder, Fresh

In the first 6 years of our business, we had a really difficult time surviving. Finances were really tight and everything went into the business; there were no banks that were interested in supporting our concept, so we had to do it on our own. But the dream was bigger than that. We found solutions and juggled many things in order to make the big step forward. Starting to sell our products to other stores three years after opening our first store in Boston gave us the opportunity to explore our business dreams.