Six Ways to Keep Adversity from Keeping You Down

Sometimes life seems to go downhill fast.

Whether you’re naturally an optimist or a pessimist, your world can change for the worse in ways you can’t ignore. You may lose your job, lose your friend or family, have a health scare, be bullied or disliked, or the goal you’re aiming for may disappear before you can reach it. Or there may simply never be enough money to keep you and your family safe and happy.

Adversity can drain your will. That makes it harder and harder to change what you can change, accept what you can’t change, and to know the difference between the two.

Here are six ways to take control and fight back against adversity so you can get your life back on track.

1. Acknowledge the adversity
When things are going badly, you might want to lie down and give up or bury your head in the sand. But the first step in fighting back is to acknowledge what’s happened. The longer it takes to face the facts, the lower your energy will be. Set out what the issue is, and it may not seem so insoluble after all.
2. Don’t catastrophize, don’t panic
Even if something’s going badly wrong for you now, it won’t always be that way. “We’ll look back on this and laugh” is a true statement. Keep calm, be practical, and you’ll get through it.
3. See the opportunity
Sometimes adversity is an opportunity to let go of things or people who are no longer serving you. If you lose your job, move on and focus on the next one. A health scare may be an opportunity to retune to a healthier lifestyle. If you really can’t get what you want, change what you’re looking for and make it your new goal.
4. Right now, life may be bad, but you’re good
Don’t let today’s adversity define you! It’s true that bad things happen to good people. Remember how good you are, and how much you have to give. You are not defined by today’s bad luck or by other people. You can get through what’s happening and make your future life great!