Turning our challenges into our assets

A guest post, by Alex Balinski.

Challenges you can’t control can become some of your greatest assets.  It all depends on how you deal with them. 

For example growing up I had acne.  Despite everything I did, my complexion wouldn’t clear up.  I tried exercising, washing my face, applying medicine, etc.  In my desperation I even put honey, egg, aloe vera and lemon juice on my face.  Sometimes my face began to heal, only to flare up again.

Looking back, I’m grateful for the trial, because it helped me grow.

Through my struggles with acne I gained more patience with myself and I learned to not worry so much about what others think of me.  I learned to be more sensitive to others and accept things beyond my control.

Just as I couldn’t control the fact I had acne, I believe we all have physical, mental or social challenges we can’t control.  However, if we deal with our challenges in a positive way, we can control how those challenges affect us.

Here are two examples of how challenges can become assets:

Divorce

Historically many people believed children of divorced parents were doomed to have a worse marriage than children of married parents.  My marriage preparation teacher Jason Carroll, however said divorce has an extremifying effect.  It can influence a child to have a better or worse marriage depending on how the child deals with the situation.  

If a child deals negatively with the divorce, harboring grudges and doubting in relationships, the child may be at a disadvantage when pursuing marriage later on.  However, if a child deals positively with the divorce, learning from others’ mistakes and approaching marriage more prudently, the child may be at an advantage when pursuing marriage later on.

Emotional sensitivity

In school, sometimes highly sensitive children are pointed out as trouble students because of their emotional reactions.  However, a child’s emotional sensitivity can become a great asset if it’s channeled in the right way. 

For example, a child who is emotional may tend to have tantrums when young.  However, as the child matures and learns to control his or her behavior, the child can learn to focus their emotional sensitivities on helping others.  Because they are emotionally sensitive, they may have a special ability to show kindness and sincerity to others.

In conclusion, though you are not in control of all your challenges, you are in control of how you deal with them.  You can turn any challenge into an asset.  All you have to do is believe you can.