29-10-2024
3 min.

Embracing  life’s challenges

Life can often feel overwhelming, filled with challenges that tug at our emotions and well-being. From work-related stress to personal losses, we all encounter hurdles that test our resilience. Research shows that navigating these challenges becomes more manageable when we tap into our inner strengths. This article provides a roadmap to identify and cultivate those strengths, enabling you to thrive amidst adversity.


Effectively navigating challenges

We all face challenges—demands, stresses, illnesses, losses, vulnerabilities, and pain. While some challenges stem from significant sources of fulfillment, like starting a business or raising a family, they can still feel daunting.

Challenges can exist in various forms: financial worries, an aging parent with dementia, a baby with colic, or conflicts in relationships. Some challenges arise in the body—like illness or injury—while others manifest in the mind, such as anxiety, low self-worth, or trauma.

To effectively navigate these challenges, we need resources. A fundamental principle in psychology suggests that our course in life is determined by two factors: challenges (issues and vulnerabilities) and resources. As our challenges increase, so must our resources.


Tapping into your inner resources

Resources can be found in the world, in our bodies, and in our minds. The key is that the location of a resource doesn't need to align with the source of the challenge. For example, better health insurance can support a chronic illness, while increased self-confidence can aid in asserting oneself at work.

Here, we will focus on mental resources—what we call inner strengths. These include capabilities (mindfulness, emotional intelligence, resilience), positive emotions (gratitude, love, self-compassion), attitudes (openness, determination), and virtues (courage, wisdom). These are the qualities we want to cultivate within ourselves.

While enhancing resources in our external environment and physical bodies is beneficial, growing our inner strengths is often more accessible and impactful. As our mental resources expand, they can also support our physical and external resources.


Four Steps to Cultivate Your Inner Strengths

To cultivate your inner strengths—particularly those that will help you with a challenge—consider these four questions:

1. What’s the problem?

Identify a specific challenge. Instead of generalizing with “life sucks,” pinpoint exactly what you’re dealing with. This clarity allows you to focus on resources and solutions.

2. What inner strength could help?


Reflect on what mental resource might improve your situation. Ask yourself:

  • What thoughts or feelings would enhance my experience?
  • What might have made a difference during earlier experiences related to this challenge?
  • What factors in my mind have helped me overcome this challenge in the past?
  • Deep down, what does my heart long for in relation to this challenge?

While there may be multiple resources, focusing on one or two at a time can bring clarity.

3. Activate your key inner strength

Consider ways to bring this resource to the forefront of your mind. This involves activating it, which is the first step of the HEAL process—a framework designed by neuroscientist Rick Hanson. HEAL stands for Have, Enrich, Absorb, and Link.

Sometimes, the resource is already present; other times, you may need to create it by recalling times when you successfully overcame difficulties.


4. Reinforce your inner strength

Work on embedding this experience in your mind to grow this resource within yourself. This includes the second and third steps of the HEAL process: Enrich and Absorb. You might focus on both the resource and aspects of the challenge, allowing the resource to inform your experience.

Find Your Vitamin C

Think of it this way: if you have scurvy, vitamin C is essential for recovery. What’s your metaphorical vitamin C?

Identifying your key inner strength opens up opportunities in daily life to notice or create experiences that reinforce this resource. When you integrate this strength into your being, it becomes a part of you, available whenever you need it.

If your key resource is not clear yet, look for genuine moments where you feel cared for—being seen, appreciated, or loved. Love, broadly defined, is the ultimate multivitamin!

I wish you many opportunities to activate and install your inner strengths—your personal vitamin C!