Adversity Makes Strength 2

The Kansas City Business Journal had an article about how people in sales learn to live with, learn from, and sometimes ignore adversity. His point was that working through setbacks makes you resilient, prepared, and naturally optimistic.

I was discussing the article with a friend and told him that it reminded me of dating in High School. You humiliate yourself over and over again and get nowhere. It's not a great analogy, just a good joke line.

There was a citation for some study that said that younger soldiers have a harder time surviving conflict than older ones. I believe this was supposed to apply to Iraq, but I also remember hearing something about this said about WWII and even the Civil War. The theory here is that with a little experience under your belt, you learn that setbacks do not mean defeat and that demoralization isn't the best reaction to adversity.

People have often cited the string of failures of President Lincoln and General Grant as examples of people who eventually prevail through hardships by perseverance.

I think there is something to be said for this. Some of the rhetoric I hear by older adults when they try to explain why "these kids these days" can't hold a job or won't work hard or don't know how to succeed have a degree of merit in one important category. Anyone who grows up sheltered from criticism, not required to work hard for the things they acquire, and not exposed to hardship or deprivation is going to have a naturally easygoing view of the world. And while it is true some people are hugely successful with little effort and lots of luck, most people do have to work hard to achieve their goals. The younger you are, the less likely you are to have been challenged by any hard knocks. So, in general, younger people do have a higher probability of not being "battle tested".

So if you find someone saying all these things as a blanket condemnation and being somewhat derogatory of young people, just remember what are some of the other things that come with all this age and experience. Remember that age takes away many of the good and fun things of youth. Who doesn't look back on youth wistfully as a carefree time when you had little worries and it was easy to be enthusiastic and energetic. Many of the endeavors in life would not be undertaken if people had a clear understanding before starting out just how difficult and demoralizing they would be.

Much of schooling is designed to do just this. We talk about learning hard lessons in life, but difficult subject matters are something you have to struggle through to accomplish. The thing that most people that have worked hard have learned is that even with the setbacks and difficulties, there are the results. Only through struggles and strenuous efforts will you accomplish the things you want, getting the job, finishing the project, or cleaning up the mess you were handed. That glowing feeling of looking back at the mess you've put in order or the job you've accomplished makes all the sweat and toil worth it.