by Saajidah Esat, Freelancer

The challenges we experience in our lives present themselves when we’re ready to learn something. Any challenge we face, big or small, comes as a sign, to show us what we need to learn, where we need to grow and how we can adjust our sails so that we can get to where we want to be.

Until fairly recently, I would not have bought into this notion at all! I would’ve said something along the lines of, “Who are you kidding? Challenges are just there to make life harder!” I can have a little giggle at myself about it now, knowing full well that that’s exactly why I kept getting them. I needed to learn that challenges were nothing more than beautiful opportunities for growth, and be it hard or easy, they would keep coming. Now I know that I am the one who has EVERYTHING to gain and NOTHING to lose from them.

If you sound anything like I used to, then this was written just for you. To bring light to what you may have not been seeing all along, to end the struggle and to help you embrace your growth. Here are some tips to assist you in overcoming a challenge.

Shift the question to “What can I learn from this?”

It’s fascinating that when something bad happens, the human brain immediately goes into victim-mode and begins to question WHY it’s happening to them. This is because we all have an in-built negativity bias which becomes our default mode in any situation. However, you can train your brain to shift that question to “What can I learn from this?” Right now, pull out a piece of paper and write down the challenge you are facing. Then write down the question “What can I learn from this?” This will automatically shift your attention from focusing on the problem to looking for the hidden lessons. Challenge yourself to write down just one lesson to start with. However small it may appear to be, write it down. Then notice how a new idea comes to mind, and another, and just when you think you’re done, one more. Keep writing and keep learning. Free yourself from the struggle of resistance to what is, and embrace the learning. It’s your gift.

Build resilience (or thick skin!)

Being resilient means that you are able to pick yourself up when life throws you a curveball. It means you respect yourself enough to not allow the negative circumstances, behaviours or words of others affect you by taking up your time and energy. Resilience is a learned skill, and like any skill, the more you practice it, the better you get. Choose a resilience ritual such as taking 3 deep breaths or playing your favourite song to help you change your state. When you are about to go into a downward spiral of negativity, you can become aware of it and then do something to ground yourself instead.

Remember, it’s not about what happens, it’s about the meaning we give it so always choose positive and empowering meanings.

If you enjoyed this article and would like more life-changing tips and actionable strategies on how you can live a better life every day, come and join me on my social media pages, where you’ll also get access to free video content which I create for you.

To your happiness and well-being,

Saajidah

Saajidah Esat is passionate about empowering women to take responsibility for their physical and emotional well-being. She has authored a book on The Science of Happiness and has co-authored a book on Clean Eating. Spreading awareness on these 2 topics is what she spends most of her time doing. Her background is in teaching, and while working with young children, she discovered how stress and anxiety in the home deeply affects children. This is when she made it her mission to educate women and families on the importance of well-being, mindfulness, meditation, eating well, practicing self-love, emotional resilience and much more. Her philosophy on women is “You can’t pour from an empty cup, so always take care of yourself first.” Saajidah hopes to use her passion and energy to make an impact globally with her work in advocating happiness, well-being practices as well as encouraging female leadership, in order to balance the scales of inequality that still exist between men and women.
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