“Of all the virtues we can learn, no trait is more useful, more essential for survival, and more likely to improve the quality of life than the ability to transform adversity into an enjoyable challenge.” Mihaly C., disciple of the “flow” concept

“The experienced mountain climber is not intimidated by a mountain—he is inspired by it. The persistent winner is not discouraged by a problem—he is challenged by it. Mountains are meant to be conquered; adversities are designed to be defeated; problems are sent to be solved. It is better to master one mountain than a thousand foothills.” William Arthur Ward, journalist

When I saw these two quotes back to back, I realized they had a message for me—and perhaps for you. They also reminded me of another wonderful quote by Picabo Street: In the face of adversity, remember that setbacks are just opportunities in disguise.”

What a wonderful gift to be able to turn adversity into an “enjoyable challenge” and to think of adversity as “opportunities in disguise.” It’s something I’m working on, but I still have a ways to go! Still, just thinking of adversity as a challenge helps me. Here’s why:

A challenge stretches us—when I reframe an obstacle in these terms, I feel energized! A challenge gets my juices flowing—it ignited my ingenuity. I start brainstorming with myself about how to overcome it.

A challenge makes us dig deep—when we encounter a challenge, we usually realize that a “business as usual” approach won’t work. We need to dig deeper than our usual responses to find a way forward.

A challenge marshals our resources—when we’re challenged, we often are inspired to survey and apply all the tools at our command. We have to get creative! And that’s always a good result—one that often bears rich fruit—outcomes that we can’t even imagine when we first tackle the thorny situation we’re facing.

A challenge sets us free—it stirs us up and pushes us out of our comfort zone. We’re impelled to explore and often, to reach out for help and guidance. And when we do this, we add to our toolkit of responses. We move beyond our habitual approaches into exciting new arenas.

In thinking about adversity, all the challenges I’m facing in bringing my play Dust of Egypt to Off Broadway spring to mind. There are a lot of them! Finding funding, finding a theater, getting reviews, keeping my cast and team together. Can I think of these as “enjoyable challenges”—that’s the question I need to ask myself.

How about you? What tools have you found work best when it comes to transforming adversity into opportunity? I’d love to hear about them as we all write on!

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