Victory over Trials

I found this excerpt below in my email this morning: Come get that inspiration!

The need to weather hard times is constantly part of our business and personal lives. Do you ever think of these hurdles in a positive light? The next time you are faced with opposition, instead of looking at it as a source of anxiety, view it as an opportunity! Can you apply what you have learned to other areas of your life? Will this experience make you stronger and wiser next time around? Sometimes the worst and most painful experiences are the ones that help us grow the most. Having a positive attitude can deflate even the scariest situation. Overcoming adversity can help you achieve the extraordinary!
 

This brings to mind my senior thesis for high school. We all had to type this paper in order to graduate that was at least 25 pages in length. But it wasn't typing a long paper that was the major victory in the end, it was the process of finding a computer to actually type the damn thing. I must have used about 5 different computers and typewriters (friends/library) in order to put the paper together. Can you imagine using a freakin' typewriter from the library? First I had to humble myself to ask to use other people's computers because I didn't have one. Second I had to coordinate crazy schedules in order to fit the timing of when they weren't using their own computer. Even though I got like a B-/C+ on the paper itself; I knew deep down that no one had gone to greater lengths to actually finish the paper. This is the thing about schools they only grade the finish product which is a BIG mistake. What about the process it takes to complete a project/paper?  We become who we are based on the grind, the actual work we put into the finished product.

That was the formative years 7th-12th grade that molded me into a certified grinder. I didn't have much of the same resources as some of my peers, but I knew there was always a way. I ended up typing 25 pages straight at my homies house, started at 6pm and finished at 6am...dropped the paper off in my P.J.s. I think some of my teachers always thought that I wasn't giving enough or that I half-assed things and didn't use my full potential. Perhaps they were right in some cases. But sometimes we can't see behind the scenes. I had to get it done whenever, however I could...which is something that comes from having your back against the wall. You either figure out a way or you fold.

The problem in life is Comfort is a luxury most of us CAN'T afford. Most of us never see opportunities because we're waiting for the perfect package that seems easy, something we can readily handle in our present situation. Opportunities are usually laced with difficulties, the unexpected and require us to grow and to stretch. I didn't get an A on the paper, but I learned that I only need the will and the desire to act on that will to make it happen, and the rest will take care of itself. If I would have waited for my own computer, I would have been waiting until I was a senior at USC, when I bought my own. I made through highschool and all through College using probably around 50 computers in total to complete all my assignments. And while I'm not a master by no means on the computer, I do consider myself masterful at gettin' ish done by all means possible.

P.S. For one week, try cooking without a microwave, or try catching the bus/catching rides with friends, or set a small weekly allowance for a week and stick to it, if you blow it all in one day living the life...improvise. Creativity and Flexibility are usually born out of trials and limitations. Who knows what you might create along the way.

Shak

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