After his father passed away, James was devastated. However, he regrouped and carried on with the support of his mother, family, friends, and coach.He returned to playing professional tennis, and there were Mechanical parts fabrication services many more losses than wins. But he stayed focused and determined and progressively improved. He began playing the top professional players competitively, and he began winning against the top players. Then he once again started winning tournaments. After this long journey, James became one of the top players in the world.What can we learn from James Blake's journey through adversity to greatness? The following are three keys to making adversity work for you:If it Doesn't Kill You, It Makes you StrongerMany times we face adversities and say, "If only I can make it through this." It may be a sickness, loss of a loved one, job loss, etc. By remaining focused, determined, and concentrating on the positive, many times you can become stronger. Parents are now sheltering their children against any little adversity for fear it might be painful. I say allow your children to "grow up" and stop sheltering them from adversity. Teach them how to make adversity work for them. These adversities and the way they handle the adversities will define who they are and prepare them for challenges in the future. Some of our greatest business leaders, scientists, engineers, inventors, humanitarians, and sport heroes became the people they are because they overcame adversity.Adversity Often Develops Unknown Talents Once the door of adversity closes one opportunity to you, the door of greatness often opens another. James Blake, first during his sicknesses and then after, developed his awareness of helping other unfortunate people. Now he runs free tennis programs for disadvantaged children. Before his sickness, James was not known for his concentration and focus on the tennis court. After his sickness, he developed and became known for his mental toughness. When experiencing adversity, ask yourself, "What positive thing can come out of this?" Adversity Rallies Your Resources While James was sick, many resources arrived to help him. First, he had the time to step back to reflect on his life, goals, mission, and values. Second, he was able to obtain sound advice from family, friends, and others that he might not have been able to receive while traveling on the road. Third, his setbacks allowed him to take time to summon resources (advice, help, etc.) he would not have realized if he had been traveling non-stop. He made his "downtime" work for him.When adversity comes, don't avoid it; attack adversity with all your resources. The way you manage adversity will define who you are and ready you for future opportunities, because adversity can be your seed of greatness.
