Are You Unstoppable?

by Shirley Cheng

Life is full of obstacles and challenges; you would be fooling yourself to think otherwise. Before we run into any obstacle, we first need to prepare ourselves for negative or challenging situations. We need a cushion on which we can fall back when we run into life's hardships.

Think about the acrobats performing in circuses: While they dazzle their audience with their skill and agility, nets below are ready to catch them if they ever fall. This is the kind of protection we need in life, so we will not become badly bruised once we crash down. This protection in life should be gratitude.

Appreciation is the essential net to cushion us from ordeals, from everyday obstacles to life's traumas.

Start everything with appreciation. Before you do anything new, say anything new, go anywhere new, meet anyone new, first appreciate your current state in every aspect. This acts like a cushion in the event that your actions return you to your original state. Therefore, if you are thankful for now, when you return to now, you will be thankful that you have not lost anything and will be extra grateful for everything you do gain. So it is vital to appreciate your situation at every stage of your life.

When you run into an obstacle, take the following steps to overcome it.

• Calm down so you can focus on what you want to achieve. Your problem requires more attention than your emotions, so give it the spotlight it deserves by putting your emotions aside.

What can you do to deal with your situation? Focus your energy on how to improve your situation, not on how you are reacting to it. What might be the best actions to take in order to overcome your obstacle? What positive outcome do you want? You must think outside your fear or negative emotions, so the first step to take is to calm down and put your feelings aside.

Emotions are powerful stuff, and if you do not use them correctly, they will turn your hill into a mountain. Many times, your feelings amplify your situation, making your problems seem too large to handle. Negative emotions, such as worry, doubt, and fear, can put your values, beliefs, and desires in the background, and will glue you to one spot, making you unable to think rationally.

Fear, for example, holds you back, prevents you from examining your problem, stops your thoughts and actions, and brings only unbalanced emotions and spirit. If you remove fear from your spirit, you will be able to examine your problem as is, and then you can identify the area that is giving you difficulty.

When I lost my eyesight at the age of seventeen, I first focused on making the most out of my situation and moving forward. I did not allow any negative emotions to control me. I knew that it was not the end of my life, and that being miserable would not help me in any way. In fact, it would make my situation worse.

I also knew that losing my eyesight could be a lot worse than simply that. With this thought, I was actually able to appreciate my situation. I simply did my best with what I had. So I became an author of three books at age twenty, and now at age twenty-six, I am an award-winning author with twenty book awards and motivational speaker, with more than seven published books, to touch others with humor, hope, and healing. I may not be able to paint or draw now, but I am still able to love the life I live.

• Fight negativity with negativity. Your situation could be a lot worse. Imagine something a lot worse than what you are going through now, and compare these situations--with which situation would you rather be dealing? Instead of losing a friend, you could have lost your entire family. Instead of breaking an arm, you could have broken a leg. Instead of losing your wallet, you could have lost your home to the subprime mortgage crisis that is shaking our economy.

• Fight negativity with positivity. Think about something that you are grateful for, that makes you happy, that you love, and then replace your negative thought with the positive one.

Whenever I run into a stressful situation, I think about my Heavenly Father and my beloved earthly mother, and I become so grateful and happy to have them that I no longer find my situation stressful; I am able to tolerate and endure the negativity so much better.

• Keep these points in mind as you face your obstacle:

a) There is always someone out there who is in a much worse situation than you, so be thankful for your own situation, for what you have and the people who are around you. While you may be frustrated paying your bills, there are many who are homeless and would be more than glad to own the keys to your house. While you are complaining about having a bad hair day, at least one person on Earth is losing all of his or her hair from receiving chemotherapy for the cancer that has spread.

b) You are not enduring alone. Millions and millions of people are suffering this very minute, from the starving in Africa and the homeless on the streets to the abused behind closed doors. And there may be people going through the same difficulty you are experiencing now.

c) Everything passes, and so will your current negative situation. When you are angry or upset, keep in mind that it will pass, so why waste your energy on something that will be gone tomorrow? It is true that a negative event, or any kind of event for that matter, can affect your entire life, but you cannot control life when it throws stones at you. You simply have to prepare for any challenges and make the most of what you have.

For instance, the tuberculin skin test I received when I was eleven months old caused the severe juvenile rheumatoid arthritis that will remain with me for the rest of my life. I know that life moves on no matter what happens to me, so it is best to move along with it and make the best of what I have. Would sulking and worrying about my life do me any good or turn my situation around?

• Have faith. Lastly, the most important shield you need to have deep in your heart to fight negativity is faith. The most vital kind of faith is unwavering faith in God. It is faith in God that has allowed me to move forward, one sure step at a time, as I know He is there guiding me, supporting me, and loving me. Keep your faith in God strong and sturdy, and your steps will be strong and sturdy in turn.

As you can see, you can be in control of what happens to you after negativity suddenly says "Boo!" in your face. You do not need to be the victim of your troubles. Let your troubles be victims of your faith and positivity. If you do not let problems stop you, they cannot and will not stop you. Only you have the power to stop yourself. It is completely up to you--do you want to be stopped or unstoppable? I made my decision a long time ago. How would you like to join me?