Why You Should Meet Adversity Head On

I recently read a story about Prince that inspired me to meet adversity head on. The music icon, who passed away April 21, 2016, made an impact on many with his creativity and ability to remake himself. This story, however, shows yet another side to him.

In 2007, rain plagued most of Super Bowl XLI. As halftime approached, the rain turned into a total downpour. The storm could have put a stop to what was meant to be an amazing experience and opportunity for Prince to perform before a huge audience.

Before the halftime show, the producer called Prince to ask if he still was willing to go on stage despite the deluge. Prince replied, “Can you make it rain harder?”

He then appeared on stage for an amazing 12-minutes, performing both original songs and covers. He ended with Purple Rain, a fitting conclusion to the halftime show. (Watch the show here.)

Positive Adversity Attitude

I love the attitude displayed by Prince in this story. I call it a Positive Adversity Attitude.

Faced with hardship, he didn’t say, “I don’t want to disappoint anyone, so I’ll make it work.” Or “I’d rather not go on stage…but I will.” He didn’t even say, “No. I refuse to take the risk of performing badly or getting wet.” Instead, he rose to the challenge and asked for even greater adversity.

Why would he ask for more challenging conditions? Because forcing yourself to perform your best when a situation is the worst helps you grow. It makes you level up. It pushes you past a place of comfort, so you rise and shine brighter than ever before. It allows you to realize your potential.

One time I had to give a presentation in a tent. The day was hot and windy. The tent was overflowing with attendees. I did not have a mic. The conditions were not ideal.

I could have fussed, complained, and decided it didn’t much matter how I performed since those in the back couldn’t hear me or see the screen onto which my PowerPoint was projected. The others were busy wiping their sweating brows. I also could have refused to speak in those conditions.

Instead, I took off my jacket, spoke loudly and projected my voice to the back of the tent, joked when the wind blew over the screen and I waited while volunteers set it back up so I could continue, and continually described my slides for those who couldn’t see them clearly.

I sold a ton of books at that event, and many people thanked me for the information I offered them.

I don’t know that I would have asked to speak under more difficult conditions, but by going on stage despite the conditions I learn a thing or two about staying composed, keeping people at the back engaged, and dealing with surprises.

Grow Through Adversity

I grew from that experience. I leveled up in my speaking performance and my approach to adversity.

You can grow through adversity, too. If you maintain an “I-can-do-it” attitude and bring everything you have to the situation, you will discover that you can handle more than you thought. Not only that, you can do it well.

Later, you’ll know you have the ability to demonstrate high-performance in similar situations—even when confronted with a less-difficult or more-difficult situation. And the knowledge that you can do so will spill over into other areas of your life as well.

There’s no need to seek out adverse situations. When faced with them, however, bring out that Positive Adversity Attitude, and provide the best show of your life.

Have you grown from adversity? Tell me about the experience in a comment.

Photo courtesy of alphaspirit.