HOW GIANT ARE YOU? Wk 7: What we get so badly wrong about perseverance

Perseverance is a core trait of resilient people.

But it's tempting to think of perseverance in terms of hard-headedness. Grit. Stickability. Grind. Head down, no quit, no surrender.

In the same way we think of being resilient as rock-like, hard to wear down, strong, or stoic.

These perspectives are not entirely wrong. The issue with them is they're problematic:

They don't allow for the flexibility we need to adapt to adversity.
They don't leave enough room for the vulnerability we need to ask for help when we need it.

Being bullish & determined can cut us off from being kind & patient – with ourselves & with others.

They can make resilience the goal instead of the strategy.

They can make the outcome more important than the process, leaving us feeling hasty, driven & in a hurry for a resolution, instead of fully present & curious.

They demand a level of effort that is unsustainable whenever our adversity refuses to bend to our will (willpower is a finite muscle that soon expires daily).

In other words, these stories we tell ourselves about perseverance & resilience are nowhere near nuanced enough.

Probably has a lot to do with what we typically believe it means to be strong (which could also do with a big makeover in western culture…).

So if you'd like to discover a more powerful, humane, sustainable – more GIANT – perspective on perseverance that leaves you feeling bigger inside than life is outside, do join me for my weekly Clubhouse on Thursday, 8pm BST/3pm EST.

One hour of chat on perseverance, including Q&A. Another topic next week.

On the device you use to join us, click this link to my Clubhouse room We are GIANT! to take part – https://www.clubhouse.com/event/m26gno9r.

Because if we don't get resilience strategies like perseverance right, our limiting beliefs about it can leave us feeling smaller than the challenge, change & complexity we face…

#ResilienceCoaching
#WeAreGIANT!
#BiggerInsideThanLifeIsOutside
#LifeSkillsInTroubledTimes
#Perseverance

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