Resilience is often the x-factor that differentiates between mild and wild success. The stories of most of the wildly successful folks in our community have exhibit an extreme degree of resilience and we’ve come to believe that if our goal is to help our community achieve great outcomes we have to help build resources and knowledge around how one can become more resilient.

Juicy Jay

I get my resilience from my mother. Growing up I thought she was a superhero; like she could withstand and do anything. I always admired her hustle and get-the-job-done attitude. Read More>>

Kay Marion

I believe that most people are already connected to the innate human instinct inside of us that demands that we survive and persist. Society can attempt to beat it out of us but I think that if we allow ourselves to be still we can always find our way back to center. Read More>>

Ellen Busch

In (dis)Empowered, I wrote that my resilience comes from a mix of deep personal drive and the strength of my family’s unwavering support. My parents played a crucial role, encouraging me to never quit on myself—a message that built the foundation for my perseverance. Read More>>

Marisa Cuccia

Resilience, for me, comes from a deep-rooted belief that we are all students of life, constantly learning and evolving. Every experience we go through—good or bad—is an opportunity to gain wisdom. I hold onto that childlike curiosity and imagination, always thinking that something amazing is just around the corner. Even if it’s not today, I know it’s coming. Read More>>

Nora Fierman

Resilience is something I was born with, but it’s been burnt into me through years of being pushed, doubted, and tested. When I look back on my life, I see a series of failures, but not in a negative way. Each one forced me to make a decision: give up or keep going. I chose to keep going. Read More>>

Kristin Sapp

That’s a great question! Personally, I believe resilience is both inherent and developed through experiences, both positive and negative. I’ve always considered myself a resilient person, and I think that comes from being part of a family with a strong sense of optimism. Read More>>

Jack Johnstone

Resilience comes from living, from diving deep, and from strong role models.

My mum is a strong lady. She has an undying resilience that, growing up, did not even compute. It’s the kind of resilience that is so dependable and strong that you don’t even second-guess it. Once I began to grow into an adult, I realized how my mum’s resilience had kept her where she is, with the life that she wanted, despite all the challenges thrown at her. Re4ad More>>

Amanda Soler

My resilience probably stems from a combination of genetics and the way I was raised. But I will say this: my most profound lessons in resilience came when my middle daughter caught a cold before her first birthday—and stopped breathing. Read More>>

Patti Reen

Funny you should ask because I didn’t realize I was practicing resilience when I was challenged to find my path each time, it was just a stubborn resistance to having my life upended by circumstance. Read More>>

Jenna-mae White

I love what I do, and that’s what keeps me going, no matter how many rejections come my way. Every audition, every performance, every “no” feels like a step closer to the right “yes.” It’s not just about landing the role—it’s about the process, the growth, and the joy of creating something real, even if it’s just for a moment. Read More>>

William Ferchichi

It comes from the fear of not completing a task, the fear that forms inside the stomach and the soul. So to remove this fear, I continue to insist and work hard to transform fear into freedom and satisfaction. Read More>>

Grace Carol Bomer

A perfect question, since I am currently showing my paintings in an exhibition called RESILIENCE. Alternative spaces and galleries have come to the rescue of artists who have lost working space and artwork because of Helene’s devastating flooding. Read More>>

Danny Torres

Resilience wasn’t something I was born with—it was something life forced me to build. I’ve struggled with my mental health since I was a kid, and there have been so many moments where I wanted to give up completely. At my lowest points, when I truly felt like I couldn’t go on, there was always this tiny part of me that refused to let go. Read More>>

Rochelle Moffitt

Resilience is something you build, one challenge at a time. For me, resilience comes from experience, from navigating the highs and the brutal lows and realizing that no matter what, I can handle it.
Two divorces, career pivots, raising three kids, and rebuilding my life more times than I can count, each of these moments could have broken me. And sometimes it did feel like that. But I made a choice to keep going, to learn, to adapt. Read More>

Brandon Breaux

My introduction to resilience began in childhood, I worked from a very young age and faced numerous life challenges that would take the vast majority of people in a negative direction. By the grace of God, I was able to gain a perspective that showed me the choice of an excuse or a purpose. Read More>>

Mercury Stardust

I don’t know if I think of it as resilience. I think I want to – that I want to define that part of me as resilience, but I think in a lot of ways it’s just survival. When I was growing up, my family had a very strong idea of what it was to be a man. Read More>>

Rachael Warfield

vI believe I get my resiliency from my passion for my art and my music; it has imbued me with tenacity, and the ability to weather great highs and lows within my life and my career, alongside giving me the inspiration to continue creating amid all the seasons of my life. Read More>>

Jahala Walker

My resilience is rooted in a combination of personal and professional experiences, as well as my unique perspectives and strengths.
First of all, raising my son as a single mother and being a DV survivor has undoubtedly contributed to my resilience and who I am today. Motherhood often requires immense strength, adaptability, and emotional depth, and thriving past trauma takes immense courage. Read More>>

Isabel Varela

I never knew there was a word for everything I’d overcome—heartbreak, loss, depression, addiction, debt, near homelessness, and the constant need to start over. But looking back, resilience was the thread that held me together. It was the faint light at the end of the tunnel, reminding me to keep going. Read More>>

Deena Jonez

I get my resilience from my mom. She passed away from cancer when I was 21yrs old. When she was alive she was the one that pushed me in everything that she knew I had the talent to do. Whether it was martial arts, boxing, music, school whatever. Read More>>

Subrina Wood

How to Become Resilient
I once described my superpower as being resilient.
I was with a group of women of a certain age. All of us were retired or able to retire but hadn’t yet, all were accomplished professionally and all of us had faced serious personal setbacks of either divorce or death of a spouse.  Read More>>

Darin Maddox

As a child, I was an avid action movie watcher and comic book reader. There was something about the hero being down, and against all odds being able to pull him or herself up and continue to fight. It’s always stuck with me.

So when times get rough even as an adult I think back to those movies or those comics. If I have one breath left in my lungs, I will find a way to get up and move forward. Read More>>

Claudia Wyatt

I learned to be resilient from a young age. Your resilience if fueled by determination, capability, imagination and a curiosity. My parents had me late in life. They instilled on me to be fiercely independent. Which is good and bad, not to say that didn’t come with some baggage. Read More>>

Dj Bizzy Www.djbizzy.com

My mother had my sister whom is eleven years older then me when she was 17. She had a hard path being a single mother who was disowned by her family for deciding to have a baby out of wedlock. My Mom is literally the hardest working person I have ever met. She wasn’t always able to chase her dreams but she made sure that I had the capability to chase mine. Read More>>

Bear Belle

I draw resilience from the blood of my ancestors. I am here because they had the courage to endure. I come from a lineage of backcountry cowboys, queer activists, land stewards, pioneer shepherds, and farmers. Read More>>

Alicia Kaur Sam Kumar

Our resilience is deeply rooted in the love and strength we both experienced through the loss of our mothers. During their final days, we were their primary caregivers, and we learned so much from them—not just about compassion and perseverance, but about how to live with intention and grace, even in the face of hardship. They taught us that life can be unpredictable and difficult, but the most important things to never forget are a steadfast faith, kindness, and a commitment to always giving back. Read More>>

Rebecca Ditore

My resilience comes from a number of factors. In short, it comes from my drive to keep going and the love I have for and get from my family.

The long answer:

My dad has been a consistent support system, providing unwavering love, and guidance through every challenge I’ve faced in my life. I’ve turned to him in my weakest of moments and I’ve watched him and learned a lot from him on how to navigate hardship. Having him to lean on gave me strength so many times in my life. Read More>>

Ashley Look

I wish I could say my resilience was a habit of practice, or something other than being thrust into harsh and difficult circumstances. But in truth, it’s been a series of unfortunate events that’s required me show-up. I don’t think anyone chooses to walk towards hardship. In most instances, you don’t have a choice. You just do it out of necessity and somehow along the way it shapes you into the new person you become. Someone that has survived challenges, and carries it with them onto the next. Read More>>

Milana Lelovic

Resilience, for me, comes from experience—being in difficult situations, taking risks, and learning how to navigate uncertainty. I wasn’t naturally resilient; if anything, I’ve always been more prone to overthinking and expecting the worst. But the more I’ve faced challenges, the more I’ve realized that struggle is rarely the end of the story. Life moves forward, and so do you. Read More>>

S. Lindsay Graham

Where do I get my resilience?
I believe that I developed robust resilience through my struggles as a child, teenager, and then as a young adult with undiagnosed Autism coupled with a hefty desire to succeed rather than succumb to what often seemed like deficiencies despite high aptitude. … Later in life, once I learned as an adult that I had high-functioning autism (or, in those days, they called it “Asperger’s.”), I honed valuable skills by learning coping strategies and mastering overcoming obstacles through therapy and intensive study. Read More>>

Anthony Bisignano

Well I believe everyone has free will in life to determine the kind of life you want to lead. I never settled for anything in my life and have worked hard for everything I have. This comes from being told at a young age that “you can’t do that” or “it’s to hard to achieve” this propelled me to never stop until I reached my goals. I thank the lord for giving me this attitude towards life. Read More>>

Rachel “ray-d” Dowl

Blessings. Awesome Question. I Get My Resilience From Reality That Sometimes Causes Pain. The “Black Sheep” Of My Families (5 Different Last Names) Has Shaped Me From An “Ugly Duckling” Into A Swan. Different Personal Battles, Situations & People Who Didn’t Accept Me, Flaws & All, Have Taught Me Life Lessons. Read More>>

Kimberly Gonzalez

I would have to say that the skill of resilience is something that the unpredictability of life has give me the choice to develop. Growing up I desired perfection, order, answers, and had a very narrow and rigid worldview. I really struggled mentally and emotionally with the unpredictability and fleeting, delicate nature of life.  Read More>>

Karen Bernardi

I think we all have many stories and experiences we can look at and say we came out stronger from. And if you think about the definition of resilience, the capacity to withstand or to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness, I think a lot of people look at it as you had to of survived something or experienced something to build it.  Read More>>

Nick Mullikin

It doesn’t come from one place – it is like any source of inspiration, it is everywhere. If your goals are aligned with your purpose, it doesn’t feel like resilience, it just feels essential to continue on. I am just incredibly lucky to have found my purpose early on, even if I didn’t understand it. Read More>>

Militia Vox

I get it from that fire in my belly that loves to ruin stereotypes and create the world I want to see. I get off on defiance. But I push forward to learn, know myself and reach my spirit’s highest potential. I have to experience the exhilaration of music as often as possible- I’m an addict. I’m addicted to music, its creation, performance and being symbiotic with an audience. Read more>>

Jane Tiphayachan

My resilience stems from my 21-year battle with Lupus, a chronic autoimmune disease that has tested me in ways I never imagined but also instilled in me a deep gratitude for life and a warrior-like determination to fight every day. I’ve faced physical challenges like temporary paralysis, life-threatening flares, and intense recoveries, yet each obstacle has strengthened me into becoming the driven woman I am today, and taught me to embrace life’s difficulties as opportunities to turn my pain into purpose. Read More>>

Sarahi Pendergrass

Resilience isn’t something you’re born with—it’s built through experience. I come from a family of immigrants, and the journey from Honduras to a better life wasn’t easy. But facing those early challenges taught me how to adapt and keep going, even when things were tough. Resilience is like a muscle; the more you use it, the stronger it gets. Some people build it on their own, but having the right support makes all the difference.  Read More>>

Leslie Fhima

II grew up as a figure skater. When you skate, you fall—a lot. From the age of seven, I knew that the only way to succeed was to get up and try again. At the time, I had no idea that this simple lesson would stay with me and continue to shape me throughout the years. Skating taught me that resilience isn’t just about getting back up—it’s about pushing forward, no matter how many times you fall. Read More>>

Tocarra Owens

My resilience undeniably comes from God. His Word strengthens me, reminding me that He wouldn’t have given me these gifts if there wasn’t a purpose for them. I know that if God is within me, then failure isn’t an option. With Him, I have everything I need to fulfill my purpose. So, no matter what challenges come my way, I stand firm, knowing that His power is working through me! Read More>>

Emma Kelly

As a child, I was homeschooled with little structure but lots of independence to explore the world. This often put me in situations that required me to grow beyond my years and build strong resilience. As an adult, the ups and downs of running a small business further strengthened that resilience. Yet, the older I get, the less I rely on perseverance and instead strive for a life rooted in community, balance, and peace, where resilience is more collective than independent Read More>>

Rafael Plenty Wolf

I was born on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Home to the Oglala Lakota Nation. I am an enrolled member of the Oglala Lakota Tribe. My nation has and is surviving 500 years of colonization. Resilience lives in my DNA and was passed down by the matriarchs of my family. Read More>>

Meredith Heim-ziegler

I got my resilience from a variety of experiences throughout my life, but it really started from my time as an echocardiographer (cardiac ultrasonographer) in the city, where I quickly learned how to thrive in high-paced, high-stress environments. After six years of schooling, I spent just four years in the field before a shoulder injury—caused by overuse during the strain of COVID—forced me to retire early.  Read More>>

Adriana Chaux

I get my resilience from my family, which has always been strong and determined. They had to build businesses from scratch, facing all the challenges that come with it. From a very young age, I learned that everything is earned through effort and dedication, and that not everything always goes as planned. Read More>>

Rebekah Skeete

Hyacinth Skeete, my mother. She has been the picture and definition of “if you want something you’ve never had, you need to do something you’ve never done. And if your first attempt isn’t a win, continue to fight until the battle is won.” Read More>>