In our building blocks of success series, we tackle the various foundational blocks we believe are essential for success. Resilience is near the top of the list, because pursuing greatness almost always means you will face losses, mistakes and tough times along your journey. The ability to bounce back is so critical and we hope the stories below will inspire you to dig deep and discover more of your own resiliency.

Emmitt Rodgers

I’ve always loved music and film. I’ve had a camera in my hands since I was young elementary school age. This has been my anchor and my one constant in life – throughout all my struggles. And just one month before my parents split, I began directing my first feature film. The most daunting task of my life thus far. Little did I know, the next year and a half would prove otherwise. Read Moe>>

Mallory Caloca

Growing up, I personally struggled establishing a deeper understanding of creativity and communicating this with others. In other words, drawing and painting made all the sense to show what I was thinking and feeling and being constantly vulnerable without realizing in the moment. I navigated any joy, sadness, trauma, hope, etc by putting something on a blank canvas (perhaps the most daunting creative task imaginable). All the efforts done prepared me for failures or more like ongoing lessons to learn and grow from. Read More>>

Mark Tullen

My family and I came to the United States in the early 2000s with barely any money. Homeless for almost a year and only with a few hundred dollars in our pocket, my parents worked tirelessly to get us to the west coast where one of our cousins lived. I fully believe in the mantra that if there is a will, there is a way. The only way I look to move is forward and up. I’ve experienced actual hunger and what the bottom can feel like so I will always fight for not only me, but for my family and for those I love. Read More>>

Stephanie Rabesa

From childhood to adulthood, I have faced many different challenges from body image to feeling my own worth due to many different experiences. I’ve been fortunate and blessed to have been brought up in a time that was very different from what we seem to see now. A hardworking father who served once in Vietnam and an equally hardworking stay-home mom raised both my sister and I, in a town located in Cape Cod. Over the course of the years I’ve had a variety of friends along the way who were in no coincidence exactly the people I needed at the time of each phase of my life. And a life that my Dad says I could probably write a book about. But…I’m pretty sure everyone could say that. Read More>>

Pardis Bakhtiari

My resilience is rooted in lived experience—particularly the experience of navigating multiple worlds as both an artist and a scholar, a migrant and a woman, someone who has moved across languages, cultures, and institutional frameworks. Relocating from Iran to the United States to pursue a Ph.D. in a second language, within a vastly different academic system, required me to cultivate a deep inner strength—not as a singular act of triumph, but as a sustained practice of adaptability, reflection, and self-definition Read More>>

Aallyah Wright

Resilience is part of who I am because of where I’m from. I draw my resilience from my roots in the Mississippi Delta—a beautiful place filled with real challenges. It’s a region where grit and grace coexist. The soil is some of the most fertile in the country—same with the stories, the music, and the spirit of the people. It’s the birthplace of the blues, and that sound didn’t come from comfort—it came from pain, perseverance, and pride. Growing up surrounded by rich history, culture, and people who know how to survive and thrive regardless of the circumstances has profoundly shaped me. This environment teaches you to keep your head held high, no matter what is thrown your way. I take those lessons with me in everything that I do and everywhere that I go. Read More>>

Cira Raab

Where do I get my resilience from? Honestly, it’s a mix of stubbornness and a deep belief that I don’t have to be defined by the way other people treat me. Every time I’ve been underestimated or treated poorly, it sparks this feeling of, ‘I can do better — and I will.’ I see it as motivation to prove, mostly to myself (and maybe a little bit to the universe), that I can thrive without needing anyone else’s permission. I try to turn it into fuel — a reminder that their behavior says more about them than it ever could about me. Read More>>

Tyler Brewer

I think my resilience comes from a mix of family influence and an inner drive that’s always pushed me to keep moving forward. I grew up around entrepreneurs, my dad ran a plumbing company, my mom owned a chain of bridal shops, and my grandpa was an auctioneer. So from an early age, I saw firsthand what it meant to work hard, take risks, and adapt when things didn’t go as planned. Read More>>

Nate Jones

Resilience, isn’t quite learned, it’s formed and refined. Resilience, becomes a part of you during the hardest chapters, the loneliest moments, the time in between one smiling photo and another. Show me a person that is resilient without conflict and I will reveal a person who knows not yet just how resilient they can become. This life is incredible and wonderful and a brief beautiful experience, but it is also harrowing, hard, and at times, can seem impossible to bear. Resilience, is the becoming you on the other side of those moments of barrage and bombardment.  Read More>>

Adora Bao

Honestly, I think my resilience was born out of necessity. I became a teen mom, dropped out of college, and spent years in survival mode, on my own, with no safety net. It was sink or swim, and because I had my child depending on me, I knew I had to swim no matter what. There wasn’t anyone coming to save me, so I became the one who saved me.

I come from a Hmong refugee family where survival was the default setting. But I’ve always craved more than just getting by. I wanted to live fully, express myself, and build something that felt real and mine. Even when life was hard, I never stopped creating. Art was my anchor, my escape, and my compass. A lot of my resilience comes from that little girl in me who believed in magic, who clung to her sketchbook and dreamed of a softer, brighter life. Read More>>

 Erin Gunther

My resilience comes from a lifetime of learning how to pivot, persevere, and stay true to myself—even when it’s hard. I played professional soccer in Sweden for eight years, and living overseas opened my eyes to different cultures and parts of myself I hadn’t fully explored. During that time, I entered into a relationship with a woman, which caused friction with my family. Their lack of acceptance was painful, and it added a whole other layer of emotional resilience
I had to build—staying grounded in who I am while still trying to navigate my life and career. Read More>>

Leslie J Cottrell

Challenging personal and professional periods have served to hone my resilience. Resilience comes from a deep-rooted sense of purpose, faith, and the desire to meaningfully impact the people around me. It’s not just that I’ve overcome obstacles that have felt insurmountable. It is about seeing those obstacles as personal and spiritual growth opportunities. My faith, a cornerstone of my resilience, reminds me that no matter the hardship, I am never alone. I draw strength from knowing that every setback is one aspect of a much bigger picture, preparing me to become stronger and more solid in my faith. Read More>>

Sukaina Abbas

My resilience is drawn from my roots and responsibilities—from the deep well of strength South Asian women cultivate in silence. We work to turn expectations into fuel, drawing strength from my faith, my role as a mother, and my desire to create something that outlives me. Resilience, for me, is not a loud roar—it’s a steady rhythm, like a heartbeat.

My journey is rooted in authenticity and driven by a quiet, but unwavering determination to create not just beauty, but meaningful impact—for myself, my family, my community, and my country’s untapped potential in gemology. Read More>>

Wanyi Li

When I think about resilience, I realize it’s something that’s been built slowly through different stages of my life—physically, emotionally, and mentally. My earliest understanding of resilience came from physical training. I started dancing as a child and later began studying traditional Chinese opera in middle school. Years of rigorous training taught me that resilience can look like muscle memory—like the body learning how to push through discomfort and return stronger. When I had injuries or vocal strain, I learned to care for my body, but also the patience and consistency. Read More>>

ISABEL

I believe life prepares you to be resilient. The people around you, the situations you go through, and the moments when you have no choice but to keep going – that’s where resilience is built. It’s something that grows little by little, like a muscle. And over time, you realize you can handle more than you thought. I feel incredibly grateful because my parents led by example. They gave me the tools, the love, and the freedom to figure things out on my own—even when it was hard. That shaped me more than anything. Read More>>

Kegan Gill

On a cold January morning, I was strapped into an F/A-18E Super Hornet, flying a training mission off the Virginia coast. A young fighter pilot, living my dream. One moment, I was in control; the next, everything went wrong. A catastrophic malfunction forced me to eject at 695 miles per hour, nearly the speed of sound. It became the fastest survived ejection in naval aviation history.
The violence of the ejection shattered my body, breaking bones, damaging nerves, and altering my brain in ways I couldn’t yet comprehend. I was pulled from the icy Atlantic waters by a helicopter crew, battered, barely breathing, and hanging onto life by a thread. Read More>>

Ada Ari

I didn’t find my purpose all at once — it revealed itself in layers. I’m a Nigerian immigrant, a mom of two, and for a long time, I was doing what many of us are taught to do: climb the corporate ladder, check the boxes, play it safe. But something always tugged at me — a quiet frustration that my kids were growing up with so little access to their cultural roots. I wanted them to see themselves in books. To hear their native languages. To feel proud of where they come from. Read More>>

Monique Bell

I’ve had a rough journey in life, often making not-so-smart decisions along the way. Everything changed on November 13, 2015, when I was hit by a double-decker bus in San Francisco. I woke up two days later in the hospital, facing the aftermath of a serious accident: I broke my back, both arms, six ribs, suffered a brain injury, and was impaled by a large rod in my thigh.

The healing process in the hospital marked the beginning of my resilience journey. I had to overcome numerous challenges just to heal. Once I left the hospital, I faced the daunting task of building a new life from scratch amidst many obstacles. Over time, I kept pushing through and eventually started a venture called Revamp People. This experience has brought me invaluable lessons and helped me grow in ways I never knew were possible. Read More>>

Katelyn Roman

I grasped the concept of resilience at an early age. At the time, I did not understand how one day I went from having a complete family to being raised by a single mother the next. Despite our circumstances, I saw the resilience in my mother through her hard work and determination to provide for my brother and me, and it was inspiring. From that moment on, I knew I had to give my best too, so at eight years old, I set my mind on my dream of becoming an artist. Read More>>

Richard Schultz

I believe my resilience comes from a combination of life experience, adaptability, and passion. Spending over two decades in the IT industry taught me how to handle pressure, solve problems quickly, and navigate constant change. Transitioning into photography—a completely different world—was a leap of faith, but it also reinforced the importance of persistence and embracing challenges as opportunities to grow. Read More>>

 Beth Carroll

My resilience wasn’t something I was born with, it was built over time, shaped by the people I love and the curveballs life threw at me. Growing up, I watched my parents navigate some really tough seasons. When I was in high school, my mom, already in her 40s, decided to become a Presbyterian pastor. She went back to school while raising two teenagers and supporting my dad through a major career upheaval. His corporate division shut down and he lost his job. He didn’t fall apart though. Instead, he rebuilt his career and began again. Watching them showed me that resilience isn’t just about surviving. It’s about choosing to rebuild, even when it’s scary. Read More>>

Dana McIntosh

My resilience comes from watching my mom get up early in the mornings to catch a train and bus to go to work, and do the same to come home.

She was divorced and had two daughters to raise. We went from living in a house to apartments then finally to her owning her own home. She was promised a promotion if she furthered her education. She received a 4.0, didn’t get the promotion. Read More>>

Sharline Cordner

I am Sharline Cordner. My Resilience comes from a summary of challenges, so my faith, humility, service toankind and determination of ‘keep going no matter what comes’ and lived experience, which I view as ‘fertilizer or manure for growth’, I love nature and greenery, one of my hobbies displaying my healthy plants in bloom, inspite of dry season, lack of nurturing or even too much water 😆. Read More>>

Lil Smizzy

Growing up, I was always very observant of what everyone had going on around them. So ultimately, my motivation came from witnessing other people’s downfalls or tough moments, then envisioning how I would rise up from that same or similar setback. I learned early on that sometimes you need to fail to succeed and sacrifice to get to your success.

I’m resilient because I believe that if you’re not learning from your failures, then you’re losing. You’re losing the opportunity to bounce back even better and stronger, simply based off of what you learned from failing. I didn’t have anyone to pick me up and hand me the things that I desired so I had to learn how to get them myself. Read More>>

Vitalie Budaca

My resilience comes from a combination of my past experiences, my family, and my refusal to accept limits. Before my accident, I was a marathoner and a builder—two things that required endurance, patience, and grit. When I became an SCI survivor, those qualities didn’t disappear; they just had to be redirected. My wife and daughter give me purpose, my passion for building keeps me moving forward, and the SCI community reminds me that I’m not alone. I also believe that resilience isn’t just about bouncing back; it’s about adapting, learning, and proving to yourself that every step forward, no matter how small, is a victory. Read More>>

Ambassador Grace B. Charrier

I believe resilience is in my DNA, as I have encountered many challenges in my life.

The most recent acid test was when I was diagnosed with Stage 3 Triple-Negative breast cancer. Shocking as I had no symptoms whatsoever.

I still go through the fear of a recurrence though, which is normal for so many of us that have faced cancer. Nevertheless, we continue to have a positive mindset and endeavor to remain in the present. Read More>>

Eman Farooq

In a dynamic world that’s constantly shifting and changing around us, it’s easy to lose yourself in the chaos. And quickly you’ll come to realize that every single person you’ll ever come across has their own layered, complex life that they’re living and experiencing at the same time as yours.
I derive my resilience from a deep awareness that everyone is quietly navigating their own intricate battles. This understanding fosters a sense of humility and perspective— Read More>>