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.
Eden Morris
I believe resilience comes from knowing that we can survive way more than we realize. Personally, all of the moments in my life when I’ve faced fear, when I’ve failed and carried on, when someone has told me I can’t do something but I try anyway… Read more>>
MICHAEL RAANAN, MBA, EA
I’ve been for fortunate to have experienced many challenges in life, both personally and professionally, which have shaped many aspects of my life including building up my resilience. For example, before starting my own businesses, I worked at the IRS and had the unique experience of working directly with thousands of business taxpayers. Read more>>
Wendy Jones
I realized that I have been drawn to stories of human resilience my entire life. As a kid, I would read books about athletes challenging their limits and accomplishing amazing feats and people recovering from terrible accidents or health battles. At the root of that was my curiosity about what makes some people thrive post challenge and other crumble. Read more>>
LaTonya “LadyDiva “ Washington
My resilience comes from being a hardworking woman, a wife , a mother, a business owner and how to balance it all . Life expectations can easily overwhelm us mentally, emotionally, spiritually and physically but by the grace of God I strongly believe all things are possible and he’ll never put more on me than I can bear. Read more>>
Lauren Franks
I find my resilience is deeply rooted to my belief in the universe. Despite challenges, setbacks, and moments of doubt, the universe consistently redirects my focus back to jewelry, reaffirming my purpose. I’ve learned to trust the signs and find strength in knowing we are all exactly where we are supposed to be at each moment throughout our life’s journey. Read more>>
Louis Lee
Resilience is an age old challenge for the business minded in general. Persistence and Resilience are inter changable. The desire to finish what one started. I continue to drive with the single minded purpose of succeeding in my career choice. It’s so convenient to change the flavor of the week with a different objective when the going gets tough. If your able to over come this obstacle and not give up the rewards will be at hand. Read more>>
Katy Pritchett
Hearing “no” over and over again makes you learn to have some tough skin! Knowing you believe in yourself and your professional skills and creative expertise is essential to maintain resilience. If there is a problem, troubleshoot it until it is fixed. Read more>>
Tess Israelson
Resilience comes from starting over. I’ve had to start over so many times in my life. I’ve felt devastated, broken and exhausted by life’s challenges. Studying energy work and meditation gave me tools to move through life more seamlessly. I began with setting boundaries. Eliminate people and belief systems that no longer serve your highest light. Read more>>
Beckah Jackman
As a working single mother and business owner my resilience has come from a combination of sources and experiences. Being a lone parent and sole provider, giving up has never been an option. Just this past May I celebrated 10 years in business, 10 years of wins, losses, financial hardships, a cross country move, and everything in between. Read more>>
Ashley Williams
I listen to a gospel record by New Direction titled “Hold Out” which reminds me “trouble don’t last always, joy comes in the morning”. I remember that tough times will eventually turn into better days. Read more>>
Amy Riley
I believe that we all have the ability to grow and develop our resilience. Here are some ways I have grown and practiced my resilience.- – Getting really clear on what I would love to have happen. When we have a strong and super clear bigger-picture commitment, that commitment calls us to step up. It has us doing things that we might not really want to do in the moment and it takes us out of our comfort zone. Read more>>
Jul Koehler
I get my resilience from my passion, dreams, and goals. A knowing has always tugged inside me, telling me to keep going. And it’s still tugging. Also, the outside support of friends is very important, or family. What has helped me is finding a friend on the same path who becomes your accountability buddy. Read more>>
King P
Think I’ve always had it because I believe the dreams I’ve seen about myself so it’s difficult for me to not be resilient. However, one the earliest life events I remember playing optimist tackle football. The head coach needed to make some cuts. Read more>>
Neha Assar
I get my resilience from personal experiences. Overcoming past challenges have helped me build resilience and have taught me how to handle adversity affectively. I have a strong support system with family and friends that have shown so much love. I do my best to maintain a positive mindset and stay focused on my goals. I also do my best to adapt to changing circumstances. Read more>>
Beth Rudden
My resilience comes from 1 – knowing I belong to a community I am a leader in, 2- knowing I have done extraordinary things in my life, and 3- having experience in asking my community to help when needed. I believe that resilience is a lot like how Brene Brown describes hope – as a cognitive function vs an emotion. Read more>>
Jessica Morissette
Building resilience, much like constructing anything else, is a gradual process. Similar to organic social media marketing, it requires time, consistency, and effort. Entrepreneurship presents numerous challenges. Failures are inevitable, and things don’t always go as planned. It’s an ongoing journey of education and adaptation. Read more>>
Jon Hechtkopf
Growing up in a competitive environment with two older brothers and athletic friends, I was always the underdog. That feeling still drives me every day, pushing me to prove myself and make my loved ones proud. My resilience comes from learning through failures—you just have to keep going and grow from every experience. Read more>>
Sasha lee Perez
My resilience is definitely a trait I have inherited from my mother’s side of the family. Growing up something that always stood out to me was my mother’s determination to succeed. She overcame any obstacles that ever crossed her path and always had a thrive to reach her goal no matter what that goal was. She is beyond resilient and made a very big impression showing me that anything could be accomplished no matter how difficult it may seem. Read more>>
Lily Georgia
Iv’e always been a hardworking and independent individual. through different kinds of setbacks and situations I have been able to gain a thicker skin. My faith in God has enabled me to have a more stronger approach to those kind of setbacks. My mother also has taught me a great work ethic and our favourite saying ‘let’s do this bad thing’ helps to ease my mind in times of anxiety and teaches me a way of facing things head on and not leaving until the last minute. Read more>>
Jimmy Marcheso
In my youth my resilience came from a need to be seen. As I’ve gotten older it’s come from the rush of trying new things, failing and pushing myself to grow. Read more>>
Jessica La
Much of my resilience comes from my passion for art and faith. Growing up as a first generation Asian American, my career path was not a preferable choice. But at a very young age, I strongly felt that I had a gift in the arts and needed to pursue it. I was discouraged by many and endured a lot of self doubt. However, isn’t it worth fighting for what you’re passionate about? Otherwise, what’s the point? My passion and faith still continues to drive my resilience. Read more>>
Jacobo Laya Jr
I have always been inspired by my Grandfather and Father, who both brought their families beyond their means to make their future greater than theirs, and I could not be any different from them. Navy gave me even more resilience as I serve for 20 years. Read more>>
Bonnie Root
Resiliency is a beautiful human quality. I think the strength of our resiliency is related to a sense of purpose, our sense of hope, and our connection to other humans. Mine I believe is directly linked to artistic expression. As a child I felt such a strong connection to acting and music and utilized those things as a means to process difficult and BIG emotions. Read more>>
Anne Marie Anderson
I am a believer in desirable adversity. I am the youngest child of five and the only girl. With four older brothers I learned early in my childhood to compete. Whether it was playing in the backyard with my brothers, standing out academically or for fighting for playing time on the court, I learned to contest comfortably. Read more>>
Ivan Arroyo
Resilience comes from perseverance. At a very young age I was put in situations which made me a very strong person mentally. My father passed away when I was only 12 years old. At the age of 13, I was already working while most of my friends were playing outside. When I wasn’t working, I was taking care of my little sister while my Mom was at work. Read more>>
Melissa Gutierrez
My resilience is sustained by my ability to connect with hope and the vision of greatness I hold for myself. Even as a very young witch, I have always heard the voice of my guides/ancestors/instinct/higher self calling me forward. Whenever I played in a park the trees, the wind, the sky and every aspect of nature would I affirm what I was feeling. When I had no reason to believe in anything other than the difficult circumstances that I grew up, in those voices were there telling me to keep pushing for growth and a way forward. Read more>>
Chris Crofut
I got my resilience over time. Just a build up of everything that has happened in my life. Everything from people I’ve met, family members, as well as events whether they were good or bad, people I’ve lost, people that have come and gone in my life, mistakes I’ve made and learned from.. All of these things have helped create the man you see today. Read more>>
Gail Freis
Resilience comes from decision making. You DECIDE you are going to recover, overcome or push through whatever is occurring that is knocking you down. That doesn’t mean that you don’t fall down often, cry in your car on the way to work, have to go hide in your office away from people till the rage, 20,000lb weight or the wave of uncontrollable pain that comes out of nowhere gradually dissipates. Read more>>
Mareya Ibrahim-Jones
My family immigrated to the US from Egypt when I was two years old. They left their loved ones, their culture, and everything that was familiar behind in search of a better life for us, despite the urging of my grandparents for them to stay. My dad tells me they had about $100 that was supposed to cover rent, food and all expenses until my father could find work. My mother was a pharmacist and my father had his MS in Agriculture. Read more>>
Carolyn and Madelyn Dean-Mautz and Kurpgeweit
Mady and I (Carolyn) have been making films since our early high school years. After completing our first feature during senior year, Mady headed to LA to study film, while I pursued screenwriting in Washington. During those years, we collaborated on several short films. Read more>>
Leodis Smith
Without sounding like too much of a jerk., my resiliance comes from looking the abyss in the face. For me, like a lot of people in the last… let’s say the existance of humanity, I imagine, This is no “woe is me” thing as much as a “Sometimes you got things how they are.” Read more>>
Mark Gasparro
Resilience, I believe, is cultivated through diverse life experiences and embracing challenges. From a young age, sports taught me discipline and the drive to excel. This foundation of striving to be the best was further tested when I moved from Ireland to the UK at thirteen, choosing to continue my education in Ireland despite the distance from my family. Read more>>
Stephen Morgan
I would say it’s not a singular trait, but rather a combination of things. Being physically active has definitely kept me sane. I don’t frequent the gym much anymore, but I do regularly enjoy hiking and sports. Nature is my spiritual refuge, so when I’m hiking or biking it’s a duel threat in also allowing me time to recharge emotionally. I value time away from work and find it equally as important for a balanced life. Read more>>
karin Horen
At the age of 50 my mum passed away from a heart attack. I was 25 years old and that left a huge scar and trauma. I had to say goodbye to someone who was such a significant part of my life. She struggled a lot as a wife and mum, as my dad served in the military for 16 years and then we moved to Africa, had to escape a revolution and she found herself raising my brother and I on her own while my dad continued living in Nigeria for another 8 years after we left. Read more>>
Christena Garduno
Resilience on a personal level is a prerequisite for effective leadership in challenging circumstances, and mine comes from multiple life experiences throughout my career. I make self-care a priority by engaging in practices like exercise and meditation that keep me both physically and psychologically fit, while giving me a safe and consistent space outside of work and any trying situations. Read more>>
Rachel Emmanuela Frost
Resilience is formed by facing any sort of challenge and coming out the other side. Life gives you opportunities to develop your resilience every time something happens that is outside out of your control – and it’s often the moments that are incredibly painful, or seem impossible to survive, that teach us the most. Read more>>
Terry Stolz
I think my resilience comes from necessity, a willingness to take risks and a strong desire to succeed. I love proving the doubters wrong. Never satisfied with success for long and always a bit unsettled I’ve always strived for more. I like to experiment, stretch my boundaries, dissect and evaluate what’s working what’s not. Read more>>
Tina Hogan Grant
I got my resilience from making bad choices and endless mistakes in my younger years and growing from them. In my early twenties, I found my life being dictated by an addict. Why did I let this happen? because of living in fear. Read more>>
Vanessa Dahbour
As a young designer at a private fashion school, I quickly realized that student loans were going to burn a hole in my pocket for years to come and decided to drop out of formal education and learn on the job. I supported myself designing for Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie and Forever 21 as well as a lot of freelance for 15 years. Read more>>
Josefina Delaveau Eguiluz
Well, I get resilience from the bad experiences I had in the past. Each of those situations, while incredibly difficult at the time, served as a crucible for my character. Whether it was overcoming personal struggles or navigating professional challenges, I found myself standing at the precipice of adversity, with no option but to be resilient. Read more>>
Myriam Lopez
In acting, my resilience comes from a mix of experiences both on and offset. Every audition ‘no’ teaches me something new, pushing me to keep going. I find strength in diving deep into characters, facing my own fears head-on, and emerging stronger each time. And it’s the amazing support from fellow actors that keeps me going, knowing we’re all in this together. Read more>>
Alexandria Harper
Sitting on my desk is a pencil holder. On that holder is an image of a cactus and the definition of the word resilience: the capacity to withstand or to recover quickly from difficulties. It’s not an overly pretty design by my standards. It’s simply made—a graphic printed and glued to a recycled candle holder. I received it from the host at a women’s retreat I attended with my mom. Read more>>
Umna Khan
I’ll start with this: resilience does not mean getting “over” it. It’s the ability to get “through” it. There’s a misconception about resilience that suggests to be deemed resilient, you must have the ability to get “over” something without being affected at all. I probably thought the same thing once upon a time, but then life happened. Read more>>
