Stories & Perspectives on Resilience Building

We’ve shared some incredible stories of resilience below that we hope will help you on your journey towards building up your resilience.

Monica Theophilus

I get my resilience from my mother. My mother had me at a young age, but that did not stop her from pursuing a higher education and a well-paying job to take of me and my siblings. She would come from work and prepare dinner; once she got us settled and assisted with homework, she would take the time out to study. Even overworked and exhausted, she pursued her dreams and inspired us to do the same. Read more>>

Narges Poursadeqi

My resilience finds its roots in my profound love for art and an unwavering commitment to sharing vital narratives. It has been tested by the adversities imposed by the Iranian government, where artistic expression confronts severe restrictions. As a refugee forging a new beginning in the United States, these challenges have been pivotal in shaping the person I am today. My exploration of fine arts, coupled with deep inquiries into culture, religion, and women’s rights, has played a crucial role in both my artistic evolution and personal growth. Read more>>

Sea Zeda

My childhood and early career instilled diverse forms of resilience. The constant relocations stemming from my father’s role as a Naval Commander influenced my ability to easily adapt my whole life and rebuild in new states and countries. This adaptability proved favorable in the initial stages of my professional journey. I relocated from Japan to NY to earn a BFA from Pratt Institute’s rigorous textiles and apparel program. Read more>>

Andreea Borcea

I’m a first generation American. Both my parents escaped a Communist dictatorship and came to this country with very little. Seeing them rebuild their lives in a new environment and become successful really inspired me to never take anything for granted and to work hard. Life will always throw surprises your way, but I strongly believe that luck is the intersection of preparation and opportunity. I dedicate my time to learning so that I’ll always be prepared for anything life throws at me. Sometimes even seemingly negative situations can be transformed into blessings in disguise. Read more>>

Marie Zulmie Lorminey

The resilience that resides within me comes from two main sources. My culture is the primary source of my resilience. I am Haitian. I was raised by Haitian immigrant parents. My mother taught her six children the resilient history and character of Haitian people. My mother always reminded us that we have the blood of revolutionaries in our blood so we can conquer anything. That reminder always gave me an internal power source to draw from whenever the thought or feeling of doubt settled in. Read more>>

Regina Edwards

Life often weaves a complex tapestry of experiences, and within the threads of adversity, stories of resilience, strength, and unwavering love emerge. For me, the legacy story behind the mission intricately ties into my mother’s indomitable spirit, who left me with a profound gift – the gift of order. In the chaotic tapestry of our childhood marked by domestic violence and the sheltering confusion of the church world, my mother’s legacy becomes a beacon of hope, order, and life skills that would serve as our parachutes. Surviving Disorder: Read more>>

Anne-Marie Mawhiney

When I was 18 months old I almost died from an illness that resulted in convulsions. It left some physical and cognitive challenges that I was not aware of, although I learned as a young adult my parents were, that meant I would struggle with physical (gross motor) movement and cognitive issues, giving me an odd way of walking and absent minded vibe.  Read more>>

Nora Schaper

This is an interesting question to me. In my mind this is most important trait that determines an enduring entrepreneur. Resilience is the ability to withstand and recover from difficulties, and the elasticity to go with the flow. I do consider myself resilient and consider this a key trait in my ability to run a fast growing start-up company. I have always been a positive, solutions based person. Read more>>

Richard Smith

Fighting and stand above my shortcomings also helps to be stubborn since I am a bull. Battling a childhood placement to over seed a better life for myself. Count on your self and no one else that will b the best bet for you.  Read more>>

Queteria Kinnebrew

My resilience finds its roots in my childhood. My mother and I are only 15 years a part. My grandmother passed away a year before my birth. Raised by a teenage single mother, without her mother, in the projects of Southwest Atlanta, our start was humbling. Yet, amidst these hardships, I clung to hope. They fueled my determination to persevere through any challenges life threw my way. Read more>>

Elaine Glass

I have developed my resilience by being courageous and taking on difficult challenges. I have seen positive results from facing these challenges, and that has greatly boosted my confidence. Read more>>

Adrian Dascal

The dictionary defines resilience as “the capacity to withstand or to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness”. Sounds easy enough… “recover quickly”, “toughness”. We meet people we often describe as “tough”, “strong”, we look at what they went through and say “they made it look easy”. Yet, all of these people will probably say that there’s nothing strong or easy about being resilient. And I couldn’t agree more! Resilience doesn’t come naturally, at first it doesn’t come at all. Read more>>

Timothy Kline

If you ask me what resilience is, I can’t say for certain what it is because resilience is unique to each person. I learn resilience through my life experiences. However, if you asked me what it isn’t. I can tell you what it isn’t I’ve seen resilience in every form and I know for certain that it’s not manipulation but there were times I used to think it was. Because, you know movies have shaped my life. You watch characters take revenge and sometimes I’d think it was the result of resilience. Read more>>

Michael Diaz-Rivera

My wellspring of resilience draws from a rich legacy rooted in the unwavering strength of my ancestors and the incredible tenacity of my mother. Generations before me faced adversity, navigating through the challenging terrain of poverty and oppressive circumstances. Witnessing my mother’s resilience became a profound lesson; she worked tirelessly across multiple jobs with an unyielding spirit to meet our basic needs.  Read more>>

Breyon Johnson

My resilience comes from the constant let downs from life and realizing that if I want to change my situation or I want to get to where I want to be I have to do it myself.  Read more>>

Tiffany Storrs

I believe resiliency and adaptability are interchangeable. Both are necessary life skills. In the literary sense, resiliency and adaptability are adjectives. I’m here to disrupt these definitions and explain why they are actually verbs. Resiliency/adaptability requires movement and repositioning of self when forced to bend in unforeseen ways. Resiliency necessitates the need to be PROACTIVE…..always. Read more>>

Kristine Smock

My resilience comes from a life riddled with storms, challenges, trauma and abuse. I’m determined to overcome any obstacle, and I will never give up. I will persevere. God has kept me, and continues to bless me every day. Read more>>

Beverly Armento

I have an image of me at birth: emerging kicking. t seems that, from a pretty young age, I knew how to bounce back from adversity and chaos. From the time I was five, my life was thrown into an abusive, highly dysfunctional, chaotic home life. At the hands of my blind, artistic, and mentally ill mother, I was physically and emotionally abused over a seventeen-year period of time. In order to survive, my siblings and I, the eldest, needed to invent coping mechanisms, and we each became pretty resilient.  Read more>>

Paul Hardersen

I had a friend once make a comment about me several years ago that made me pause for a second. He said, “You have a high tolerance for pain.” Wow. Quite the comment, right? I sat back for a bit and thought about that comment. Here’s what I’ve deduced from this introspection. From a personal perspective, that comment can be both good and bad. It’s good when you struggle through a difficult or challenging situation and succeed. Read more>>

Nicole Middendorf

Aug 4, 2010 was the first time the 911 phone call went thru. My daughter was 6 mos old and my son was 2. I had to come to the realization that I was a victim of domestic violence. I was trapped. My now ex husband was my Branch Manager. We worked together. Little did I know I would have to get myself back financially, physically, emotionally, etc. I was in court with him for 10 years.  Read more>>

Shikha Singh

Resilience is like a muscle, you know? It’s built through life’s hurdles, from the rocky roads that teach us how to keep going. For me, it’s a mix of things. Sometimes it’s a sprinkle of support from loved ones when things get rough, a dash of optimism that helps me see the brighter side, and a heap of lessons learned from past challenges. Read more>>

Suzanne Frazier

My resilience has always been a part of my personality, and over time, it has been reinforced by my life experiences. I grew up in the 1950’s, part of the ‘Baby Boomer” crowd. There was a lot of competition between all of us for attention since there were so many of us. Every school year, the elementary school had to add an additional teacher/classroom since there were too many of us to fit in one classroom like the previous class of students. Read more>>

Barbara Brighton

I have lived a long life and have had many experiences. Some pretty great some terrible but I have learned something through all of them. The important thing is to not abandon myself. I have learned that the storm will end and that I will come out of it, may be a bit ragged but I’ll still be there. If there’s something that’s really important to me, I stick with it no matter what. Certainly there are times when I’m scared or lose confidence or feel that I want to give up, but I have learned through my life experience that things may not turn out the way I thought they would but they will turn out someway. Read more>>

Patricia Gillmore

Resilience is an important, powerful tool that one person can possess. It is like ambition. It comes from within. Growing up as an adoptee from Honduras who came to the US in 1990, a Loveland, Colorado native, I had my fair share of learning to overcome hard times, understand diversity, and find the path to success through dark times. It was the dark times that helped me flourish. Going against the grain was always something I did; however, the test came in my teenage years, where I had to stand against a justice system that had its own agenda. Read more>>

Aida Miró

I come from the world of graffiti, a very masculine world, where I learned to build a shield to be stronger and one of them. Painting riskily in places without permission (trains, subways, walls…) was pure adrenaline and an addiction. An addiction that I later replaced by the adrenaline of aerial acrobatics in the circus, where I spent three intense years. In addition to the streets, I always painted in my studio, at home, wherever I lived. Read more>>

Sandtrice Russell

I honestly feel like the circumstances under which I entered this world forced me to become resilient. I was born in the midst of the crack epidemic in the 80’s and much of my resiliency was shaped by the environment that I grew up in. I was raised in a small town in Georgia called LaGrange and I grew up on the eastside of LaGrange in the Calumet Park neighborhood. Like many of those who were from my hood, we grew up poor and had very little to work with in terms of financial resources. Read more>>

Maja Keres

I believe I did have to work on my resilience, and somehow grow it. But I also believe that a lot of it stems from where I’m from, how I grew up. As a child, I lived through 4 years of war in Yugoslavia. Thankfully, the city of Rijeka where I’m from, wasn’t under many attacks, but I still remember moments of my own fear, confusion, my family’s fear and prompt reactions, terrifying images from the TV. It’s not only the war, but the country after the war needs to rebuild. It takes time. A lot of time, and money. Read more>>

Ross Junior Owusu

Over the years, I have being afraid of the criticisms of what I do and knowing the Me that I am but it was through that I have built the character and resilience to stand for myself and what I believe in. Coming from a home where you are thought to mature at a very younger age, that culture and nurturing has laid a strong self dependable man in me that keeps me challenging, believing and pushing myself beyond my comfortable zones and environment. Read more>>

Whatchall Out Here Doin

Collectively, our resilience has come from our spirituality which is the foundation. Whether we’re prepared or not, it is how we choose to react to our life experiences which plays into our level of resilience. Resilience then becomes a bank to which we both deposit into and draw from over our lifetime. Read more>>

Irfan Hossein

Resilience is a quality that is essential for success in any field, but particularly in the world of acting. As an acting coach and actor, I have often been asked where I find my resilience. The truth is, resilience is not something that can be easily pinpointed to one specific source. It is a complex interplay of various aspects of knowledge, psychology, biology, philosophy, physiology, and spirituality. Knowledge plays a crucial role in building resilience. Understanding the craft of acting, the techniques, and the history of the art form provides a solid foundation. This knowledge allows me to navigate the challenges and setbacks that come with the profession. Read more>>

Lady J

My resilience is a result of healing and my relationship with God is the driving force behind it. I have been through more than most and my different traumas and hardships put me in a position where I needed to do some serious internal work, but I would not have been able to tap into being resilient without learning how to truly forgive, what it meant to have a relationship with God, and how to extract the negative seeds planted in me from my childhood and up so I could replant and rebuild by speaking life into myself and surrounding myself with those who poured into me as I came into the realization of my true identity. I had to learn how fully embrace who I was and whose I was and accept the assignment that was given to me birthed out of my pain. Read more>>

Alexa Abraxas

I’d have to say my resilience stem from a place of drive and passion. From a very young age always had big dreams. The more accomplished, and the more exceeded, the more excelled. i’ve always been determined to accomplish my goals, because life is too short to not do otherwise. Read more>>

Miss Malik

My upbringing. I grew up in a separated home. My parents weren’t together and my siblings and I moved around alot.I spent a lot of time alone since my mom worked. I learned to take after myself really early in life, which has helped me to be solution oriented. Read more>>

Natasha McCrea

When a multi-passionate woman leans into designing the life she wants she will build the muscle of resilience. And, that is where I get my resilience from. Resilience is the ability to bounce back from setbacks, to recover quickly from difficulties. The art of resilience is a practice. In addition, this muscle is built by setbacks and challenges. Read more>>

Julia Culbert

I get my resilience from surviving my time n the troubled teen industry. I spent so long in a situation where I had everything taken from me, so now I don’t take anything for granted. Take every hurdle in life as a chance to jump even higher. The minute I turned eighteen I moved myself to Los Angeles and began my career in the creative industry, and every challenge I faced only made me stronger. I used my trauma from the troubled teen industry to direct my own documentary and share my story. Read more>>

Kalmplex

I get my resilience from my faith in The Most High. I was out here to do great things and although things don’t always work out or at least not how I may have envisioned them The Most High still has my back. As long as I’m alive there’s still time to shine and that’s what I’m gonna do. Read more>>

Mike Matli

I get my resilience from having a no quit attitude. With my goals , I have a tunnel vision and the end line is my obsession so I can’t quit but honestly is there ever an end line? I don’t think so, I just think there’s a next step in your journey.  Read more>>

Sal Schittino

After surviving a near fatal attack in 2015, through the support of others and mental health professionals, I was able to overcome the diagnosis of PTSD and build an adaptability of mind and emotion to establish resilience in my life. As a mental health therapist who specializes in trauma, I use my experience and expertise to help others create resilience through the use of EMDR therapy. Read more>>

Robert and Robin Sanzi

Along this journey of ours we have had many no’s from prospective buyers and many doors closed in our faces. But we’ve kept going because we have a great deal of people whom love our products and the results it gives their hair and body. This has helped us build our resiliency and fueled our drive over the past 15 years. As creators in a crowded marketplace we are always looking for believers. Read more>>

Rapheal Akinyemi

My resilience often stems from a combination of curiosity, adaptability, and a passion for problem-solving. Embracing challenges as opportunities to learn and grow fuels my resilience. Additionally, the support and inspiration from others, as well as the satisfaction gained from overcoming obstacles, contribute to my ability to bounce back and continue creating. Read more>>

Megan Braemer

I get my resilience from my mother and my grandmother (and beyond). I come from a long line of strong, determined women. When I feel as though I’ve been knocked down by a situation, I think of what they would do. Read more>>

Joseph Findeiss

I think I’ve always been determined and persistent, sometimes even to my own detriment. I was a stubborn child and a stubborn teenager. Now I’m just a stubborn adult. However, I’ve learned what to be stubborn about and what to let go. Things aren’t going to always go the way we want them. We roll with the punches. When things go sour, the subsequent feelings of discouragement, disappointment, depression or frustration are 100% ok and normal. Read more>>