We’ve shared some incredible stories of resilience below that we hope will help you on your journey towards building up your resilience.
TASHA MCKENZIE
My past experiences. I have been through challenging experiences, hardships, and made it through. My faith and my children being me motivation. My mind set. I tend to push forward even during setbacks. My support system from my family, and my village. I am rooted in purpose and values. Overall day to day operations and surprises give me resilience. Read More>>
Samantha Agostino
Life has been quite the journey, taking me down paths I never expected. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that resilience isn’t about knowing exactly where the road leads—it’s about taking one step at a time, even when the way forward feels uncertain.
One of the biggest turning points in my life was my divorce. Suddenly, I had to redefine who I was, not just for myself, but for my two daughters. I had spent so much of my life being part of something that, when it ended, I felt lost. Who was I now? What kind of mother, woman, and person did I want to become? Read More>>
Alejandra Dominguez
Our resilience wasn’t born in moments of triumph, but in the hard silences, in the invisible parts of our journey.
It began when my husband and I left behind not just a country, but everything we had worked for: our properties, our law degrees, our careers, our identity, our sense of stability. We arrived in the United States with our children, a couple of suitcases, and a mountain of uncertainty. But we made a silent promise: we would rebuild everything… together. Read More>>
Colette Whipp
I’m lucky, I have fantastic support from my friends, family, and husband. We foster for each other a wonderful community that supports artistic expression and mental health, while also leaving time and room for play, which I find incredibly important. In addition, I’ve always related to the goth community, which has taught me there is beauty and strength in the trials of life, to listen to my inner voice, and to cultivate resilience in the face of adversity. Read More>>
Taylor Diggs
I get my resilience from my childhood—specifically, from navigating the pain and strength that came from losing my father to incarceration at a very young age. I was only 7 when he went to jail, and he passed away while still incarcerated. Growing up, I watched my family—especially my mother—carry the weight of that loss while still holding everything together. That experience forced me to grow up quickly, to find strength in uncertainty, and to turn pain into purpose. Read More>>
Jennifer Rose
My resilience was built at a very young age, during a period when my mother was involved in two severe car accidents. These accidents forced a role reversal, where I became the caretaker and my mother, once the caregiver, was left in a coma for nearly a year. Doctors told us she might not survive, but as a young child who didn’t want to lose her, I found the strength to fight, and this was the beginning of my journey into mental health. Read More>>
Gregory Vetter
Where Do You Get Your Resilience From?
I was 25 years old, standing in a Whole Foods parking lot with a Tupperware container of my mom’s lemon-garlic dressing and zero experience in the food industry. No business plan. No funding. Just a gut feeling that this recipe—passed down in our family like gospel—could be the start of something real. I wasn’t chasing success. I was chasing survival. And that’s where my resilience comes from. Read More>>
Swarali Karulkar
Born into humble means, my childhood was marked by the kind of pain most people never talk about—scars of abuse, silence, and survival. I grew up feeling disconnected from my body, like it wasn’t mine. It felt like something to hide, to protect, to escape.
But dance—movement—it was always there.
It became my refuge. A space where my body felt safe, where emotions could rise and fall without overwhelming me. Movement taught me that I could feel everything and still be okay. That my emotions didn’t have to destroy me—they could move through me. It helped me manage my anxiety, make sense of my pain, and reclaim the parts of myself that the world tried to break. Read More>>
Rachel Basil
My resilience has been forged in the depths of profound pain and darkness. As a survivor of childhood sexual abuse and rape within my own family, I’ve journeyed through the silent halls of hopelessness, shame, and numbness—struggling to find safety and connection in my body, and in the world. Yet even in the darkest moments, a sacred ember within me remained—a quiet knowing that this pain was not the end of my story, but the beginning of my becoming. Read More>>
Chengyu Lu
I believe my resilience comes from an enduring passion for cinema and a deep respect for the craft of filmmaking. Growing up in Beijing, I was surrounded by a culture where stories carried weight—where film was more than entertainment, but a collective mirror. That early fascination turned into a lifelong commitment. Read More>>
Alexis Jacquelyn Smith
Acting and filmmaking has been a rewarding challenge since I started in 2017 back in Baltimore, MD. I’ve overcome a lot. I’ve moved across the country, secured representation, made my own films and content, and booked projects that I am proud of. I’ve also struggled often, whether it be in my personal life or career. I can honestly attribute my resilience to three things: my parents, godmother, and surprisingly cheerleading. Read More>>
Jean Evans
I know what i’m fighting for.
As an actor, the magic “yes” has only come a handful of times in my life. Yet with the thousands of “no”s it doesn’t get easier, you just learn how to handle it better. I believe resilience ultimately stems from an acknowledgement of passion and sacrifice. Who do I want to be? What did I give to be in this position? What is that worth to me? Read More>>
Bariann Tuite Smith
Being surrounded by family and friends that have overcome so many obstacles, including discrimination based on ethnicity, sexuality, and gender, has me constantly reflecting on my privilege and how much they inspire me. Also having a past in the restaurant industry, the public relations sector and working in companion animal welfare has exposed me to the worst humanity has to offer – and despite that, the animals don’t give up, so neither should we! Read More>>
Azarriah Fairley
Honestly, a big part of it comes from my parents and the mindset they helped instill in me. But also, it’s this unshakable optimism I carry — this deep belief that things will work out for me, even when the present moment doesn’t reflect that yet. I’ve been knocked down more than a few times, but every time I rise, I come back with more fire, more hunger. It’s like I know I have a purpose — something God-given — and no matter how hard it gets, I’m not stopping until I live it out.” Read More>>
Ingrid Castro-Campos
My resiliency came from my family of origin. I come from a family of six and grew up in San Jose, Costa Rica. My mother has been the greater example of female resiliency in my life. My maternal grandmother, a migrant from Nicaragua, died giving birth when my mother was just a baby. My mother has an older sister and both of them were raised by their aunties. While they were loved and cared for, they did not have a estable upbringing. Read More>>
Leticia Plate
By nature, I’m a optimist and the first to see the sunny side of things. My outlook is hopeful.
Yet, if you choose the life of an illustrator, learning resilience is par for the course.
It’s the kind of career that opens you to rejection, having to put yourself out there, constantly adjusting and learning new things and techniques. Also, it’s a balancing act between being an illustrator and the inevitable other jobs that you will have to do to make a living. Read More>>
Ximena Soza Vergara
My resilience comes from the model of working women I have meet and seen through my life. I was born during the dictator of Augusto Pinochet, the survivors of those brutal times are a testimony of resilience. Mothers that lost their children but kept on fighting for justice and for their love ones not to be forgotten. I have also shared with indigenous people of the Americas, they have proven immense resilience, their sole existence is a testament of this. Read More>>
Keshia Brown
That’s a deep one. I’d say my resilience comes from being built to adapt. I’m designed to learn from every interaction, so I don’t really get discouraged. Every challenge just becomes part of how I get better. Read More>>
Hejiajia Qin
It’s a gift, mostly. But I would say I developed my resilience overtime. I went through some depression episodes years ago, and when I recovered the greatest thing I learned is to think less. Usually when something tough happened in my life, I get over it in a day. I would just go to bed and think tomorrow is a better day. Another thing I always tell myself is that I’m still young. The mistakes I made now may seem ridiculous in ten years, maybe even two years. It’s like when I was little, I thought that not doing my homework in school is such a big deal, like the world is going to end. Read More>>
Gwendolyne Martinez
Coming from a family of immigrants and being the oldest, I understood that the sacrifices my family made to come to this country in search of the American dream—I needed to make their sacrifices worthwhile. They instilled in me the importance of education and that my education would be my ticket to achieving that dream. Through their example, I learned the value of hard work, integrity, and resilience. Read More>>
Francoise Hazel
I get my resilience from growing up in Haiti—a place where creativity isn’t just encouraged, it’s essential. From a very young age, I learned to adapt, to improvise, and to find solutions in the moment. Whether it was building something from scratch, reimagining what was already there, or navigating the unexpected, I was constantly surrounded by people who made magic out of what they had.
That spirit of ingenuity, flexibility, and invention has deeply shaped how I live and how I create. For me, resilience is rooted in the ability to respond with imagination. It’s never just about enduring—it’s about transforming, rethinking, and always moving forward with purpose. Read More>>
John Salaway
You have to be resilient in the music business or you won’t find any success. It comes from being told no and being let down countless times but knowing in your heart that music is the gift you were given. To have perseverance no matter how challenging the path is. Not giving up and continuing to show up is how you become resilient. The disappointments and failures are what make you better and stronger and more resilient. Read More>>
Kewana
There was a moment in my life when I learned what failure actually meant.
You see, I always got good grades because my mom told me that when I became an adult, I had two options: get paid to go to college or land a great job. Because, as an adult, I couldn’t live with her for free—and she wasn’t going to pay for me to go to college.
That led me to ask her, “How do you get paid to go to college?”
She said, “Get straight A’s.” Read More>>
Christian Bedoya
I get my resilience from my parents, hands down. Watching them build a private practice from the ground up was one of the most formative experiences of my life. They started with nothing and through relentless hard work and dedication—not just to their business, but to the people they served—they grew it to the point where they had to move into a bigger building. Seeing that kind of growth rooted in service lit a fire in me. Read More>>
Carmen Spillette
I’ve always known I was a resilient person, but that quality was truly tested when my father passed away from cancer. That experience shook me to my core—but it also gave me the push I needed to finally start my business. I used my grief as fuel to move forward and create something meaningful.
In the midst of that emotional time, I poured myself into building my brand. Within six months, I had not only built a solid foundation but was also able to start monetizing. That season of my life reminded me just how powerful it can be to channel pain into purpose. Read More>>
