By Nate Bevington
We’ve all felt pain, both physically and emotionally. It has many ways of getting to us. It hits us in the best of times, the worst of times, and everything in between. It touches every area of our lives and because of the imperfection of the world, it cannot be avoided. There is no escaping it. It’s universal, something we all have in common.
It affects our mental and physical state of being. It can cause the strong to fall and be subject to its terms. It can separate families, friends, close relationships and anything else it wants. Pain can silently strangle the hope right out of you. Therefore, leaving nothing left in its tracks except a pain-filled pessimist. Pain is powerful.
But I refuse to allow pain to dictate my life. I refuse to be subject to its terms. I hope that you feel the same way. If you feel hopeless due to pain and the troubles it has brought you, you are not alone. The world is with you. I am with you. Let me show you how pain can actually propel you to your purpose. Pain can be overcome. You just have to have a mind-shift, a change of perspective on how you process pain.
Let’s go back to that first paragraph with a new perspective and re-write it. We’ve all felt pain. It has many ways of getting to us. It hits us in the best of times, the worst of times, and everything in between. It touches every area of our lives and because of the imperfection of the world, it cannot be avoided. There is no escaping it.
It’s universal, something we all have in common. It affects our mental and physical state of being. But it can cause the strong to rise up and fight for what they believe in. It can bring together families, friends, close relationships and anything else it wants. It can strengthen them and leave them better off than they were before. Pain can give you a reason to have hope. It can inspire you to rise above the occasion. Pain can empower you.
Let’s take a look at a well-known person who decided to make a decision. A decision that changed their life for the better. A decision to overcome the physical and emotional pain they were facing. A decision to not let pain define them but for them to define pain. An example of someone who overcame the pain in their life but came out on top, stronger and better than ever before is Tony Robbins. His parents were divorced at the age of seven and his mother was very abusive towards him throughout his childhood.
Robbins grew up poor and didn’t have much of anything. During high school, he had a pituitary tumor that brought him much pain. At the age of 17, his mother chased him out of the house with a knife and he never returned home. He described his childhood as abusive and chaotic. Today, Robbins is net worth is an estimated $500 million. He is one of the world’s top motivational speakers and is a life coach to many celebrities like Bill Clinton, Oprah, Princess Diana, Nelson Mandela, Leonardo DiCaprio, Serena Williams, and Hugh Jackman, just to name a few.
But how will you choose to define pain? Will you define it as, a physical or emotional suffering caused by unfortunate unexpected circumstances? Or will you define it as an opportunity to become stronger in spite of unfortunate unexpected circumstances? Don’t let pain define you. You define pain. It’s time to cancel the pity party and throw a purpose party because there’s now purpose to your pain and you’re growing stronger every day. Enjoy the party!
