Happy Thursday

Happy Thursday!

So, what do you do when it shows up? You know it, that situation or thing that shakes your world. It is called adversity. Adversity is a state or instance of serious or continued difficulty or misfortune (Merriam-Webster Dictionary.) It can come at anytime and it is usually unexpected. It will derail your plans and shatter your goals. It will cause you to binge eat, spend extra money, act irrationally, yell, scream, and act out of character. Depending on the person you are, you may rise up and grow bigger than your situation. You may make decisions that are extremely hard that will transform your life. This could be leaving a job, leaving a relationship, leaving a business you built, and leaving certain things that you loved to do behind. The great thing about our minds is that we can choose how we deal with adversity. We have choices to make on a daily basis that can help us or hinder us. When adversity comes make sure you look at the situation in a manner that you can find away for a positive outcome. By: James Henderson

Make IT an AWESOME day!

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From one great figure in the story of 20th century music to another, Ray Charles stands today as one of the most famous figures in the history of jazz music.

In terms of overcoming adversity, Ray Charles, like Jim Abbott, had a huge physical obstacle standing in his way—he was blind.

On the one hand, blind artists are nothing new. After all, John Milton went blind, but still overcame that adversity and stands today as one of the most important poets in English and world literature.

However, Milton went blind later on in his life, whereas Ray Charles was already completely blind by the age of seven.

That didn’t stop Ray, of course. Whether Georgia’s On Your Mind or you have to Hit the Road Jack, you know what we’re saying—Charles became not just one of the greatest jazz musicians of all-time, and a classic case of overcoming adversity, but did so while overcoming different kinds of adversity at that.

Besides being blind, Charles had to deal with racism as well. He’s a great example of what can make someone truly inspirational. With not one but two huge obstacles to his success, millions were influenced by Ray Charles including fellow blind African-American piano man Stevie Wonder. He remains hugely inspirational today, a testament to just how far genius and determination can take you. Reference: 6 Inspiring Stories of Overcoming Adversity You Might Not Know, Interconnected Lives