Being stuck in the middle of the storm sucks.

It is scary.

Uncertainty abounds.

The feeling of everything you have is slipping away and never to return spikes the urge for fight or flight. The need to lash out at those closest to us causes long-term damage. Shortness of breath and the inability to sleep sends us deeper into the death spiral.

However, popular memes and business seminars quip, fail fast, enjoy the grind, gather your lessons, and move on to the next thing.

It is easy to paste on a picture of a Ferrari and send out on Instagram, but have you done it yet?

It is brutal when you realize the dream is not going to work and you can never get back the chance to attend those school plays or soccer games.

How have you poured your heart and soul into a project, while keeping an eye on the future, knowing it is not the end of the world if this plan fails?

Lessons will be discovered because of the struggle if we take the time to unpack the gift of reflection and pain. Do you have this future mindset as you think about your current hardship?

I fail to remember that I have yet to experience a conflict or disappointment that has maimed or killed me.

Stoic philosopher, Seneca, regularly subjected himself to hardship and asked the question, "Is this the condition that I feared?" Keeping the long-view and applying perspective to suffering and trials has increased with age and experience. The word "increased," was intentional, as my unfounded fears continually pepper my mind with why I shouldn't do what I know I must.

Do you get sucked down the vortex during a struggle or failure?

How do you limit or avoid getting battered and bruised during your trials?

How do you keep your head screwed on straight

What is different about you when you kept a proper perspective during a storm?

How did this influence others around you?

How does applying this practice provide hope for your future?