By Steve Beseke, beseke1@earthlink.net
The loss of life and utter destruction in Haiti leaves me (and probably all of us) devastatingly sad. Haiti and its good people have been severely tested before on many fronts. But their sheer basic life resiliency is now being shaken at the core and this highlights again to me how life can be so fragile – and at the same time wonderful!
As I’ve wrote/spoke about career and life resiliency for countless months, so many of you worldwide have poured out your pain of being laid off, loss of a significant relationship or other tragic life moments.
The devastation in Haiti, however, puts all of our (sometimes severe) challenges in perspective. Many of us have had to reinvent ourselves to successfully adapt to the current worldwide economic mess. But, in a matter of seconds, the Haitian world was turned into sheer hell that the country (and world) will be dealing with for many years to come.
While I’m sure most in Haiti have never heard of the word “resilience,” this is how they will claw their way through their earthquake-ravaged streets and move on with the basics of life. Finding clean water, establishing proper sanitation, avoiding disease, and staving off chaos and armed looters in the streets should force us to think about life resiliency in a much more pure and basic way.
As I work toward the success of my new resiliency consulting business, I glance up to the all-mighty and give thanks to the fantastic life I have lived for 50 years. Sure, not everything has gone my way, and my life and career struggles have been apparent from time to time. But I look at the great moments in life with my family, friends and terrific colleagues worldwide and feel so fulfilled. I hope you think through your daily challenges and realize how lucky you are to be alive and not having to worry so much about the basics of life.
The Haitian government was just scratching the surface of legitimacy before the earthquake. Their road after being a French colony has been filled with corruption, missteps and a lot of bad luck. This, however, is not the time to criticize or become polarized from comments by America’s fringe whackos.
For you and I, it’s time to be thankful we don’t have to endure the terrible circumstances in Haiti. It is also a time to stay resilient and understand that we don’t have it so bad no matter our circumstances.
As many of us have done before, we also need to open our hearts to the unfortunate folks of Haiti – as the world did when 9/11 happened in New York. Please give to your designated charity to help the good people of Haiti reestablish their basic resilience again… This act of kindness will also give all of us a boost of resilience as we deal with our every day (and important) resilient needs!
To me, resilience means more than just thinking solely about my individual needs. While my life is important, it also means doing what I can to help those in much more dire circumstances. This Haitian natural disaster crisis only reaffirms my belief. I encourage you to assess your life and give some thought about those in desperate need. This was a very healthy exercise for me and hopefully you will have a similar conviction…
Until next week, thanks again for the opportunity to talk with you about all of our resilient issues. Take care…
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