Developing Character: Never Fear The Challenges That Await

Charmaine Sheen

Jul 1

2 min read

A Story of Character Development

If there is one thing we all love, it’s a good underdog story. And what makes an underdog story so compelling is not the dramatic montage that debuts their newfound strength, but rather the opportunity to see them fall and rise beyond what brought them down. We are both intrigued and inspired by the protoganist’s ability to develop their character following a moment of hardship.

It inspires us because we all understand the gravity of hardship or challenges, and we know it is difficult to bounce back or even bounce forward. Yet, this is a lesson we learn from early on, that challenges will arise, and we get to make a choice that follows that challenge. We can choose to halt or we can choose to move. But this is sometimes how we develop our character; we turn challenges into opportunities to practice qualities that are important for us to move to the next stage of our lives, such as:

Problem solving
Sustaining our grit
Building resilience
Growing in emotional intelligence
Shifting our mindset

In child development research, it indicates that it is important to sometimes let your child struggle through an age-appropriate challenge instead of immediately jumping in to help, not because you want them to struggle but because you don’t want to take away the opportunity to let them problem solve and build resilience. What this research tells us that character development sometimes needs a bit of friction to wake up the flame. Because a can challenge can test our:

Skills
Emotions
Mental state
Cognitive reasoning
Beliefs
Values
Or sense of identity

See Challenges As Opportunities

It’s with this understanding that we need to view challenges as an opportunity rather than as a reason to fail. By doing so, we recognise the necessary learning that comes with the challenge. Does that now mean you need to look for challenges? No, not at all. But it is a reminder to face challenges head on, rather than stopping yourself before you face it. Developing character requires us to take every win, loss or draw as a teachable moment. And so, the next time the opportunity to develop your character strikes, here are some things you can do:

1. Pause and Think

Take a moment to pause and think about what the situation is calling you to do.

2. Pivot or Go

Some challenges may require us to pivot, but it will always require us to make a firm decision on what we need to do. Whether we choose to pivot or keep straight, we always need to keep moving.

3. Reflect and Grow

Take time to reflect on what you learnt from the situation – did you succeed? Would you have done something differently in hindsight? What will you do next time?

Never Fear The Challenges That Await

There is no promise of a life that is easy and without challenges, it’s for this reason we need we need to move forward each day with bravery and an unshakeable mindset. Remind yourself that in every situation we face, there is an opportunity – to learn, to grow and to teach.