“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.”
                                                                                           Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

In The Corner Office, written by Adam Bryant, he calls this “battle-hardened confidence.”

Bryant interviews hundreds of top CEOs for his column in the New York Times. As he summarizes what he has learned through the interviews, he notes that patterns emerge. CEOs who have been through adversity in their early years of life, either by their own poor decisions or by a life circumstance, are quoted in Bryant’s book as saying it was helpful, even beneficial, to their life and to their careers.

They learned a confidence that only comes from seeing themselves in a tough situation and surviving to use what they learned.

Few would ever choose adversity. However, it’s almost as if NOT having some tough stuff in life can hold one back from true greatness. They may not take risks like someone who isn’t afraid of failure. They may react slowly when adversity happens later, because they are unsure vs. someone who has been through difficulty before. Those with “battle-hardened confidence” may, instead, see a way out and go there with a purpose.

A young man I met yesterday dropped out of college to help his physically ailing father. Amid the stress, he failed some classes without properly withdrawing and he, therefore, interfered with his ability to gain more financial aid. His father has since passed away; he recently broke up with his girlfriend and he’s ready, now, to determine the path his life should go. He’s working to repay the penalties he incurred on his aid package; he’s saving money to pay for a few classes on his own to get his “standing” reinstated for future loans.

He’s not feeling sorry for himself, but he’s taking responsibility for his own decisions, glad he spent time with his father when he could and thankful for the supportive people he still has in his life.

Now THAT’s impressive. And he’s probably making Winston Churchill very proud.