Many times we look at people who have endured pain and we say, “That person is a hero.” But pain isn’t the thing that determines a hero. It’s not what makes us celebrate them and want to pattern our lives after theirs.
Bad things happen to each of us. The stuff hits the fan, and one thing will determine whether or not we will be a hero. It’s when we decide to do the uncommon thing in the face of the crappy situation.
The common response is never what creates a hero…because that’s what everyone does. When we approach things from a different perspective, though, that gives us different results than other people get—heroic results.
So what’s the common response to a crappy situation?
- Complaining
- Running away
- Getting bitter toward the instigator
- Shifting the blame to other people
- Taking the easy way out
- Compromising your stance
- Manipulating others
- Scratching and clawing to take control of the situation
If you ever find yourself doing one of those things, there’s a good chance you aren’t being heroic.
Here’s the deal: We all have heroism inside us. Every hero is just an ordinary person who decided to respond uncommonly to the bad things in life.
I’m choosing to be a hero. I’m choosing to go the uncommon route when bad things happen.
How about you?
