Why You Want Hard Times

There is a phenomenon that has occurred the last 70 years or so.  Since the 1950s, the world has seen the greatest run of prosperity in history.  There have been no major wars since World War 2, only relatively minor conflicts, economic crises have come and gone relatively quickly without leaving long-term damage and the standard of living has gone up exponentially.  This is all great news and no surprise to anyone. 

There is, however, one issue that has arisen that threatens all societies that go through long periods of prosperity and peace.  It is the lack of hard times.  While it is fantastic that we have advanced so far as a society there is an unintended consequence.  Without hard times, societies become less able to deal with adversity when it arrives.

Hard Times Create Strong Men, Strong Men Create Good Times, Good Times Create Weak Men, Weak Men Create Hard Times

-Unknown

This is the paradox of prosperity and good times.  The better things get, the softer people become as they become less used to dealing with difficulties.  Not being able to deal with difficulties can only last so long before there are long-term consequences.  When challenges arise, if we are not used to dealing with them, they become harder and harder to overcome.  We become stronger from facing them, dealing with them and overcoming them.  Even if we are not successful every time, the exercise of dealing with adversity develops our long-term strength and “hardens us.” 

The best way to prepare for these issues is to practice overcoming adversity.  In these wonderful times of prosperity, that means searching for challenges where we can find them.

Exercise is an obvious choice as it hardens our bodies and challenges our stamina in the absence of daily physical work.  Taking cold showers strengthen our bodies and our minds as we have to resist the urge to avoid the cold water and force ourselves to stay under it.

There are any number of ways to make things harder for us daily so that we continue to be able to deal with adversity without getting too soft and unable to deal with hard times when they inevitably arrive.  By regularly seeking out this adversity, we can ensure that we will not be incapable of dealing with difficulties when they arise.