“Fear knocked on the door sharply. Faith answered, and there was no one.” This profound saying captures the essence of resilience and the power of overwhelming, whether it’s internal discouragement or external pressures bearing down on us. However, it is in these very moments that the foundation overwhelming, whether it’s internal discouragement or external pressures bearing down on us. However, it is in these very moments that the foundation
Life is about margins, thin margins at that, and one of the greatest weapons that can help us see the other side of thin margins is resilience. I cannot begin to tell you how much people have lost, given up on, and become passive participators of life by a lower level of destiny because they succumbed to the pressures of life brought about by adversity.
Stories abound of leaders who had promise, people who had talent and gifts that potentially would be a blessing to the world, but never cashed on that promise. However, stories still abound of icons that rose like a phoenix from an adverse situation where the rest of the world thought that their goose was cooked, their fates sealed.
Failing at resilience is a matter of margins that could mean gloom where there is the possibility of glory. I can tell you that you probably would not be reading this if it were not for resilience.
More than a decade and a half ago, I was declared 100 percent disabled after getting involved in a nasty road accident near Namutumba Town on my way back to Kampala. I got paralysed from my neck down and the only thing that I had going was the power to speak and communicate. I could even recall people’s phone numbers while on that hospital bed awaiting transfer to Kampala by ambulance.
However, at a trigger of bad news about my son who was part of the travelling entourage, I lost my speech too. A few months down the line, bedridden, mute and 100 percent disabled, fate was all over me telling me that my unfortunate destiny had been sealed.
You can excuse the casual observer for believing that fate—and indeed some did by leaving their phone numbers behind to be informed immediately I passed away, but when you get a medical report about it, it is another story altogether.
I had two options: First, I could accept my fate and live the rest of my life as if I were a vegetable. There is a science behind this in psychology, that once your option is, I believe with all of my heart, what moved me against all the odds from the wheelchair to high heels, from being mute to being an international keynote speaker, and from being a vegetable to being a beacon of hope to my world. That option is resilience. It is the catalyst that enables us to see the other side of the story.
It is the stubbornness of hope, the refusing to be any less than the best you can possibly be. It is the catalyst for our strength and hope at every moment that we are faced with adversity of any kind. Resilience, much like a muscle, grows stronger with use.
In leadership, this means acknowledging that challenges are not barriers but opportunities to develop the strength needed to lead others effectively.
This realisation brings us to a crucial aspect of leadership: self- encouragement. Leaders must be adept at lifting themselves up, motivating themselves, and needing the strength to push forward, even when it seems like the world is against them.
This is not just about staying positive; it’s about cultivating an inner resilience that allows you to continue leading, even when external support is lacking.
