How To Overcome Setbacks

I had worked on my Doctoral dissertation for over two years. Finally, after much research, sleepless nights, and fingers numb from typing this long academic essay, I submitted it to my academic advisor with much relief. However, a couple of weeks later, I received shocking news from my advisor, "your work is not good enough." In other words, I had to write the entire thing all over again - a huge setback. Like me, with my dissertation, you may be experiencing a setback right now. So here's how to overcome setbacks?

Accept it

Accepting the things you cannot change is liberating. Furthermore, not accepting things for what they are will chain you to the past and evoke negative emotions that will keep you in a state of perpetual frustration. 

To accept therefore means to acknowledge things as they are in the present. It is like walking in the rain and allowing it to run down your back without getting worked up about why it is falling. Frankly, you cannot do anything about the falling rain, but you can change how you respond to it. When you accept things for what they are, you set yourself up for growth because, as the late Robert Schuller once said, "tough times don't last; tough people do."

Stay focused 

Staying focused on where you are heading is key to overcoming setbacks. Having your mind focused on your purpose and goals will pull you into the future when the going gets tough. So if you are currently experiencing setbacks, focus on why you started your journey in the first place. See the challenges as distractions that seek to deter you from achieving your goals. If you do, you will rise above your setbacks. As Jack Dempsey once said, "a champion is one who gets up when he can't."

Adapt to change

Except for death and taxes, nothing else in life is certain. Furthermore, things are constantly changing around us, and the best way to deal with these changes is to adapt. In other words, to overcome setbacks, one has to adjust their approach or response to current situations. 

During the setback with my dissertation, I could have given up. After investing so much hard work and time into the project, I could have thrown in the towel. However, I told myself, "you didn't come this far only to come this far." A change had taken place, and I decided then and there that I had to change for things to change. The result - I graduated six months later with a doctorate. I can guarantee you this; therefore, if you change, things will change.