Behind every win is some sort of loss. You may not see it in others, but it’s there. Sure, the trophy is shiny and catches the eye, but it’s a momentary euphoria. The win is often a summation of losses, heartaches, and victories.

You have to push through opposition to get to opportunities. So often, I have stopped right in the middle of opposition. Lacking the stamina to endure what’s difficult to get to the win, I sell myself lies about not being cut out for whatever I’m attempting. Does anyone else know what I’m talking about?

The times I endured opposition to get to the opportunity changed me. In fairness, I’ve never crossed a literal or metaphorical finish line alone. I can point to a person or group of people who cheered me on. One of my mentors ran into one of the hardest storms of my life, picked me up from the ground, and held my hand as I walked out the race in front of me.

I’ve learned a lot about pushing through opposition from my daughter. She celebrated an exciting win this weekend, but behind the picture of her adorning the silver medal is another story. It’s the story of devastating losses. Losses that left me running in to scrape her off the floor and champion her to continue the race. You probably know the type of loss I’m talking about.

If she didn’t push through the opposition that loss and disappointment created, she wouldn’t fully understand the value of the opportunity. Enduring the losses clarified the win. You might see a picture of her smiling on the podium, but you don’t see the tears under her feet that buoyed her.

It’s easy to look at someone else’s life and get sideways about all their perceived successes. This is especially true if all we can see is the opposition in our own lives. Today seems like a good time to pause and remember a few things. 1) Behind every win is a hard loss. 2) Push through opposition to get to the opportunity. 3) Look for your cheering section-the ones that scrape you up off the ground after hard loses and push you to get back in the race.

I can’t speak to your specific opposition, but I am acquainted with the weight of loss, and the difficulty of disappointment. I’ve cried all the ugly tears, friend. Let my daughter be a teacher to us both. Her perseverance is a great reminder that character, and the heart of a winner, is born in loss.

Don’t stop at the loss. Walk through the opposition to get to the opportunity. Perseverance produces character, and character produces hope. Hold on to hope today-it doesn’t disappoint.

#MomentofTruthMonday #OppositionToOpportunity #LifeLesson #Hope