Do you have difficulty recovering from mistakes, failure and disappointment? Do you find yourself reliving these setbacks over and over? Do certain life situations or challenges have you stressed to max?

Was that a resounding YES? If so, you may want to invest some time into acquiring skill of quick “reboundability”. Reboundability is essential to leading a productive, successful and happy life. Life is full of change, stress, disappointment, setbacks, failure, illness, injury, loss of competitions or jobs, death, and so on. How we handle these types of situations is what makes difference between being joyful, successful individuals and those who wallow in self-pity, and stay stuck in habits of worry, fear and insecurity.

What does it mean to “rebound quickly”? Rebounding is ability to quickly recover from perceived loss and failure. It means breaking old mental patterns and behaviors that keep you stuck and miserable.

Individuals lacking great “reboundability” skills engage in destructive patterns of self-punishment, which inevitably results in loved ones suffering as well. This may come in form of irritability, sadness, depression, physical, emotional or even physical abuse, alcoholism, and over-working just to name a few! These negative habits make it virtually impossible to maintain a truly joyful and contented life.

Sample situation: Loss of a big sales opportunity. Those who have not acquired skill of “reboundability” will engage in destructive mind habits over course of a few days or frequently even weeks. These habits include replaying perceived failure or setback over and over as well as engaging in negative and counterproductive self-talk. They continually second-guess themselves, or tell themselves that they are stupid and will never succeed. They may even convince themselves that potential client didn’t like them or thought they were incompetent.

This habitual pattern of thinking actually steals your ability to perform or be better next time. These negative mind patterns drastically diminish your ability to be clear (focused) or to accomplish goals. Negative mind habits erode confidence and self-esteem. If you continue to allow your mind to be control, rather than you in control of your mind, you will continue to feel and be defeated.

There is a story about a little girl who suffered from a serious disease. Her best chance of recovery would be to receive a blood transfusion from her five-year old brother.

The doctor explained situation to little brother. He asked boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister.

The young boy hesitated for a brief moment. Then he took a deep breath and said, "Yes, I'll do it if it will save my sister's life."

During transfusion, boy lay in bed next to his sister. He smiled when he saw color returning to her cheeks. Then his smile started to fade, and his face grew pale.

With a trembling voice, he looked up at doctor and asked, "Will I start to die now already?"

The little boy had misunderstood doctor's explanation. He thought that he would need to give all of his blood to save his sister, and he would have done so.

Moving from Resolution to Commitment

The realization of our goals, dreams, and deepest desires depends greatly on commitment, stepping from familiar into new. It requires putting our faith on line to honor our purpose, our personal contract with life. We make resolutions and carry them with us until we commit firmly. Once we commit and begin taking necessary actions, resolutions become unnecessary.

Without commitment, we remain chained to resolutions and visions, living perpetually beyond present moment. Though we need to envision with gratitude our goals and their attainment, it is now we must take action. Only in present moment will we realize soul's tremendous courage to follow our own true north -- to manifest reason we are alive.

The Courage to Serve