1.3 Recognizing Obstacles and Strengths

Lesson 1.3 Recognizing Obstacles and Strengths

Introduction

You are probably familiar with obstacles. They get in your way. They are annoying. They can even cause harm to us if we don’t pay attention. Everyday you may experience obstacles in your life. Some of these are external such as the traffic light you have to wait on to cross the street as you walk to school. “This traffic light is so slow. If it takes much longer I am going to be late.” You have no control over external obstacles. You don’t have the power to change the timing of the traffic light or the location of your school so you don’t have to cross that particular street.

You might also encounter internal obstacles, which you CAN control. Internal obstacles are things which you have the power to change in your life. Are you ever tired when you wake up for school? You can control this obstacle by going to bed earlier or eliminating distractions in your sleep, such as blue light or alerts from your cell phone. Maybe you don’t sleep well because you have caffeinated soda in the evening. You have the power to overcome and eliminate this obstacle in your life.

The first thing you need to do is recognize your own superpowers and use them to your advantage. Most of us are very good at pointing out our own weaknesses. However, these won’t help us to overcome obstacles and reach our goals. Knowing your strengths is the key to unlocking your superpowers and powering through obstacles that stand in your way.

Goal	Obstacle	Strength/Superpower
Get an A on my chemistry text.	I don’t have time to study.	Organizing my time
Make 75% of my shots at basketball practice.	I am lazy and don’t want to wake up early to go to the gym.	Going to bed earlier so I can wake up earlier.
Run one mile without stopping.	This goal seems very big for me. I can’t barely run one block.	I know how to make small, realistic goals to reach a large goal and stay motivated.
Convince my parents to let me have a pet dog.	I do not clean up after myself and my mom says I am not responsible enough to own a pet.	Make a list of chores I need to do each day to show my parent I am responsible.

Key Idea

Overcoming internal obstacles may not be easy, but it is possible.

The Importance of Grit

Watch the following TedTalk by Anindya Kundu. In it he talks about the characteristic of “grit.” He says grit means you don’t give up on reaching your long term goals and you keep the motivation and passion you feel about making those goals a reality. Grit is important for maintaining progress toward your goal.

However, you also need skills to help you overcome obstacles. These skills include not only your superpowers but also the resources you have to help you. Some of these resources include your parents and teachers. Other resources might be found in government agencies, religious institutions, or a myriad of other places and organizations. These resources may be for groups, individuals, or the community in general. These resources can help you overcome obstacles and support you as you work toward your goal. They can work in tandem with your own strengths or provide you with strength in an area you don’t have or didn’t realize you needed.

Video: The boost students need to overcome obstacles

How can disadvantaged students succeed in school? For sociologist Anindya Kundu, grit and stick-to-itiveness aren't enough; students also need to develop their agency, or their capacity to overcome obstacles and navigate the system. He shares hopeful stories of students who have defied expectations in the face of personal, social and institutional challenges.

Source: TED.com

Click here to view transcript

Scroll through the text below to follow along with the video transcript as you watch:

[Theme music]

So, I teach college students about inequality and race in education, and I like to leave my office open to any of my students who might just want to see me to chat. And a few semesters ago, one of my more cheerful students, Mahari, actually came to see me and mentioned that he was feeling a bit like an outcast because he's black. He had just transferred to NYU from a community college on a merit scholarship, and turns out, only about five percent of students at NYU are black. And so I started to remember that I know that feeling of being an outsider in your own community. It's partially what drew me to my work.