--- title: How to Overcome Obstacles and Adversity in Life description: Learn how to turn negative experiences into positive ones, and overcome obstacles in life with grace in the latest Do It Scared podcast. canonical: https://time.com/5329669/how-to-overcome-obstacles/ author: Ruth Soukup article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-07-05T16:23:46.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-12T09:33:19.613Z og:title: How to Bounce Back From Hard Times With Grit and Grace og:description: It's all about your mindset og:url: https://time.com/5329669/how-to-overcome-obstacles/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf1d2e839bd094438/698934b1cf40a80f3ac4ca74/overcoming-obstacles.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 6473 og:image:height: 3641 og:image:alt: Overcoming Obstacles and Adversity og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How to Bounce Back From Hard Times With Grit and Grace twitter:description: It's all about your mindset twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf1d2e839bd094438/698934b1cf40a80f3ac4ca74/overcoming-obstacles.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 01:33 video:published: 2018-03-13 section: ideas topics: motivation, ambition, goal setting, personal success, mindset, accountability, self-care, support networks, perseverance genre: explainer, lifestyle tips tones: encouraging, practical, upbeat emotions: encouragement (medium), determination (medium), hope (low) sentiment: positive audience: people pursuing personal goals, young professionals, self-improvement seekers, people seeking motivation organizations: Real Simple, GEICO products: Life Well Spent transcript_source: automatic transcription transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # How to Bounce Back From Hard Times With Grit and Grace > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Health Matters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Health Matters is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The latest health news and expert advice on living well. Health Matters makes the fast-moving world of health more useful, surprising and human, from the latest science and medical breakthroughs to practical ideas for living better. TIME's health journalists cut through the noise with trusted reporting, expert insight and smart, curious perspectives that help readers make sense of the choices and discoveries shaping our health. 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It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's weekday health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free weekday newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=82b9c0a7-d891-4f58-8a18-46568d1a69f0&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1) ## Video: 5 Motivational Secrets That'll Unlock Your Ambition [Watch (HLS stream): 5 Motivational Secrets That'll Unlock Your Ambition](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/FYtZf9Ul.m3u8) (1:33)  _Published 2018-03-13. 5 Motivational Secrets That'll Unlock Your Ambition_ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary The video offers five motivational tips for regaining drive and ambition when pursuing goals. It covers anticipating obstacles while setting goals, telling close people about your ambitions, making your own needs a priority, leaning on a supportive group, and remembering the deeper meaning behind your goals. The video is presented by GEICO and is part of the Life Well Spent series. ## Key points - Changing your way of thinking can restart a person's drive to become successful. (00:00) - Anticipating bumps in the road while setting goals makes you more prepared to solve problems stress-free. (00:18) - Telling those closest to you about your goals helps reinforce positive behaviors and ensures people track your progress. (00:26) - Making yourself a priority is not selfish; it ensures your needs are met, and putting others first can derail goals. (00:26) - Select friends and family who have watched you fail before, since they understand how much success means to you. (00:56) - Remembering the deeper meaning of goals helps you work harder, especially for disciplines like losing weight or managing money. (01:09) - With these techniques, mountainous goals can feel like a small hill. (01:22) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 00:18] Introduction to Renewing Ambition. The host introduces the idea that changing one's way of thinking can restart drive for success. - [00:18 to 00:56] Preparing for Obstacles and Sharing Goals. The video advises anticipating problems, telling close people about goals, and making personal needs a priority. - [00:56 to 01:09] Leaning on Supportive People. The video recommends relying on friends and family who have seen past failures and understand what success means. - [01:09 to 01:33] Connecting With the Deeper Meaning of Goals. The video suggests recalling why a goal was set to increase motivation, especially for difficult disciplines, and closes with the series branding. ## Key quotes - [00:00] narrator: "Your drive to become successful can be restarted by changing your way of thinking." - [00:18] narrator: "Anticipating bumps in the road can make you more prepared." - [00:56] narrator: "Those authentic relationships can help you become more motivated since they understand how much success means to you." - [01:09] narrator: "You'll want to work harder when there's a greater significance in what you want to accomplish." - [01:22] narrator: "Your mountainous goals will feel like a small hill with these techniques in your head." ## Questions this video answers - How can changing my way of thinking restart my drive to be successful? [00:00] - How can I prepare for problems that may arise while pursuing my goals? [00:18] - Why should I tell people close to me about my goals? [00:26] - Is it selfish to make my own needs a priority when pursuing goals? [00:26] - Who should I lean on when I am struggling to stay motivated? [00:56] - How can remembering the deeper meaning of my goals help with tough disciplines like losing weight? [01:09] by [Ruth Soukup](https://time.com/author/ruth-soukup/) ## Ruth Soukup Jul 5, 2018 4:23 PM UTC 5 Motivational Secrets That'll Unlock Your Ambition by [Ruth Soukup](https://time.com/author/ruth-soukup/) ## Ruth Soukup Jul 5, 2018 4:23 PM UTC I’ve learned that in life, and in business, there will always be [obstacles that stand in our way](http://time.com/4872967/gretchen-carlson-dream-challenge/). From mistakes to hardships, it’s easy to let things get us down or make us [feel like giving up](http://time.com/collection/guide-to-happiness/4070299/secret-to-happiness/). When we look in from the outside — or through the lens of [social media](http://protect-us.mimecast.com/s/pmvTCgJyJMFvJ2Z1cNnzTG?domain=time.com) — it’s easy to assume that other people have it easy compared to you. You might ask yourself: Why aren’t my friends struggling like I am? Whether you want to admit it or not, there’s even a part of you that’s [really, really jealous](http://time.com/4358803/jealousy-envy-advice/). But [life is rarely as perfect](http://time.com/5305955/anthony-bourdain-kate-spade-death-envy/) as social media portrays, or people let on. At some point, everyone faces adversity; adversity is part of everyone’s life. It’s how you [bounce back from these hard times](http://time.com/3002833/how-to-be-resilient-8-steps-to-success-when-life-gets-hard/), however, that really defines you as a person and will ultimately [determine your happiness](http://time.com/collection/guide-to-happiness/4856944/secrets-happier-life/). One thing I’ve learned is that it’s always our biggest stumbles that lead to our biggest lessons. For every mistake or misstep you make, there’s a golden opportunity waiting on the other side. We can’t control the unfortunate things that inevitably pop up in our lives, but we can control how we react to them. In this week’s [Do It Scared podcast](https://doitscared.com/), I share three mindset shifts that can help you turn your breakdowns into breakthroughs, and help you look at negative experiences as positives ones. _Ruth Soukup is a_ [_New York Times bestselling author_](https://ruthsoukup.com/about/) _and the founder of_ [_Living Well Spending Less_](https://www.livingwellspendingless.com/)_. You can listen to her sage advice on life, career and parenting on episodes on her new podcast,_ [_Do It Scared_](https://doitscared.com/)_, above._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5329669/how-to-overcome-obstacles/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5329669/how-to-overcome-obstacles/"},"headline":"How to Bounce Back From Hard Times With Grit and Grace","datePublished":"2018-07-05T16:23:46.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-12T09:33:19.613Z","description":"It's all about your mindset","url":"https://time.com/5329669/how-to-overcome-obstacles/","keywords":["Living","advice","motto","Evergreen"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf1d2e839bd094438/698934b1cf40a80f3ac4ca74/overcoming-obstacles.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ruth Soukup","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ruth-soukup/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf1d2e839bd094438/698934b1cf40a80f3ac4ca74/overcoming-obstacles.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Overcoming Obstacles and Adversity","caption":"Overhead view woman working","creditText":"Hero Images—Getty Images/Hero Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/tag/time-section-living/","name":"Living"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5329669/how-to-overcome-obstacles/","name":"How to Bounce Back From Hard Times With Grit and Grace"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"5 Motivational Secrets That'll Unlock Your Ambition","description":"5 Motivational Secrets That'll Unlock Your Ambition","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/FYtZf9Ul/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2018-03-13T20:46:38.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/FYtZf9Ul.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5329669/how-to-overcome-obstacles/","duration":"PT1M33S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5329669/how-to-overcome-obstacles/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```