Hello there, fellow traveller on this journey of growth!
Have you ever watched trees during a winter storm and marvelled at how they bend with the wind without breaking? There’s something profound in that image – a kind of strength that doesn’t come from rigid resistance but from flexible resilience. This month, we’re exploring how to cultivate that same kind of inner strength in your own life.
You’re reading this because something within you recognizes that true resilience isn’t about being unbreakable or perfect. It’s about developing the inner flexibility to meet life’s challenges with grace, the wisdom to find growth within difficulty, and the confidence that comes from knowing your own strength.
What Resilient Spirit Really Means
I believe that resilient spirit is fundamentally different from the “grit your teeth and push through” mentality our culture often promotes. True resilience is more like water – it flows around obstacles, finds new pathways, and emerges stronger from every experience.
Think about those moments in your life when you’ve navigated real difficulty with a sense of grace and capability. Chances are, you weren’t forcing your way through with sheer willpower alone. You were drawing on something deeper – your resilient spirit – that inner resource that knows how to adapt, learn, and grow through challenges.
But here’s what I’ve noticed in my work with clients: many of us don’t recognize the resilience we already possess. We focus so intensely on what feels difficult or overwhelming that we miss the evidence of our own strength.
Why We Underestimate Our Own Resilience
If you’re someone who feels like you “should” be more resilient, you’re certainly not alone. There are so many reasons why we might not recognize our own strength:
- Perhaps you’ve internalized messages that resilience means never struggling, never feeling overwhelmed, or always having everything figured out. These unrealistic standards make it impossible to see your actual resilience.
- Or maybe you’ve been comparing your behind-the-scenes reality to others’ highlight reels, assuming everyone else handles challenges more gracefully than you do.
- You might have grown up in an environment where emotional expression was discouraged, making it feel like having feelings means you’re not strong enough.
- Some of us have experienced trauma that makes us feel fundamentally broken or different, obscuring our ability to see our incredible survival and adaptation skills.
Understanding these patterns isn’t about blame but about recognizing why building resilient spirit might feel foreign or challenging at first, even when your deeper wisdom knows it’s exactly what you need.
This Week’s Practices: Recognizing Your Existing Strength
I’m excited to share these foundation practices that help you begin recognizing and building upon the resilience you already possess. These approaches have created profound shifts for clients who thought they lacked inner strength, only to discover they’d been demonstrating it all along.
1. The Resilience Evidence Hunt
Your resilient spirit has been supporting you through every challenge you’ve already survived. This practice helps you recognize that strength:
Take some quiet time to reflect on the past year:
- Identify 3-5 challenges you’ve navigated (they don’t need to be dramatic – everyday challenges count)
- For each challenge, notice what inner resources helped you through
- Recognize the coping strategies you used, even imperfect ones
- Acknowledge any support you sought or accepted
- See the growth or learning that emerged from each experience
What often surprises people in this exercise is realizing how much resilience they’ve already demonstrated. One client discovered that her “overthinking” was actually careful planning, her “sensitivity” was emotional intelligence, and her “slow processing” was thoughtful decision-making.
What evidence of your own resilience might you be overlooking?
2. The Winter Wisdom Practice
Here in Australia, winter offers profound lessons about resilience. Trees don’t fight the cold – they adapt, drawing strength from deep roots and conserving energy for future growth.
Try this seasonal reflection:
- Spend a few minutes observing winter nature around you
- Notice how plants and trees demonstrate resilience through adaptation
- Ask yourself: “What is this season teaching me about strength?”
- Consider: “How might I honour both rest and preparation in my own life?”
- Reflect: “What ‘roots’ am I drawing strength from right now?”
This practice connects you to the natural rhythms of resilience. Just as trees grow stronger through weathering seasons, your resilient spirit develops through facing and adapting to life’s natural cycles.
3. Body-Based Resilience Check-In
Your body holds incredible wisdom about resilience. It’s been adapting to stress, healing from challenges, and maintaining your life force through every difficulty you’ve faced.
Try this gentle body awareness practice:
- Find a comfortable position and take three slow breaths
- Scan your body from head to toe with curious, kind attention
- Notice areas that feel strong, stable, or at ease
- Acknowledge areas that feel tense or challenging without judgment
- Ask your body: “What do you need to feel more resilient right now?”
- Listen with genuine curiosity to whatever arises
Your body often knows what you need before your mind figures it out. This practice begins building the body-mind partnership that supports lasting resilience.
4. Values-Based Strength Recognition
Your core values are like the deep roots of your resilient spirit. When you’re connected to what matters most to you, you have access to strength that doesn’t depend on external circumstances.
Explore your values-based resilience:
- Identify your top 3-5 core values (what matters most deeply to you?)
- For each value, consider: “How has this guided me through difficult times?”
- Reflect: “When I live in alignment with these values, how do I feel?”
- Notice: “What decisions become clearer when viewed through these values?”
- Choose one small action today that honours your deepest values
Values-based resilience creates sustainable strength because it connects your daily experiences to your deeper sense of meaning and purpose.
Your Week 1 Challenge
This week, I invite you to commit to one practice that helps you recognize the resilient spirit you already possess. Rather than trying to build something from scratch, focus on acknowledging and appreciating the strength that’s already been carrying you through life.
The key is gentleness – approach this exploration with the same kindness you’d offer a dear friend who was discovering their own hidden strengths.
As you move through this week, notice with gentle awareness:
- What evidence of resilience do you discover in your own story?
- How does recognizing your existing strength affect your confidence?
- What shifts when you approach challenges from acknowledgment of your capabilities rather than focus on your limitations?
These observations create the foundation for everything we’ll build together this month.
Winter’s Teaching About Strength
As winter settles around us, remember that this season teaches us something vital about resilient spirit. The strongest trees aren’t those that never face storms, but those that have developed deep root systems and flexible branches through weathering many seasons.
Your resilient spirit is like those deep roots – it may not always be visible, but it’s been growing stronger through every experience you’ve navigated. This month, we’re simply learning to recognize, trust, and intentionally cultivate the strength that already exists within you.
I’m so honoured to walk this path with you! Throughout this week, I’ll be sharing regular practices on social media to support your resilience recognition journey. Follow along on Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn for regular inspiration and practical exercises.
I’d love to hear about your experiences with recognizing your resilient spirit. What evidence of strength did you discover? What surprised you about your resilience story? Comment on any of my social posts or reach out directly to share your journey.
Remember, you’re not building resilience from scratch – you’re awakening to the strength that’s been with you all along.
With warmth and unwavering belief in your resilient spirit,
Gemma-Lee
About the Author:
Gemma-Lee Harvey is a Holistic Counsellor and Lifestyle Coach based on Australia’s Sunshine Coast. With a diverse background spanning psychology, business, counselling, and coaching, she creates a nurturing space for exploring one’s full potential. Her gentle yet practical approach kindles the transformative spirit within, guiding individuals through life’s challenges as they rise through empowerment.
Contact:
🌐 www.phynixbydesign.com.au
☎ 07 5493 6742
📱 0448 562 814
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Opening hearts & facilitating transformations since 2017
Phynix By Design ~ Life Reignited