(Full audio below)
Do you see adversity as a gift? Do you feel adversity is important to success? Marcus Aurelius Anderson has overcome extreme adversity, including paralyzation and death. Learning to turn into success has reshaped his entire life.
The Gift of Adversity
Hello Climbers! Welcome to the Climb Every Day podcast which helps you amplify your impact in your career, your communications, and your life.
Too often, we let setbacks be our stopping point. In reality, most of the adversities we face are not life-altering. That is not the case for my guest this week.
While preparing to deploy with the U.S. Army, Marcus Aurelius Anderson suffered a severe spinal injury that left him paralyzed from the neck down. His life turned upside down. After dying twice on the operating table, he was told he would never be able to walk or use his hands again.
Days quickly turned into months, and he was forced into life-changing soul searching. He had two choices. Either be a victim or change his mindset. Having no other option, he looked for any lessons to be learned from his injury. Marcus soon discovered that his Adversity was a gift.
Today, Marcus now speaks, writes, inspires and coaches others to overcome their own Adversities to actualize their personal definition of success in every area of life.
Gratitude is key
Marcus shares in this episode how gratitude became the driving force for him to heal. In his words, “I hear a lot of people say they believe in gratitude. They have this very passive thought, “Well, you know, I’m grateful.” Listen, if you are within the sound of our voices right now, gratitude is not passive.
Gratitude is powerful. Gratitude is something that is an action. It is a verb. You should be out there doing things with it. If you really want to be grateful, then act in a grateful manner.
Do things that show that you are grateful for what you are doing. In other words, do things that make other people grateful to be around you. Gratitude from one person is fine. But if you really are exercising it and doing it the right way, it should not radiate out from you like a small ripple in a pond. It should be a tsunami of positivity.”
Marcus’ Bio
Marcus Aurelius Anderson is an Author, TEDx Speaker, Keynote Speaker, US Army Veteran, lifelong Martial Artist. His High-Performance Mindset Coaching is perfect for companies, leaders, CEO’s and entrepreneurs.
His TEDx talk “The Gift of Adversity” tells of how we can use our Adversity to make us into better leaders, citizens, and human beings.
His book “The Gift of Adversity: Overcoming Paralysis and Pain to Find Purpose” is available on Amazon and Kindle. (Link below)
Make sure you listen to the full episode below!
Episode Info
Connect with Marcus:
- Marcus’ Website. Book him for your coaching or consulting needs.
- Marcus Aurelius Anderson on LinkedIn
- The Gift of Adversity on Amazon
- Learn directly from Marcus at his “DO THE WORK” Live event on March 30th!
ClimbOn!
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Mark Steel is a professional speaker and Communications Skills coach. With over 20 years of professional speaking experience, Mark is dynamic, engaging, informative, and fun. Sales, leadership, and team-building audiences rave about Mark’s “Invincible Thinking’ keynotes. As a coach, Mark works with executives and professionals to ensure when they speak, the audience is listening. Mark is a married father of two living outside Chicago, Il and he is an avid rock climber. #ClimbOn