Endure Smarter, Not Harder | #58

By Armaan Athwal

Today's Overview:

• Common misconceptions about resilience

• Why resilience is about adapting, not enduring at all costs

• Quote of the day

Resilience Isn’t What You Think

When people hear the word resilience, they picture grit: the person refusing to ask for help, the athlete pushing through an injury because they don’t want to sit out, or the person skipping meals and sleep to finish a project.

It’s heroic, cinematic even. But let’s be honest, resilience in that form is sometimes stupid.

Ross Edgley, who knows a thing or two about pushing limits, has an interesting perspective. He’s a professional adventurer, endurance athlete, and author of The Art of Resilience. Edgley became the first person to swim around Great Britain—a 1,780-mile journey that took 157 days, requiring him to swim for six hours at a time through frigid waters, jellyfish stings, and relentless tides. He is also the world record holder for both long-distance swimming in the sea and river. He swam 318 miles down the Yukon River without stopping or touching land.

His training philosophy combines physical fitness with mental fortitude, drawing insights from sports science, ancient wisdom, and his own grueling adventures. If anyone knows how to suffer strategically, it’s him.

Edgley believes resilience isn’t about being a martyr to pain, it’s about knowing when and how to adapt.

Imagine you’re carrying a heavy backpack during a hike. Halfway in, your shoulder starts screaming in pain from how the strap digs into your skin. You could shrug it off, tell yourself to man up, and keep walking until the discomfort becomes unbearable, and you have to quit. Or you could stop for 30 seconds, adjust the strap, and distribute the weight more evenly. That 30 seconds of “weakness” doesn’t make you less tough, it makes you smarter and allows you to keep going longer.

Resilience isn’t mindless perseverance, it’s strategic decision-making in the face of discomfort.

This requires a shift in how we interpret challenges. Pain or struggle often feels like a barrier, but what if it’s better seen as feedback? If your body is telling you something is wrong, resilience isn’t ignoring it, it’s listening and recalibrating. Resilience is about staying in the game for the long haul, and that means minimizing the unnecessary damage that could take you out entirely.

Think about a builder constructing a skyscraper. If the foundation starts to crack, they don’t shrug and keep stacking floors, hoping for the best. They stop, reinforce the weak points, and then continue. That pause, that recalibration, doesn’t delay the project, it ensures the structure can reach its full height.

In life, we often confuse resilience with pushing blindly forward. But real resilience is about limiting your limitations. It’s recognizing when to adjust, when to rest, and when to adapt. It’s not about enduring at all costs, it’s about enduring wisely.

Think of it like troubleshooting in real-time.

During any challenge, obstacles demand solutions. When focus starts to fade, a quick walk outside can restore clarity. When stress feels overwhelming, controlled breathing lowers the tension. If fatigue sets in, a short nap or snack recharges energy. Feeling stuck on a problem? Breaking it into smaller steps often clears the path. Struggling with emotional overwhelm? Pausing to journal or stepping back from the situation can provide perspective. Each obstacle, whether mental or physical, is met with a simple, deliberate adjustment. These micro-solutions keep you moving forward without unnecessary strain.

The next time you’re faced with a challenge, ask yourself: am I pushing through for the sake of it, or am I solving the problem that’s holding me back? Resilience isn’t about ignoring the cracks, it’s about knowing how to strengthen them.

Quote of the Day

“It is our attitude toward events, not events themselves, which we can control. Nothing is by its own nature calamitous – even death is terrible only if we fear it.” - Epictetus