Watch our video on having “Hope”

The 2^nd element of SurTHRIVELeadership is Hope. One might think, “of course, everyone has hope”. True, I believe hope is something intrinsic to everyone. But when you you take a closer look at it, you realize how much hope really plays a part in quality leadership.

To have hope means to believe in the fact that things can always turn for the better. Hope puts trust in a thriving future, and calls the beholder to act in their power to move toward that future state. Hopeful people are find light in the darkness and see is to be gained in trying times, with the knowledge that those times are never permanent.

Hope can often be confused with optimism. To clarify, optimism is the feeling that the future will be positive, no matter the odds. It can be easily unseated if things start going contrary to expectation. Hope, on the other hand, stays constant and takes the odds and factors of success into account. Even when disappointment makes it difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel, hope holds on.

In last week’s blog, we talked about what it means to be Tested; to learn from the struggles we face and use them to improve ourselves through them. It’s easy to see how those who have been tested can especially instill hope in those around them.

In the midst of a persistent problem, a sense of hope can seem more difficult to conjure. But leaders who have experienced similar problems and have proven that it’s possible to improve upon the current circumstance are able to empower their peers to do the same. It often takes a simple nudge from the right person for someone to realize, “you’re right, I do have the willpower/abilities/resources to change this”.

People with a healthy sense of hope don’t have a distorted view of reality or believe that everything will happen just as they’ve imagined. They are instead focused on the fact that there’s always something better up ahead if we work toward the goals that we can attain, which makes all the difference when things get tough. In effective leadership, hope is integrated with realism and being realistic, the 3^rd SurTHRIVE element that we’ll dive into next week.

Action Item: Those that exhibit hope often have a sense of gratitude for the positive things in their lives. What are you thankful for today? Take three minutes to focus on 7 things you are thankful for…Research demonstrates that focusing on the positive for just 3 minutes a day allows our brain to overcome some of the negativity in our lives. Make thankfulness a daily habit!