Books about resilience

Questions to apply

• What is one situation in your life where you've been struggling to control something that may not actually be within your power?

  Distinguish what you control from what you don't · from Enchiridion by Epictetus

• Is there something or someone you hold so tightly that the thought of losing it feels unbearable—and what might it mean to love it while accepting its impermanence?

  Hold loved ones and possessions lightly · from Enchiridion by Epictetus

• What upcoming event or interaction could you prepare for by imagining what might actually happen, rather than only what you hope will happen?

  Prepare yourself before entering any situation · from Enchiridion by Epictetus

• What recent disappointment or frustration might feel different if you could accept it as it is, rather than insisting it should have been otherwise?

  Wish for events to happen as they do · from Enchiridion by Epictetus

• Is there something you've lost that you're still holding onto with a sense of injustice—and what might shift if you saw it as something returned rather than taken?

  Treat losses as returns, not thefts · from Enchiridion by Epictetus

• What aspect of your current life feels like a role you didn't choose—and how might you play it more fully, even if you didn't pick it?

  You are playing a role assigned to you · from Enchiridion by Epictetus

• What would change in how you spend your days if you held a gentle awareness that your time, and the time of those you love, is limited?

  Keep death and loss before your eyes · from Enchiridion by Epictetus

• Is there a relationship where you've been focused on the other person's failings—and what might shift if you turned your attention to how you show up?

  Do your duty in relationships without demanding perfection · from Enchiridion by Epictetus

• What gives your life a sense of purpose when things feel difficult or uncertain?

  Meaning sustains us through suffering · from Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

• In a situation where you feel stuck, what small choice about your attitude or response might still be available to you?

  We choose our response to circumstances · from Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

• Is there a difficulty in your life that might feel different if you could see some meaning or purpose in it?

  Suffering without meaning is unbearable · from Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

• How might you hold both the difficult realities of your life and a sense of possibility at the same time?

  Tragic optimism accepts life's limits · from Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

• What are you holding onto as if it will last forever, and what might change if you acknowledged it won't?

  Everything is impermanent · from Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

• What is one thing that has happened to you that you're still resisting, and what might shift if you accepted it as part of your path?

  Accept what happens as meant for you · from Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

• What might you do differently if you fully accepted that your time is limited?

  Death is natural and nothing to fear · from Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

• Can you recall a time when struggling with something actually made you more interested in it rather than less?

  Growth mindset embraces challenge as development · from Mindset by Carol S. Dweck

• When something goes wrong, do you find yourself thinking about what it says about you, or about what you might do differently?

  Setbacks reveal which mindset you hold · from Mindset by Carol S. Dweck

• When you're in a difficult stretch, what helps you distinguish between a challenge that's teaching you something and a situation that truly isn't working?

  The struggle is where you learn who you are · from The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz

• When you're overwhelmed, what helps you return to what you can actually do right now?

  Focus on what you can control, especially yourself · from The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz

• Where in your life right now are you most trying to create certainty or solid ground?

  Groundlessness is the fundamental truth · from When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chödrön

• What situation are you trying to escape that you might be able to simply be with instead?

  Embrace the wisdom of no escape · from When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chödrön

• What is this present moment, exactly as it is, trying to teach you?

  Let the present moment be your teacher · from When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chödrön