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Turn Adversity into Opportunity

SOMETIMES LIFE THROWS us challenges that test our resilience and threaten to keep us stuck in a rut of regret. Lloyd Bachrach knows this all too well: he was born with a congenital bone deficiency that made his lower limbs so unusually small that doctors told his parents he should be institutionalized. When his parents insisted that they were going to take him home, they were warned that he would never be able to have a normal life. “He’ll find his way,” his parents responded.

Lloyd’s parents encouraged him early on to figure out how to do things on his own and refused to coddle him. To the amazement of his doctors, he learned how to crawl without the use of his legs. He became progressively mobile and, despite his severe disability, attended public school when he became school age. Lloyd’s attitude from the beginning was one of no regrets for the cards he’d been dealt in life. “You can’t miss something you never had,” he’d say. Lloyd also adopted a motto that embodied his can-do approach: “It doesn’t matter what you don’t have—just use what you do have to pursue your goals.”

Lloyd’s goals included becoming a top athlete. He developed his upper-body strength by swimming, and then he learned to play baseball. Although he couldn’t run very fast on his small legs, he taught himself to scoot around the bases at lightning speed by using only his arms and dragging his legs behind him. Then he took on gymnastics and was a serious competitor throughout high school, so much so that in his senior year he placed fifth in the state tournament. When asked how someone who was a disabled person could be such a formidable opponent to other able-bodied athletes, Lloyd said, “I’m not disabled, I’m differently abled.” The apex of his athletic career, though, was when he played on the USA sit-volleyball team in the 1996 Paralympics in Atlanta. Now Lloyd, who is married and has two daughters, is a frequent motivational speaker at schools and organizations.

Lloyd’s incredible story is a testament to his no-regrets attitude and tenacity around turning his adverse situation into an opportunity. Instead of using his disability as a source of regret, he has used it as a reason to do things that others never suspected he could accomplish. This has implications for people without disabilities as well. For instance, we all have found ourselves in situations where we were at a disadvantage, whether we were vying for a job when other applicants were more qualified, taking a class in school that wasn’t in our strong suit, or playing in a competition where the opponent was more skilled. Do we get mired in regret about the fact that we are at a disadvantage, or do we look for creative ways to play to our strengths?

The next time you are confronted with adversity, think about how you can turn it into an opportunity. Consider your unique gifts and be innovative in finding solutions. Look at the possibility for success as opposed to the chance for failure. Believe in yourself and have the confidence to embrace the situation. Turn adversity into an opportunity and face your challenges head-on.

Turn adversity
into an opportunity
and face your
challenges head-on.

∼ What is one aspect of your life where you are at a disadvantage compared to others?

∼ How can you turn this into an opportunity?