📘 Part 3: Overcoming difficulties

This episode's vocabulary

Resilience (noun) - the ability to be happy, successful, etc. again after something difficult or bad has happened.

Hardship (noun) - (something that causes) difficult or unpleasant conditions of life, or an example of this.

Degradation (noun) - the process in which the beauty or quality of something is destroyed or spoiled.

Competence (noun) - the ability to do something well.

To face (verb) - if you face a problem, or a problem faces you, you have to deal with it.

Repertoire (noun) - all the music or plays, etc. that you can do or perform or that you know.

Incompetent (adj.) - not having the ability to do something as it should be done.

To traumatize (verb) - to shock and upset someone severely and for a long time.

Laden (adj.) - carrying or holding a lot of something.

To encounter (verb) - to experience something, especially something unpleasant.

To deal with sth. (phrasal verb) - to take action in order to achieve something or in order to solve a problem

Challenge (noun) - something needing great mental or physical effort in order to be done successfully, or the situation of facing this kind of effort.

Passively (adverb) - in a way that allows other people to be in control.

Flashy (adj.) - looking too bright, big, and expensive in a way that is intended to get attention and admiration.

Inevitable (adj.) - certain to happen and unable to be avoided or prevented.

To cope (verb) - to deal successfully with a difficult situation.

Guidance (noun) - help and advice about how to do something or about how to deal with problems connected with your work, education, or personal relationships.

Radically (adverb) - completely or extremely.

To inherit (verb) - to receive money, a house, etc. from someone after they have died.

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Questions and Answers

M: What's the key to overcoming difficulties?

R: Well, there's been a lot of talk recently about resilience, which is like the ability to bounce back from hardship and keep going. So I suppose having that or knowing how to develop it would be very useful. It also helps to have a concrete and meaningful goal to work towards. So with a university essay, for example, it might be hard, but there is a point to it, if the lecturer takes it and uses it to tell you what you did well, and how you can improve, then the difficulty will have been worth it, I suppose.

M: What challenges do young people face today?

R: I'm not sure they face the ones which are radically different to past generations. There's poverty, or the threat of at least, and environmental and social degradation. But these have always been problems to deal with. I suppose one could argue they're more severe than before. But that just means the issues are larger, and not that they're essential nature's changed.

M: What kinds of jobs require people to be confident?

R: Well, I would imagine just about all of them, really. You don't want a doctor who isn't confident for the same reasons, you don't want a builder that isn't very sure of themselves. It's like a bad omen. If I had to pick a particular job category, then it would be one that faces the public, since confidence and competence have strong associations in people's minds. And then to mention a specific job, then probably a teacher, you want them to be confident in their knowledge and skills. So that they might impart this to you somehow, it's it's how I tried to behave anyway.

M: And do you think that some jobs are more difficult than other jobs?

R: Well, that's all relative to the person. I mean, like, for me, being a teacher is extraordinarily easy. However, that's because of that me in particular, but there might be someone who's, I don't know, less socially skilled, and it would be next to impossible for them. So that comes down to the individual, doesn't it?

M: And do you think that people who face lots of challenges at work should be paid more than those who don't have such challenges and difficulties?

R: Yes. I don't see why not. Because, well, if you're facing a lot of challenges, then you'd have to, presumably you have to develop a repertoire of skills to meet those challenges. Assuming they're challenges that occur because of the job, and not because you're incompetent.

M: How can parents encourage kids to do difficult things?

R: Well, I think many of them do by not giving a hoot about their feelings and pushing them towards things they'd rather not do. And don't get me wrong. I'm all for people getting out of their comfort zones. But for some kids, it can be quite traumatizing. So it's not the best idea. I think maybe a better option is by creating opportunities that are laden with support, and then asking them about the experience and you build up from small difficulties to big ones. So being gentle but firm in that sense.

M: Do you think that children are more willing to do difficult things than adults?

R: That's a good question. On the face of it, yes. Because children have less of an awareness of what like the potential difficulties might be. At the same time, once they encounter it, they don't really have the resources to deal with it. So they might give up more easily, but they will be willing to accept the initial challenge at least.

M: How can people help children to stay focused?

R: Asking questions seems to help a lot, especially if you're telling a story. It makes the kids actively think about what they've seen and what might come next, rather than sitting there passively. The same is true of presentations, I suppose. Lots of people think everything has to be flashy and relevant to young people. But I'm not sure how true that is. Some people, well, most, in fact, are quite deep thinkers. And there are things that might not be relevant now but could be in the future.

M: Is it necessary for kids to deal with challenges?

R: That's probably as essential as it is inevitable. I don't think you could or should shield them from challenges in life. Because, well, how will they cope when you're not around to fix it for them? I would imagine not very well. So well, they should deal with them. But with guidance and reflection along the way, like our podcast.

M: Along the way. Do you think that people will face more challenges in the future?

R: No, I think people will have to deal with the same difficulties as they always have.

M: Why?

R: Because I don't think life has changed that radically. I think that people still have the same base concerns. Are they going to have enough to get through their day to get to carry out their goals in life, sorry, to meet their goals in life. And how are their children going to grow up? And what kind of role will they inherit? And what is the future going to be like? None of these things has changed. And in the 1000s of years that people have been alive. Maybe how it's been done has changed, but the actual problems haven't changed.

M: Thank you, Rory, for your answers!

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