Inhabitants of the natural world continue to amaze with their ability to adapt and survive in the face of very tough challenges. (Photo: Shutterstock)
It's safe to say that David Attenborough is a national—make that international—treasure. As a nature documentary buff, few things lower my blood pressure and pique my interest more than hearing his iconic voice describing the natural world.
My wife and I have recently been enjoying his latest, "Our Planet," on Netflix. Well, "enjoying" isn't the right word. While the series offers the stunning photography and fascinating natural insights we've come to expect from Attenborough's projects, this one includes a sobering and, at times, downright discouraging look at our catastrophic impact on the natural world. This isn't binge-worthy material, and we often need to pause for a little break.
BenefitsPRO editor-in-chief Paul Wilson comments on resilience in the natural world and the broker world.
Despite the tough going, I'm continually amazed by the ability of the inhabitants of the natural world to continue to adapt and survive in the face of very tough challenges. As Attenborough told President Obama in 2015, "The resilience of the natural world gives you great hope. Given half a chance, it really takes it and works with it."
Resiliency in the face of long odds is something benefits advisors are all too familiar with and this topic was central to an inspirational keynote at the recent NAHU national convention, where retired Master Sergeant Cedric King described his journey back from losing both legs to an IED in Afghanistan.
King recounted learning to walk again and how it helped him to become a better person. Early in the process of learning to walk with his prosthetics, King fell to the ground, bloodied and discouraged. He looked to his doctor for reassurance or commiseration, but the doc's reaction surprised him: "He was yelling and laughing and giving people high fives." King asked, "Why are you so happy? You're supposed to be teaching me how not to fall." The doctor replied, "If you plan on walking for the rest of your life, you're going to do a lot of falling."
As King noted, "If you plan on doing anything worthwhile in this life, you're going to spend a lot of time on the floor and you're going to wish you could just stay there. As you fall over and over again, you begin to ask, 'What's the point?' But getting back up creates resilience. Falling down is a part of walking; failing is a part of living."
In an industry of entrepreneurs where 90 percent of those who enter end up quitting, there's plenty of failure and discouragement. Whether you look to a lone polar bear struggling to make its way in a quickly changing world, a 93-year-old man who continues to teach and strive for positive change in the face of all odds, or a personal story of resilience like Master Sergeant King's, I hope you keep getting up and looking ahead.
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Paul Wilson
Paul Wilson is the editor-in-chief of BenefitsPRO Magazine and BenefitsPRO.com. He has covered the insurance industry for more than a decade, including stints at Retirement Advisor Magazine and ProducersWeb.
