What's hard to be thankful for?

It is easy to be thankful when the belly is full, and family laughter fills the warm home. How do you express thankfulness for the struggles and dark times that delivered you to today?

We celebrate our differences; skin tone, hometown, dialect, tattoos, and talents. Only Ken and Barbie are "perfect," and a figment of the toymaker's imagination. Conversations reveal our imperfect stories that are far more complicated than merely being taken out of a box and put on a shelf to be admired.

The beauty of the smile is the character that has overcome the scars of life. The unfulfilled dreams, broken promises, wrongs committed and wrongs suffered are part of the human experience. All are engaged in their own battle, and some have encountered the depths of hell on earth.

But,

This is not where the story ends.

Our path is unique. No one brings the same set of talents with the same assortment of experiences. We must embrace both our brokenness and successes as part of our story.

In this embrace, we encounter the mystery of thankfulness in the abyss of difficult times. It is here that straightness is found in crookedness, beauty in ugliness, and light in the darkness. Often only through the lens of time can the goodness be found.

The wisdom of the ancients fills history books recounting that perseverance can only be attained through pain and suffering. The athlete trains through difficult circumstances to harden her body to prepare for the rigors of competition.

How have you converted what was meant for evil into goodness?

More hard times are on the way and will require your perseverance and strength. Turning to face your history and finding a reason for thankfulness will embolden you as the sun rises on tomorrow. Tomorrow is expecting a stronger you to climb out of the ashes.

Going Further: What challenges are you now thankful you encountered? How does this inform your perspective on difficulty? How have these experiences helped you relate to others? How does your brokenness influence your thankfulness?

What strengths are you using to achieve your ambition?

No matter how sexy you look in a cape and tights, you're not perfect in every way. Every superhero has weaknesses, but her strengths are majestic and the reason the bad guys tremble.

In his upcoming book, Tools of Titans, Tim Ferriss (@timferriss) delivers a parallel truth. "You don't succeed because you have no weaknesses; you succeed because you find your unique strengths and focus on developing habits around them."

Abraham Lincoln didn't enter politics with wealthy and influential supporters lining up to back his candidacy. The strengths he employed to engage the local Illinois voters were common sense, self-deprecating humor, storytelling, and a sharp wit.

In 1832, a 23-year-old Lincoln closed his first political announcement, announcing his candidacy, with a clear description of his ambition. "Every man is said to have his peculiar ambition... I can say for one that I have no other so great as that of being truly esteemed of my fellow men, by rendering myself worthy of their esteem." While a broad ambition; history would judge Lincoln a success.

It is only fair that since a comic book hero and a real-life hero relied upon their strengths to accomplish their goals, we should follow their lead.

We must apply our strengths to our indwelling ambitions and take action. Strictly pursuing our list of weaknesses will confine us to a mental culdesac strengths languishing, and our best work carried to the grave.

Every individual brings a new combination of background and vision to each endeavor. If you want to be a musician, identify what differentiates you from the others. Your skill, personal style, stage presence, and genre you seek to master, culminate in a unique blend.

No one else brings the same tools and applies them in the same way. Identify and capitalize on this difference; the ambition is waiting.

Going Further: What strengths are you using in the pursuit of your ambition? How are you strategic about this process? How will you leverage your strengths to attain your goal? Are there elements of your strengths that need to beef up to get you across the finish line? What question was missed?