No Pain, No Gain – It’s Not Just An Athletic Slogan

June 4, 2012 in Success with 14 Comments

Secrets to Success - Pain

One of my favorite authors happens to also be a good friend. I got to know Rick Lawrence, the editor of Group Magazine, back in my days as a youth pastor and when I was the National Director of Alliance Youth. As a writer, Rick is not only an artist who paints vivid pictures with his words, he also challenges readers to think deeply about some of life’s biggest questions. What’s more, all of his most recent books revolve around topics he has wrestled with personally, and the way he writes not only pushes readers to grow, it also challenges them to ask some profound questions.

Recently, I started reading Rick’s newest book, Sifted. In it, Rick writes about a topic most people don’t like to discuss—PAIN. But unlike many authors who think the secret to dealing with pain is to avoid it, Rick challenges his readers differently. He actually sees pain as one of the secrets to success:

All of the people and books and music and films you and I love the most are encrusted, like priceless jewels, with pain. Name something that captures your heart that was not formed by pain. It’s ironic, of course, that pain repels us more fundamentally than anything else in life but it produces things that are magnetic to us. Why do we live in fear of pain while, at the same time, we find ourselves drawn to its “produce” in the people and stories of our lives? And why does all great art, and why do all truly great people, seem positively marinated in pain?  (Sifted by Rick Lawrence, 2011, p. 30)

I’m just getting started with this book, but as you can tell, it’s going to be a great read! Even more, I believe it will be filled with significant secrets to success.

Obviously, we shouldn’t be gluttons for punishment and seek out pain. However, when pain does come…

  1. How do you handle it?
  2. Have you been able to leverage it for personal development and growth? If so, how?
  3. What are a few of the secrets of success you’ve discovered through pain?

 

  • Tom Morrison

    Kent,
    Thanks for the book recommendation, just ordered my copy from Amazon! By the way they have a great price on this but not many left!
        One of the pain concepts I have turned over in my head for years is that the pain in itself is irrelevant, our interpretation of that pain and the meaning we assign to it is everything.
       As an illustration that may be a little out there for some: If I walk up and punch a guy in the nose the reaction to the pain is going to be fairly obvious. However if I immediately hand him a check for $100,000.00 and then begin to repeat this process I think it’s fair to say that certain people may begin to look towards the punch with anticipation and not dread. Maybe even glee! The pain level has not changed one bit, only the interpretation and the meaning assigned to that pain-
    Tom

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Thanks for sharing, Tom. 

      Your thoughts are definitely interesting. I probably wouldn’t go so far as to say pain is irrelevant; I see it more as an event in our life and how we choose to respond to it is what matters most. That is probably what you’re saying…we’re just articulating it a bit differently :) Enjoy the book. If you haven’t read any of Rick’s stuff, you’ll love it!

      • Tom Morrison

        Great clarification, poor word choice on my part!

        • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

          Smile :)

  • http://www.theleaderforge.com/ Rick Seigmund

    Kent, great post on a critical topic. Pain is not ever to be taken lightly, but we all have it in common. I agree, how we respond to it, personally, as well as with the people in our lives, will define us. More that anything else in the world, our ability to react to pain makes us distinctly who we are. Everyone goes through the fire…

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Great insights, Rick! What’s more, you’ve probably seen some things others haven’t because of your service in the military and as a police officer…so your insights are incredibly significant.

  • Michaelholmes Mh

    We are creating a culture of comfort that everything we want, we want it fast, easy and without hassle. The culture that produced obesity and other diseases related to it. We are created to work and to be productive.
    All of the successes in life are related to pain. We learn more through pain rather than through comfort. The best lessons in life are learned through pain.

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Michael…thanks for adding so much to the conversation. Excellent insight!

  • http://christiannick.wordpress.com/ ChristianNick

    Pain can come under so many veils. It could be touching a hot pan or losing someone dear due to death or a broken relationship. I believe the secret to success is to leverage that pain for personal development. Understand why you touched the pan or why a relationship was broken and work to overcome that. The pain we experience becomes part of our stories , stories that God gives us to minister to others (http://wp.me/p2ofWV-B). 

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Great words, Christian. Love the “leverage pain for personal development” line. Excellent!

  • Connie Foster

    I love the passage you shared. Non-fiction is alway more pleasurable when penned by such a literary hand. Thanks for the recommendation.
    As far as pain goes, sometimes it’s what you need to help you grow up and become a better person — or at least that’s how it’s worked for me.

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Connie…from what I know about you, you’d love this book. 

      And you’re right about pain; it has a way of shaping us into better people.

  • Carmen Wilkes

    Kent, 
    This has been a tough year in the area of pain. My first reaction in the past was denial and control. I started attending a CR group and learned that I am not in control, God is. (I know I am a slow learner at times) Also that I am not responsible for  how others act nor did I cause it. It has helped me grow by being less judgmental and learning that there are many people who have had similar experiences. I use to think everyone else had it all together. 
    Through the pain I have discovered to be gentler with myself and others we are all struggling with something or will be soon. 

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Carmen…thanks so much for your insight! It’s obvious that you are authentically walking the walk because the lessons you are learning and sharing with us are so powerful and applicable. Again, than you!