The Adversity Success Principles: Transform Your Life By Using Adversity to Your Advantage

By Guy Francois

Get ready to turn your mess into your message!

It's very simple!

Your success will depend on how many adversities you can overcome. Taken together and practiced every day, this book will give you strategies that can transform your life beyond your wildest dreams!

Ever wonder why some people are able to bounce back from adversity stronger, more resilient, richer, and happier while others are simply stuck? Some people think it takes luck or good fortune to make "lemonade from lemons," but best-selling author and master real estate investor Guy Francois knows first-hand what it requires to turn adversity into advantage by using the success principles learned from adversity.

Adversity is a gift. That's a bold statement to make. It is a gift if you know how to extract lessons learned from it to propel you to succeed in every area of your life. In The Adversity Success Principles, Guy opens up about his experience with living in object poverty in Haiti, sexually molested, depressed, homeless, and attempted suicide. Inside these chapters you will find success principles that Guy was able to use from his adversity to turn them to his advantage.

Get ready to turn your mess into your message!

It's very simple!

Your success will depend on how many adversities you can overcome. Taken together and practiced every day, this book will give you strategies that can transform your life beyond your wildest dreams!

Ever wonder why some people are able to bounce back from adversity stronger, more resilient, richer, and happier while others are simply stuck? Some people think it takes luck or good fortune to make "lemonade from lemons," but best-selling author and master real estate investor Guy Francois knows first-hand what it requires to turn adversity into advantage by using the success principles learned from adversity.

Adversity is a gift. That's a bold statement to make. It is a gift if you know how to extract lessons learned from it to propel you to succeed in every area of your life. In The Adversity Success Principles, Guy opens up about his experience with living in object poverty in Haiti, sexually molested, depressed, homeless, and attempted suicide. Inside these chapters you will find success principles that Guy was able to use from his adversity to turn them to his advantage.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Guy Francois
• Release date: Feb 27, 2023
• ISBN: 9798985832426

Guy Francois

Guy Francoisis recognized as one of leading real estate investors, motivational speaker, and success coach. Guy speaks professionally on how to turn adversity into advantage, as well on how to build wealth through real estate. More importantly, Guy is a father and a husband.  www.guy-francois.com

Book preview

THE ADVERSITY SUCCESS PRINCIPLES

TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE BY USING ADVERSITY TO YOUR ADVANTAGE

By

GUY FRANCOIS

ISBN 979-8-9858-3242-6

Copyright © 2022 by Guy Francois

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Open Door Publishing, LLC.

1095 Sugar View Drive Suite 500

Sheridan, WY 82801

Printed in the United States of America

To the two amazing women in my life: my mother, Eugenie, and my beautiful wife, Tammy. Without each of you, the life I live now would not be possible. I love

you both to the moon and back.

CONTENTS

MESSAGE FROM THE AUTHOR

FOREWORD

INTRODUCTION: YOU HAVE AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE

WHAT YOU WILL FIND IN THIS BOOK

WHO THIS BOOK IS FOR

MY FEAR

PRINCIPLE 1: LET IT GO: UNLEARN WHATEVER DOESN’T SERVE YOU

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

IT’S OKAY TO CRY

THE AGONY OF HARBORING YOUR UNTOLD STORY

HIDING EMOTIONS IS NOT A SIGN OF STRENGTH

PRINCIPLE 2: KEEP MOVING FORWARD: YOU ARE NOT DEFINED BY YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES

DEAL WITH YOUR ANGER BEFORE IT DEALS WITH YOU

THE NIGHT I REALIZED I WAS LOVED

YOU ARE DEFINED BY YOUR RESPONSE

PROBLEMS ARE PART OF LIFE

IT’S ALL ABOUT YOUR ATTITUDE

PRINCIPLE 3: BE YOUR OWN RESCUE

PUSH YOURSELF TO YOUR LIMITS

LEARNING BY EXAMPLE

DON’T LAY ON THE NAIL

ADVERSITY IS THE MOTHER OF CREATIVITY

WHAT’S IN YOUR HANDS?

WHEN YOU HAVE THE WHY, THE HOW WILL SHOW UP

PRINCIPLE 4: GET THERE BEFORE YOU GET THERE:THE EFFECT OF IMAGINATION

IMAGINATION DICTATES WHAT’S IMPORTANT

THE PLACEBO EFFECT

IMAGINATION AND SURVIVAL

MY MOTHER’S NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE

IMAGINATION AND THE SUBCONSCIOUS

PRINCIPLE 5: BREAK UP WITH WHAT HAS BROKEN YOU

PLAYING THE BLAME GAME

MARRIED, HAPPY, BROKE, AND BROKEN

GROWTH HAPPENED AT THE BREAKING POINT

PRINCIPLE 6: STAY IN THE FIGHT: WINNERS NEVER QUIT AND QUITTERS NEVER WIN

AMERICA, THE LAND OF THE FREE

CARRYING THE SAME BAGGAGE

MY HIGH SCHOOL NIGHTMARE

THE NIGHT I BECAME HOMELESS

NEVER MAKE A PERMANENT DECISION ON A TEMPORARY PROBLEM

PRINCIPLE 7: LIVE ON BORROWED FAITH IF YOU MUST

LIFE ON THE STREETS

MY ENCOUNTER WITH LIVING ON BORROWED FAITH

LIVING ON BORROWED FAITH

FAITH AND PRAYER

HOW TO REMOVE YOUR MOUNTAIN

PRINCIPLE 8: LOVE HARD

MEETING GOD FOR THE FIRST TIME

HONESTY IS THE BEST MEDICINE FOR THE SOUL

DO-OR-DIE FRIENDSHIP

PRINCIPLE 9: INVEST IN YOURSELF

EVERYTHING WORTHWHILE IN LIFE COMES WITH STRUGGLE

THE POWER OF NONTRADITIONAL EDUCATION

TURN YOUR VEHICLE INTO A UNIVERSITY ON WHEELS

INVEST 3 PERCENT OF ANNUAL INCOME TOWARD NONTRADITIONAL EDUCATION

AS A MAN THINKETH

GRADUATING COLLEGE

PRINCIPLE 10: GO BACK TO YOUR FOUNDATION

WHO AM I?

WATCH YOUR ATTITUDE

SELF-LOVE

PRINCIPLE 11: FIND YOUR BLACK BOX

I FOUND MY BLACK BOX

THE ROOT CAUSE

LEARN FROM THE MISTAKES OF OTHERS

KICKING THE ELEPHANT OUT OF THE ROOM

PRINCIPLE 12: TURN YOUR MESS INTO YOUR MESSAGE

HOW I MADE MY ADVERSITY PAY

FINDING A MENTOR

DREAM REALIZED

A PLEA TO HAITIAN FATHERS

MY PLEA

ADVERSITY SUCCESS PRINCIPLES RESOURCES

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

MESSAGE FROM THE AUTHOR

T

he issue of poverty in Haiti is a women’s rights issue. Men are more likely than women to leave their children in the arms of the mothers, causing them to plunge faster into poverty. More than 75 percent of single mothers who are living in poverty in Haiti is due to when the men leave the home. For this reason, 5 percent from the proceeds of the sale of this book will go to support single mothers in Haiti. Women are the glue to the survival of families.

FOREWORD

"T

wo men were in prison, both looked through the bars, one looked at the mud, the other at the stars."

The rhetorical question would obviously be, what made the difference? It’s how each one viewed his situation.

You’ve probably heard the saying, Hindsight has 20/20 vision. Well, that’s not always true. Hindsight alone is not always as clear as we may think. Sometimes, hindsight needs corrective lenses, and that is the prescription the author gives us: Hindsight + Insight = Clearer Sight.

In this book, Guy Francois offers us his vision test principles to see the same thing differently—Adversity.

Francois is challenging us to consider making Adversity our ally, not our enemy. He is also shifting our paradigm concerning Adversity so that we recognize it; not for what it is negatively perceived to be, but for what it can truly be: Adversity is a gift.

Now, before you debate that in your mind, based on any experiences to the contrary, read why he said that. You will see that it is not denial or delusion. It is a stabilizing philosophy of life for those of us who will receive it as a gift.

In the final analysis, Francois makes this sincere and heartfelt declaration about his anguishing journey with Adversity. Today, I’ve come to realize that I have an unfair advantage, which I’ve gained as a result of my difficult past. I am successful because of my adversities, not in spite of them.

To be sure, Adversity is an inescapable part of life, not because we seek it, but because it finds us. And when it does, then what?

Consequently, it’s what we do with it, not what it does to us that we can get the best out of it, and not the worst from it. As you read this intriguing, insightful, and inspirational book, it will refocus you away from the mud to the stars.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said something profound that I believe encapsulates this important book. He said, I always look forward for something to knock me out of my dogmatic slumber. The Adversity Success Principles will do just that.

—Minister Ronnie Vanderhorst

Cofounder, Prepare Our Youth, Inc.

INTRODUCTION

YOU HAVE AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE

Adversity introduces a man to himself.

—Albert Einstein

A

dversity is a gift. Adversity has been the major cause of success for many around the world, from artists and entertainers to business leaders and inventors. Adversity is a core motivator for the successful more often than anything else in all of human history. If you ask any successful person the reason for their success, I guarantee they will list some major hurdles they have had to overcome. The hurdles they might name would be debilitating diseases, death of a loved one, divorce, discrimination, abuse, poverty, homelessness, disabilities, and so much more. However, they chose not to use adversity as an excuse; instead, they used it as fuel for success.

You can use your adversity to your advantage if you learned how. That’s what I will show you in the pages ahead. If you ask any self-made successful person like Tony Robbins, Chris Gardner, or Tyler Perry, they will tell you their success is because of the adversity they overcame.

Tony Robbins says, Your success will be based on the number of problems you can solve. To describe it another way, success is a by-product of adversity.

One of the best examples of this is Soichiro Honda. In the 1930s, Soichiro Honda couldn’t find a job as an engineer. He was turned down by Toyota for an entry-level engineering job and went on to found Honda Motors, one of the top automobile companies in the world. You can see the lessons in Honda’s story of overcoming adversity are endless, and I have described this a little further in chapter 12, How to Turn Your Mess into Your Message. I can go on with countless examples, but I sense you get the point. Your success could be based on the number of adversities you overcome if you understand the blueprint to make that happen.

What you see as adversity, others see as an opportunity. Take for example, the founders of Uber, Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp. On a snowy night in 2008, while on a trip to Paris at a tech conference, they were waiting for a cab; they couldn’t get any taxi. They turned to each other and said, Why couldn’t you push a button and get picked up by a car? The idea for their Uber app was born that day.

How about Chris Gardner, who ended up homeless with a young son? Determined to create a better life for his family, he learned stock trading and is now a multimillionaire. If you saw the movie The Pursuit of Happyness, starring Will Smith, then you already know his story.

You may be thinking, I can’t be as successful as Tony Robbins, founders of Uber, Oprah Winfrey, or Chris Gardner. Sure you can. You can because you have been through much adversity, and you are still standing. Now all you have to do is use it to your advantage.

The great motivational speaker Earl Nightingale says, Success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal. He went on to say that success is the schoolteacher who is teaching because that’s what he or she always wanted to do. That means, if you overcame spousal abuse and are now thriving, you are considered successful. If you survived bullying and now making a difference in other students’ lives, then by definition, you are successful. The definition of success is not what others defined for you; rather, it is what you define for yourself. If all you ever wanted was to be a schoolteacher and you are having the best time of your life as a teacher, then you are successful, my friend.

German Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche said, That which does not kill us, makes us stronger. It turns out he knew what he was talking about. Studies have shown that survivors of a traumatic experience report positive changes and enhanced personal development called post-traumatic growth (PTG). PTG is anything positive someone takes from a negative experience that caused a renewed spirit, perspective, and a world of new possibilities. Adversity is a blessing, and my goal in this book is to prove that to you. I honestly believe that there is no adversity you can’t overcome. I believe that you have overcome things that could cause others to lose their mind, and yet, here you are, preparing to take your next leap into a successful life.

Today, I’ve come to realize that I have an unfair advantage, which I’ve gained as a result of my difficult past. I am successful because of my adversities, not in spite of them. For so long, instead of leveraging that advantage, I found myself trapped by unforgiveness, hatred, and unapologetic self-pity. Woe is me! That mode of thinking did nothing to help me, but it did cause me severe depression and misery. The truth is, I felt trapped and ashamed about my life, but now I understand that I would not be the person I am today had I not gone through some horrible situations. I didn’t realize that my adversity provided me with an unfair advantage over many. I have learned some valuable lessons and made some decisions, which have impacted my life for the better. Today, I believe that there is nothing I cannot do.

I have used the lemons handed to me, and I sought out more through mentors, and through all of this, I have built a thriving lemonade stand that continues to serve me and my family freshly made lemonade to nourish our souls. When you realize, like I did, that you possess an unfair advantage because of your adversity, you will begin to open your eyes and embrace it. Hopefully, one day, you’d consider it a gift from God. In this book, I will share with you thoughtful and honest stories from my past. My intent is to guide you with my words, memories, and stories. I hope to motivate you, but my goal is that you will continue the healing process that I started on the day I decided to share my story. As with most journeys worth taking, the pathway is not easy nor is it always straight. I’m still working on forgiving myself and others, but I grow day by day. I’d like to encourage you that if I can make progress toward healing, so can you.

WHAT YOU WILL FIND IN THIS BOOK

My goal is not to bore you with clichés, complex theories, or inspirational messages that have been copied and pasted from somewhere else. What you will get in this book is a heartfelt story mingled with valuable lessons that could change your life if applied. In this book, I will also challenge some popular advice that some of us have accepted as Gospel, but I have found it to cause more harm than good. Furthermore, I will show you how to direct bad memories to your advantage. I will show you how those memories can be an ever-present supply of fresh motivation to propel you to your success. I will teach you how not to ever suppress your anger; instead, use it to help shape your destiny. I coined the term past-fection to explain how to do this. It’s okay to be angry. I repeat, it’s okay to be angry!

Life is short. Why would I spend the short amount of time I have on this earth failing without making progress? Why not learn from others’ mistakes? Don’t get me wrong. I do believe you can learn valuable lessons from making your own mistakes, but the lessons you learn don’t all have to come to you the most difficult way imaginable—filled only with your own heartbreak and setbacks. You shouldn’t spend the little time you have on earth making mistakes when you can just learn from other people’s mistakes instead. One important exercise to assist with this I call "finding