Resiliency is no longer enough.
In a world undergoing exponential change in such a short period of time, being resilient can no longer handle things as it used to be. With all the advancement (primarily in technology) creating opposing tensions with the established bureaucracies from the past, we are being pushed and pulled from all directions which resiliency could no longer cope up with.
It needs help. An upgrade. A skill that would not only allow us to bend according to the needs of the situation, but rather to grip onto conflicts and take out the most of the experience and make us stronger.
Enter Anti-Fragility.
A concept popularized by Nassim Taleb in his book, Anti-fragile: Things that Gain from Disorder, Anti-fragility speaks about the capability of something (or someone) to thrive and flourish as a result of various stressors.
Its primary difference form resiliency is that its property focuses more on the ability to grow even strongly and vigorously in spite of pressure while the latter is focuses on the ability to adapt and flex accordingly to situations.
A classic example likened to the property of Anti-fragility is the Greek mythology of Hydra, a serpent-like monster which has several heads. In this case, stories narrate that if one cuts a head off of the monster, two other head will grow in its place, thereby doubling its destructive capacity.
In our daily lives, this could be exemplified by the children freely playing in the park where they initially become resilient, both physically and socially, but eventually, their bodies become more robust and less likely to be injured easily. Socially, they get better in assessing the dynamics with their peers (who’s the better play mate, who’s more game to more risky stuff) which becomes the precursor to how they function in adulthood.
Acquiring the Skill
While handling and tackling stressors head-on, and coming out stronger than before, is an innate characteristic of some, acquiring this invaluable skill for most of us could be quite challenging. This is understandable since by nature, we are risk-avoiding creatures.
The good news for us is that our era is far less harsh than our ancestors had in the past. This realization puts us in a mindset that’s more willing to take risks, commit mistakes and develop our skin in the game we choose to play in. This mindset shift then is our first step towards anti-fragility.
As we take in more opposition, rejection and failures deliberately by taking more chances and putting out ourselves out there, we begin to realize that we no longer get intimidated by the things we were once so afraid of in the beginning. That’s the sign that we are looking for if we are indeed developing this trait.
It’s literally similar to video games where we put our characters into so much adversity knowing that it is the only way we can play the game further.
Level Up Your Life
Since our life is merely a jumble of both pleasure and misery (in varying degrees), we could then surmise that being anti-fragile is such an invaluable attribute that will allow us, at the very least, to bear the suffering.
Just like many other skills, the more we deliberately engage ourselves with difficult situations, the better we get at handling them.
So every time we face crisis in our path, let’s remember that it’s another opportunity to become stronger, because only in doing so, can we uncover our true potential.
“That which does not kill us, makes us stronger.” -Friedrich Nietzsche
