Life always finds ways to hand us challenges.

Sometimes the challenges are self inflicted because of poor choices that we have made. Other times they are inflicted on us because of poor choices that other people have made that directly or indirectly influence our lives.

Many times challenges are just part of life.

No matter the cause of the challenge we can choose to face the challenges in one of two ways.

We can choose to take the challenge head on and make the most of them, seeing them as opportunities to grow as a person. OR we can moan and complain about how unfair the world is and continue finding the same challenges until we choose to take life's lessons and use them to grow.

That is why we can find at least ten reasons to appreciate difficulties that life throws our way! Following are ten reasons that we can appreciate the difficulties in our lives.

10 Reasons to Appreciate Difficulties

1. If life was easy all of the time we would grow lazy and rarely be motivated to change and grow. How motivated were you to change and grow the last time that you were laying on a beach under the sun and beautiful blue sky?

2. Difficulties often force us to change in ways that we never would otherwise. When we are put in situations that make us uncomfortable we see the need for a change in our own actions, attitudes and thinking. (Assuming that we are looking to grow, otherwise all we see is how other people need to change to make us comfortable!)

3. You can inspire and encourage others towards personal growth and development! Others can be inspired by you in many ways, whether they are watching you from the sidelines or whether you share with them how you overcame a difficulty when they are going through a similar trial.

4. After you have come out of the difficulty and look back at how you grew and overcame challenges you will feel great about yourself!

5. Each difficulty presents a learning opportunity, otherwise it wouldn't be difficult. Look for the lesson to be learned, look as hard as you need to because once you find that lesson it is something that you will be able to carry with you for your whole life!

6. Look at someone who hates challenges, look at how miserable they are and how miserable they make people around them. Know that you won't be like them, being controlled by circumstances rather than being in control over themselves.

7. Challenges initiate creativity. It is said that difficulty is the mother of all inventions, when people are in situations that they don't like the successful people will use their creativity to find ways to deal with the difficulties. Many inventions were created this way and also many great works of art were created in times of the artist's stress.

8. New relationships can be made through challenges. You could meet people who have gone through the same challenges as you and develop very strong bonds that will last years. Some challenges bring about instant bonds. For instance, I'm a cancer survivor and there is an instant connection when I meet someone else who is one as well. There are plenty of other types of challenges which bring bonding between people such as the loss of a loved one or surviving a tragedy.

9. If you are a spiritual person your challenges present a unique opportunity to reach out to your creator and also by finding other ways to grow spiritually.

10. Each time that you successfully overcome a difficulty you will have more confidence to successfully overcome the next challenge that life throws your way. You will become stronger each time and each event of personal growth through these challenges will build on each other to make you stronger and stronger, more and more confident!

Stacy writes about personal development issues at Grow With Stacy http://growwithstacy.com/.