“Show me someone who has done something worthwhile, and I’ll show you someone who has overcome adversity.” – Lou Holtz

Adversity is part of life. It’s unavoidable. There are always people, obstacles, and events who will stand in your way, forcing you to overcome them in order to succeed. Some people just lie down and let adversity take control. Instead of becoming that person, here are four leadership tips to persevere through hard situations.

A sense of purpose is vital to the success of an individual or a team. Sometimes it means the difference between life and death.

When several members of a Uruguayan rugby team survived a plane crash in the Andes mountains in 1972, they originally held out hope that rescue parties would find them. Then they heard on a radio that the search had been abandoned. Some of these young men lost hope at that point. They expected to die in the mountains, far from their family and homes.

Abraham Lincoln, he was called “Honest Abe” for a reason – he didn’t want to lie. He certainly was a man who stood up for his convictions. You can be just like him, as far as his integrity goes. Here are some tips for good leaders:

Getting up and going to work every morning is one thing – being motivated to actually accomplish something while you’re there is another. It’s too easy to spend time on social media, wandering the internet in search of news updates, or doing everything other than actual work. Motivating yourself to be truly productive each day can be tricky, but it’s not impossible, even if you don’t love your job.

“It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” – Harry S. Truman

David Allen’s Getting Things Done series of time management tips require writing everything down and getting the ideas out of your head. This way, your mind will be less cluttered, and you’ll be able to focus better. However, in some cases, you might be able to get more done if you know how to designate tasks and pass up on getting the credit for everything.

Negativity in the workplace can be annoying. No one wants to hear someone spew negative thoughts for 40 hours a week. Did you know that it can affect your productivity and overall health as well? Studies have shown that workplace whiners can affect their coworkers thought processes, leading to problems focusing on a task, making good decisions, and disrupting the learning process. All of this can lead to stress, which can then in turn cause physical health problems. In short, use these leadership tips to deal with complaining coworkers before they turn you into one of them.

“Good leaders,” it’s been said, “create an organization with a purpose that rises above the bottom line; great leaders go a step further, finding ways to leverage the passion of each employee in order to create incentives that transcend financial rewards.”⁵