The principles of living greatly include the capacity to face trouble with courage, disappointment with cheerf... — Thomas S. Monson

The principles of living greatly include the capacity to face trouble with courage, disappointment with cheerfulness, and trial with humility. Thomas S.

Author: Thomas S. Monson

Insight: We tend to think that living well means avoiding problems altogether—getting the promotion without the stress, the relationship without the conflict, the dream without the setback. But Monson points to something harder and more honest: that how we move through difficulty is what actually builds a life worth living. Courage facing trouble doesn't mean never feeling scared; it means acting anyway. Cheerfulness in disappointment isn't fake optimism—it's the choice to keep looking for the next opening instead of getting stuck in bitterness. What's quietly radical here is the third part: trial with humility. We usually want to be victims or heroes in our struggles—either things are happening to us unfairly, or we're heroically overcoming them. Humility suggests something different: recognizing that setbacks often have something to teach, that we might not have all the answers, that sometimes the lesson matters more than winning. This stance doesn't make hardship disappear, but it transforms it from pure suffering into something with potential meaning. The real payoff is recognizing these three capacities aren't about being noble or spiritual—they're practical tools for actually enjoying your life. Because troubles come either way. What changes is whether you meet them with resources or collapse.