Adversity. A fancy word for "tough times".

While it's true that we all face challenges and hardships during our lives, it seems that more and more of us are faced with them right now. And we all know that we're most likely to feel what others around us are feeling. If those around us are feeling lost, hopeless, and pessimistic about the future, then guess what? We're going to feel that way too. It's the "herd mentality" come to haunt us, again. Currently the trend is toward "negative thinking", which can be contrasted to the optimistic 1950s post-war era in America, during which prosperity for all was thought to be both possible and probable.

It was Friedrich Nietzsche, the German philosopher, who coined the phrase. These human herds could be divided into two groups. One group assumes a religious point of view, and their beliefs dictate their actions. The other group is influenced by the media, and their actions are based upon what others perceive as "right".

While Nietzsche saw these examples of group thinking to be reflections of weakness in the human social spirit, he did create the concept of the "Superman" - that person who overcomes the values of the herd. That's what you're going to re-create yourself into: a Superman or Superwoman who rejects the common thinking of others in their reality. Only by discarding that negative thinking can you truly wake up to the opportunities around you and take advantage of them.