Sailing through life is easy when our seas are calm. It’s much tougher when clouds and darkness engulf us, vicious storms hit, and we lose sight of land. How we respond– as Navigators, Survivors, or Victims – determines our health and happiness.

It’s an inside job. Modern research and ancient wisdom shows that our inner lives determine our outer circumstances. Navigating our storms within – our “dark nights of the soul” – is critical to steering a successful course through life’s turbulent times.

For the past seven years, I have been using a simple model outlining the three key choices we have in how to respond to the changes and challenges life throws at us. We may not choose the change, but we choose how to respond. This model generates a huge amount of positive feedback and reminds so many of my speaking audiences or workshop participants that we choose whether to be navigators, survivors, or victims.

What are your experiences? How do you keep yourself above the line? How do you help your team member or people you care about stay above the line?