One of my favorite definitions of organizing is "the ability to recover." Daily we read of weather disasters around the world, but we often face other situations that feel disastrous. At no time in history have we been faced with greater opportunities to practice our ability to recover, or to put it another way, the ability to cope with constant change. In the world of business, we face mergers and downsizing, as well as the unprecedented growth of home-based businesses with little or no administrative support. An advertisement I saw recently read: "You think you understand the situation, but what you don't understand is that the situation has changed."

On the home front, the picture is similar. There are more dual- career families and single-parent families than ever before. In addition, due to our aging population, many families are struggling with the challenges of caring for their aging parents.

Several years ago, after a major hurricane hit our community and we were without water, electricity, or telephones, for nine days, I had the opportunity to experience that reality - and to identify areas I could have organized more effectively! (Fortunately, there were also many examples of success!)

So how do you survive, and even thrive, in this ever-changing and challenging world? Consider how you can use these four strategies to make the best of any situation:

1. See change as an opportunity, not an adversary. Werner Erhard's advice to "Ride the horse in the direction that it's going" can make the difference between breakthrough and breakdown. Because of the lack of power in our area, schools were shut down and offices were closed. It was, to say the least, an inconvenience. But it was also an opportunity. All the members of our family who were in the same situation got together daily. Different members of the family contributed what they were able; some cleared trees, some stood in line for ice and water, some took care of frightened children, and some prepared food on our outside grill. As we were standing outside eating our roasted corn and grilled chicken and onions, one of the children commented, "If this is how the Indians ate, they were lucky." One member of the group, who is a teacher, took the opportunity for a fascinating history lesson.

2. Study how the situation has changed, and what you can do to take advantage of it. I was in California on a business trip when the hurricane hit, and was stranded in Dallas for two days waiting for the Raleigh airport to open. My immediate reaction was to think of all the crucial things that I needed to do in the office, but obviously there was nothing I could do about that. There turned out to be two great opportunities. First, my son was getting married in a few months, and I had yet to decide what I was going to wear. I took the hotel shuttle to the shopping center, and found a perfect dress. (As a bonus, it cost less than half of what I had expected to pay!) Secondly, I had an extra 24 hours of total peace and quiet to complete a manuscript that was due the following week. No feeling guilty about writing in the middle of the night while my husband was sleeping!

3. Recognize that the only thing you may be able to change is your attitude. I am continually amazed at airline passengers who lose their tempers at counter clerks who can do nothing about airplane maintenance or weather. It doesn't fix the plane or the weather, and everyone suffers. One of the most moving stories I ever read was of a Japanese prisoner of war who was assigned to work all day every day in a sewer. In the beginning he feared he could not survive, until he came up with a plan. He decided to pretend that he was in the garden with Jesus. Everyday he thanked God that he didn't have to suffer the indignity in front of others, and that he was able to be alone with the Master in this beautiful garden.

4. Ask yourself if your struggle is really necessary. Oftentimes we put ourselves in situations, and then complain because we're so miserable. Yogi Berra's infinite wisdom "If the people don't want to come out to the park, nobody's gonna stop them." is worth consideration. Trying to control situations over which we have no control is a bad investment, and detracts from our ability to tackle other issues where we could make a real difference. Accept the situation, and move on!

Many of us wish that all this change would go away - or at least slow down, but it's won't and it's not! Today may well be just a warm-up for the game ahead. Tomorrow promises an even more complex work and a still faster rate of change. A Brazilian proverb states "It will all turn out in the end. If it doesn't, it isn't the end yet!" Isn't that comforting? Think of how many times it's been true in your own life. My own belief in God's plan assures me that it will indeed turn out all right in the end. Use the opportunity of crisis or change to identify the areas of life that you need to organize more effectively, so that you will have the ability to recover from whatever life throws your way. Organizing always helps - even in the hurricanes of life.