--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When faced with a challenge, happy…" description: "\"When faced with a challenge, happy families, like happy people, just add a new chapter to their life story that shows them overcoming the hardship. Thi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cd/bruce-feiler-8058_add_when-faced-with-a-challenge-happy-famili_818881.png" --- # When faced with a challenge, happy families, like happy… ![“When faced with a challenge, happy families, like happy people, just add a new chapter to their life story that shows them overcoming the hardship. This skill is particularly important for children, whose identity tends to get locked in during adolescence.” quote by Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cd/bruce-feiler-8058_add_when-faced-with-a-challenge-happy-famili_818881.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cd/bruce-feiler-8058_add_when-faced-with-a-challenge-happy-famili_818881.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9cd/bruce-feiler-8058_add_when-faced-with-a-challenge-happy-famili_818881.png) > “When faced with a challenge, happy families, like happy people, just add a new chapter to their life story that shows them overcoming the hardship. This skill is particularly important for children, whose identity tends to get locked in during adolescence.” [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Families overcome hardship by adding new chapters to their narrative, teaching resilience especially to adolescents. **In simple terms:** Add new chapters to overcome hardship. Key Takeaway Encourage narrative growth in challenges. Themes resilience family adolescence Mood hopeful supportive Type inspirational practical When to use this quote - parenting - school counseling - community support - personal journaling Key Concepts Narrative therapy psychological development Questions to Reflect On - How can families rewrite their story? - What role does storytelling play in healing? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on narrative may ignore systemic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Add](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/add/) [Adolescence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adolescence/) [Challenge Happy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/challenge-happy-356594/) [Challenges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/challenges/) [Chapters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chapters/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Children Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children-identity-356593/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Happy Families](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-families-356592/) [Happy family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-family/) [Happy people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-people/) [Hardship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hardship/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-story/) [Locked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/locked/) [Locked Adolescence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/locked-adolescence-356595/) [New chapter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-chapter/) [Overcoming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overcoming/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Shows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shows/) [Skills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skills/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/all-happy-families-are-alike-each-unhappy-family-is-unhappy-in-its/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [I don’t believe in happy families,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/i-don-t-believe-in-happy-families/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“All happy families resemble one another, but each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way, and when it comes to the Holiday Season,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marisha-pessl/all-happy-families-resemble-one-another-but-each-unhappy-family-is/) [Marisha Pessl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marisha-pessl/) > [“Happiness needs nothing but itself; it doesn't have to be validated. Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-koch/happiness-needs-nothing-but-itself-it-doesn-t-have-to-be-validated-2/) [Herman Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-koch/) > [Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/happy-families-are-all-alike-every-unhappy-family-is-unhappy-in-its/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [All happy families resemble one another, each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/all-happy-families-resemble-one-another-each-unhappy-family-is/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [When Tolstoy wrote that all happy families are alike, what he meant was that there are no happy families.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cheever/when-tolstoy-wrote-that-all-happy-families-are-alike-what-he-meant/) [Susan Cheever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cheever/) > [Happy families do have certain things in common. Today we finally have the knowledge to know what those things are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/happy-families-do-have-certain-things-in-common-today-we-finally-have/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [Even injustice has it's good points. It gives me the challenge of being as happy as I can in an unfair world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/even-injustice-has-it-s-good-points-it-gives-me-the-challenge-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The greatest challenge in life is to discover who you are and the second greatest challenge is being happy, what you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anil-sinha/the-greatest-challenge-in-life-is-to-discover-who-you-are-and-the/) [Anil Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anil-sinha/) > [The greatest challenge in life is to discover yourself. The second greatest challenge is to be happy with what you deserve and what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anil-sinha/the-greatest-challenge-in-life-is-to-discover-yourself-the-second/) [Anil Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anil-sinha/) > [“life is a roller coaster. it has ups and downs but the challenge is to be happy throughout the way… <3 <3”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tashi-sharma/life-is-a-roller-coaster-it-has-ups-and-downs-but-the-challenge-is-to/) [Tashi Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tashi-sharma/) > [Decades of research have shown that most happy families communicate effectively. But talking doesn't mean simply 'talking through problems,' as important as that is.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/decades-of-research-have-shown-that-most-happy-families-communicate/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [When you hit the unimaginable, the only answer is imaginativeness. You have to heal with the person that you're suffering with. You have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/when-you-hit-the-unimaginable-the-only-answer-is-imaginativeness-you/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [Love is a story we tell with another person. It's cocreation through conarration. When you hit bumps in the road and challenges, you write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/love-is-a-story-we-tell-with-another-person-it-s-cocreation-through/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) ## More by Bruce Feiler > [Moses became America's true founding father because he evangelized action; he justified risk. 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Adam, in tasting the fruit, indicates that he prefers Eve to God, so God banishes them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/but-humans-disappoint-adam-in-tasting-the-fruit-indicates-that-he/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [The way to tell a really big story, I think, is to tell a really small story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/the-way-to-tell-a-really-big-story-i-think-is-to-tell-a-really-small/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [The key idea of agile is that teams essentially manage themselves. ... It works in software, and it turns out that it works with kids.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/the-key-idea-of-agile-is-that-teams-essentially-manage-themselves-it/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [The bottom line: if you want a happier family, create, refine and retell the story of your family's positive moments and your ability to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/the-bottom-line-if-you-want-a-happier-family-create-refine-and-retell/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [Knowing more about family history is the single biggest predictor of a child's emotional well-being. Grandparents can play a special role in this process,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/knowing-more-about-family-history-is-the-single-biggest-predictor-of/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [“A meta-analysis of sixty-six studies completed in 1992 found that mothers who have more support from grandmothers have less stress and more well-adjusted children.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/a-meta-analysis-of-sixty-six-studies-completed-in-1992-found-that/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [The bottom line: If you want a happier family, bring those skeletons out of the closet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/the-bottom-line-if-you-want-a-happier-family-bring-those-skeletons/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [I think that most of the action in religion is around the home, is in families, and is in individual lives, and they can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/i-think-that-most-of-the-action-in-religion-is-around-the-home-is-in/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [My name is Bruce Feiler, and I'm an explainaholic. I first heard this word used to describe Isaac Asimov, and I knew instantly that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/my-name-is-bruce-feiler-and-i-m-an-explainaholic-i-first-heard-this/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [When I was growing up, I, like many Jews, cheered what appeared to be the receding of faith from everyday life. The further religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/when-i-was-growing-up-i-like-many-jews-cheered-what-appeared-to-be/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [You don't need a grand plan, you don't need to go back to the ancestors and rewrite the rules. 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They subtract one from the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-fleming/most-marriages-don-t-add-two-people-together-they-subtract-one-from/) [Ian Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-fleming/) > [Friendship, "the wine of life," should, like a well-stocked cellar, be continually renewed; and it is consolatory to think, that although we can seldom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-boswell/friendship-the-wine-of-life-should-like-a-well-stocked-cellar-be/) [James Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-boswell/) > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. 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The well-adapted drop off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elias-canetti/a-modern-man-has-nothing-to-add-to-modernism-if-only-because-he-has/) [Elias Canetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elias-canetti/) > [Observation and theory get on best when they are mixed together, both helping one another in the pursuit of truth. It is a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-eddington/observation-and-theory-get-on-best-when-they-are-mixed-together-both/) [Arthur Eddington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-eddington/) > [I may add that we have more than once stated our willingness to conclude nonaggression pacts with the states neighboring our own!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/i-may-add-that-we-have-more-than-once-stated-our-willingness-to/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [The American Constitution declares 'All men are born equal.' The British Socialist Party add: 'All men must be kept equal'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/the-american-constitution-declares-all-men-are-born-equal-the-british/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [New generations of humans inherit the acquired discoveries of generations past, allowing cosmic insight to accumulate without limit. Each discovery of science therefore adds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/new-generations-of-humans-inherit-the-acquired-discoveries-of/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [Thirty days is just about the right amount of time to add a new habit or subtract a habit - like watching the news…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-cutts/thirty-days-is-just-about-the-right-amount-of-time-to-add-a-new-habit/) [Matt Cutts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-cutts/) > [In presenting a mathematical argument the great thing is to give the educated reader the chance to catch on at once to the momentary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-edensor-littlewood/in-presenting-a-mathematical-argument-the-great-thing-is-to-give-the/) [John Edensor Littlewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-edensor-littlewood/) > [The Greeks said grandly in their tragic phrase, 'Let no one be called happy till his death;' to which I would add, 'Let no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-barrett-browning/the-greeks-said-grandly-in-their-tragic-phrase-let-no-one-be-called/) [Elizabeth Barrett Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-barrett-browning/) > [Mostly we just add to the piles of rainbow glass that's been blown off the exteriors of the cany-colored buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/mostly-we-just-add-to-the-piles-of-rainbow-glass-that-s-been-blown/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [Global is a unifying bond for people. Once they get outside their own heads and their own communities and see themselves in a broader…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-calvin/global-is-a-unifying-bond-for-people-once-they-get-outside-their-own/) [Kathy Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-calvin/) [Browse all 2,710 Add quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/add/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When faced with a challenge, happy families, like happy people, just add a new chapter to their life story that shows them overcoming the hardship. 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