'Challenge accepted!'

In the sitcom How I Met Your Mother, Barney Stinson has two words he repeatedly says which can actually be inspiring. No, I am not referring to "suit up." Those two words: CHALLENGE ACCEPTED. Whether it's trying to accomplish a list of things he is too old to do or trying to pick up a woman whilst talking like a little boy or by wearing overalls, Barney boldly says "challenge accepted" when people say something can't be done.

These words have me thinking that "challenge accepted" is a good way of approaching things. We can look at problems hurled our way as challenges we need to face head on and eventually accomplish. Why not look at things as 'challenges', the way they're defined in the dictionary? "Call to engage in a contest or combat."

When an instructor says "You can not pass in my class if you don't perform well in the prelims and midterms," just say CHALLENGE ACCEPTED.

When somebody says "You'll never  find The One," smirk and say CHALLENGE ACCEPTED.

When your family says "You won't get rich as an artist..." CHALLENGE ACCEPTED.

When a friend says "I can't lose weight properly," take the thing she or he can't do and show her or him that it's possible by saying "challenge accepted."

And the phrase even applies to the smallest, sometimes funniest of things, as these comic strips from F*ck Yeah Challenge Accepted at Tumblr show:

Difficulties are inevitable in life. So the next time you find yourself in one, don't say "Why me?" Instead, just say "CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!" And after that, you can simply say: CHALLENGE COMPLETED.