Mental Toughness is so much more than just hard out, full-on grunt, and brute force. Mental Toughness requires the individual to have control of their attention and emotions, remain optimistic and hopeful, and resist the impulse to lay down in the face of obstacles. This presents the fourth in our series on Mental Toughness.
Let’s break this down; having control of your attention and emotions allows you to have mastery over your emotions and stress levels. You don’t fly off the handle, you don’t lose the plot in stressful situations, you can experience being in ‘flow’ so much easier and you will definitely experience more satisfaction in life!
Sounds like a great reason to get in control of your emotions!!! It all begins with mindset.
Mental Toughness is about taking control of your mindset!
To ignite your genius of Mental Toughness, we must have the capacity to be adaptive in our thoughts, emotions and actions. To be adaptive and awaken our Mental Toughness within, we must first have thought patterns that are conscious, purposeful and intentional. Our thought patterns are one of the very few things in life we have control over. This is exciting because when we have conscious, purposeful and intentional thought patterns, this empowers us as human beings to control the ‘inside game’.
We cannot control what others think or feel about us. However, we definitely have the power to control our own thoughts. This is the gamechanger right here!
When we take control of what is rightfully ours… our thoughts, we are able to push-on through failures, tough times or disappointments, overcome the daily grind with calm, and keep going forward with momentum in a way that serves us.
Mental Toughness is definitely an ‘inside game’.
Mental Toughness is the thing that differentiates the good from the great! We can all learn a skill, attain a qualification, and gain knowledge, BUT Mental Toughness is the ability saved for the few who wish to gain an edge and become ‘great’ at who they BE.
The way to BE great, to develop and sustain Mental Toughness demands the creation and consistent implementation of Pre-performance routines. Remembering that the use of imagery and an unwavering conscious application of positive self-talk (discussed in Blog #2) are also vital when instigating effective routines.
Pre-performance routines:
This is when you create a series of behaviours, rituals, or habits that are always carried out before the ‘event’ so that it sets you up to be confident and successful.
For example, before doing a conference presentation double check all setup processes and instructions for accessing the streaming platform, set your environment up to enhance the best version of you, have your positive self-talk statements and repeat them before the event, get your water, go toilet, wear your favourite outfit or socks, do the familiar behaviours that you would usually do.
These routines reduce decision making at the time, save energy, and decrease stress. They help us to trust the process and not focus completely on the outcome. Routines decrease self-doubt, increase confidence, and enhance emotional control.
This practice is vital to gain the edge and BE great in all aspects of your life!
In STEMM, the focus is so often on improving knowledge and information, however, the top 5% are the ones gaining the edge with their Mental Toughness and have solid pre-performance routines in place.
Be the one who rises up in the face of adversity and commits whole heartedly to BE-ing mentally tough!