Sun Tzu noted that “victorious warriors win first” in the
mind before going to battle. Our society prizes physical strength while
neglecting the significance of mental strength and its role in our happiness and
success in our careers and in our relationships with others.
In addition to your physical health, pay attention to your
mental health and strength by implementing the following practices.
Be clear on your purpose. What is your “why”? What gets you
up in the morning and motivates you? To be mentally healthy it is crucial to
have a strong and clear sense of what you bring to the world and how you can
use your strengths and skills to make the world a better place. This will give
you focus as you consider career options and enables you to keep your purpose
in mind when going through the inevitable difficult times.
Train your thoughts. We all have negative thoughts and it’s
impossible to completely banish them but mentally strong people have developed
strategies for dealing with them when encountered. These strategies can include
a daily meditation practice, time spent in prayer, or the repetition of an
affirming mantra. Training your thoughts also means to “win first” by
visualizing events, such as that big speech or presentation at work, and
working through a positive outcome in your mind , anticipating challenges and
meeting them successfully.
Step into discomfort and tackle difficult tasks. Hug the
monster. Embrace hard and scary things. Volunteer to lead the project or agree
to give that speech. Make the phone call that makes you nervous. Start your
morning with a cold shower. Walk instead of driving. Try something new and make
mistakes.
Take full responsibility. This can be difficult and is an
underappreciated aspect of mental strength. However, mentally strong people do
not blame others for their failures or struggles. They take ownership of their
lives and use failure as a motivation to learn more and work harder and
smarter.
Surround yourself with mentally strong people. To develop
mental strength, you need mentally strong people in your life. This might not
be the people who are physically present in your life on a daily basis. You
might need to seek out a mentor or adviser to meet with regularly, or find
podcasts or audio books by wise men and women. Of course, read books and essays
that build your mental strength. There are many creative ways to discover and
surround ourselves with the counsel of a mentally strong community.
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