Mental Toughness and Perseverance

Image from thebohomama.com

Mental / emotional toughness vs. spirituality are different, yet related. So let’s tease those out.

• What does mental toughness mean? My favorite definition is “a collection of attributes that allow a person to persevere through difficult circumstances and emerge without losing confidence”. In other words – grit!
• What about spirituality? To me, spirituality is searching for the ‘sacred’ or finding meaning in life.

Can you have mental toughness without a spiritual context? While I think that the answer is ‘yes’. I give that answer with some trepidation. Why? In order to persevere – you have to know that there is something beyond yourself – otherwise, too often, we give up. We say ‘who cares’; ‘it doesn’t matter’; ‘it’s not worth the fight’.

Sound familiar? It does to me!

I am going to be non-denominational here, but – in true transparency – I am a born again Christian who doesn’t have a religious bone in her body. I have a strong belief that I live out on a daily basis and I find that to be sufficient in my current path.

This post is not about proselytizing – but, rather it is about being part of something bigger, something beyond ourselves.

Ask yourself these questions in order to build your mental toughness and confidence:

Question 1: Where do I bail when the going gets tough? Do I question my competence? Does my confidence lags?

• We all have self-doubt. But those feelings of inadequacy and remembering past disappointments won’t serve us if we want to move forward in life.
• Ask yourself the question: “What can I do if I am willing to learn and put in the effort?” Have a real heart to heart with yourself and come up with an action plan that will take you, bit by bit, to your dreams. After all, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Question 2: What IS my belief system and how does it relate to my mental toughness?

• Again, I am not proselytizing here – but, what do you believe and why? Do you feel that there are things that are greater than you and that you feel are either aligned with, or want to feel aligned with? Is it something Divine, being surrounded by nature, family, what is it?
• How does your belief system impact your desire to persevere?

Question 3: Are there things that I can do to align myself to something greater than me?

• Examples can include prayer, meditation, reading spiritual texts (like the Bible, the Tao Te Ching etc.), listening to enlightening podcasts, taking walks in nature.
• Or, how about helping others through such activities as Habitat For Humanity or other charities.

Question 4: What actions can I take to create more meaning in my life? What can hold me back?

• We all want to feel that our lives have meaning, this is a basic human drive. So, if you feel that you need to step up the game – what do you need to do?
• Do you need to learn something new? How do you condition yourself to be courageous?
• How do you break the old conditioning and excuses to create the life you want? Quit self-sabotaging because, it doesn’t serve you.

Question 5: Am I willing to journal to catch these ‘A Ha moments’. If so, when? If you don’t like to journal – how do you keep these thoughts in the forefront?

• I personally love to journal, and it doesn’t have to be pages and pages. Rather – write down certain behaviors or thoughts that you catch yourself doing or feeling. Do these habits serve you? If not, what is behind them?

Our lives are meant to be masterpieces. Let’s promise to do all we can to show the world our true potential and provide a positive impact to others.