Have you wondered how mentally strong you are? How does one know if we are truly mentally strong? While attempting to disarm an underwater mine, a Navy diver finds his arms and legs immovable as a result of a line encircling his body. In the story presented in the book “The Mentally Strong Leader” by Scott Mautz, the diver begins by calming himself and thinking positively about what his options are, not about what he cannot do. In so doing, the diver realizes that he can move his fingers and begins slowly to work to free his hands, then his arms and then completely frees himself. Author Scott Mautz states “A mentally strong leader is one with the ability to regulate their emotions, thoughts, and behaviors to achieve exceptional outcomes, despite circumstances. They manage internally, so they can lead externally. They’re a calm port in the storm, in control of themselves and their environment, somehow getting sharper when adversity arises, brandishing self-discipline and endurance as a beacon of light.” According to Mautz, having the ability to cultivate and proactively promote mental strength is the superpower.
How do we build metal strength as we go through difficult times? Maurtz suggestes that in a moment of weakness where we would would find ourself panicking in the middle of a high-pressure situation, our thoughts likey will be racing, and few of these thoughts will be good. Mautz suggest that we stop, pause, and ask ourselves, “Are my thoughts helping me right now?” The idea is to break the distracting spiral of negativity and calm yourself”.
The first step in becoming mentally strong is not necessarily to prevent the occurrence of negative thoughts, the important step is to achieve control of our thoughts and move to positive thoughts that focus on how we CAN overcome the challenge before us.