Simply put, you can’t perform at your peak without a strong mindset. If you doubt yourself and continuously allow your inner critic to remind you of your self-perceived weakness and past mistakes, you will never be strong.
In an article by psychologist, Amy Morin, she shared how often she sees clients who are resistant to change and exhausting themselves worrying about things out of their control.
“It’s easy to feel mentally strong when life is going well. But sooner or later, you’ll reach a point when you need all the mental strength you can muster. …Everyday stressors such as traffic jams and disagreements with co-workers can wear you don if you aren’t actively and consistently building yourself up.”
She also shared the common trait within those who do habitually persevere and push through the blame and ongoing litany of excuses—they have an insatiable desire to build mental muscle.
Building muscle isn’t easy. Especially when you are building a mental muscle like resilience and perseverance because it’s often harder to measure and more challenging to sustain.
In the book Rejection Proof, author Jai Jiang goes on a yearlong journey purposely placing himself in a positions of rejection. He does so in order to build his muscle of resilience. While I don’t recommend that you do the same, I do recommend reading his book along with started to formulate the practice of building mental muscle.
Taking risks, even a seemingly smaller risk like speaking up in a meeting, is a great way to build mental muscle.
How to Be Career Happy? Build Mental Muscle