A Former Navy SEAL Trainer Offers Mental Toughness Advice

“I was easy prey as a kid.” I was the chubby kid and crybaby who garnered the ire of bullies, who I would always shrink in front of “Andrew Whitman recounts. The kid who cowered, on the other hand, learned to bounce back and be strong. 

So much so that he grew up to become an adult who would one day be hired by the State Department to train the navy in DC and other special forces for high-risk diplomatic security missions. Resiliency and mental fortitude are essential ingredients for long-term success as an entrepreneur. If you don’t consider yourself tough, you might be able to change your mind today. According to Whitman, resiliency is a talent, not a personality trait, that anyone can master, even yourself.

1. Do a lot of the things you’re afraid of.

If you do it often enough, the thing that makes you nervous becomes second nature. It’s terrifying for a teenager to learn to drive on the interstate for the first time. Allow her to travel the six hours to Grandma’s house, and she’ll be over her fear within an hour or two. She’ll get bored to the point that she’ll play with the radio to keep awake.

2. Have a hero on your team.

The first million dollars are the most difficult to come by, but not for the reasons most people believe. It’s the most difficult since you’re not sure if you can accomplish it before you start. It’s simpler to do it again once you’ve done it the first time because you’ve previously done it. Choosing a role model and hero who has achieved the level of achievement you desire makes it simpler to believe you can achieve the same level of success. It has already been completed. What one individual is capable of, another is capable of.

3. Keep a close group of people in your life that you can trust.

More than just those you trust not to betray you by not airing your dirty laundry on the street make up a trustworthy inner circle. You require an inner group of individuals who will hold you accountable and then assist you in cleaning up your dirty laundry before it becomes a serious (public) issue.

4. Tell your wartime tales with pride.

Telling yourself aloud about all the times you survived adversity, illness, or tragedy helps to focus your mind and emotions on your achievements. Your conscious mind is reminded that you’ve dealt with challenges before and that it’ll be easier this time if you’ve done it before. Like the first million bucks, it’s already been done.

5. “I’ll try” is a phrase that should never be used.

Trying is a form of deception. Have you ever invited someone to a party and they stated that they would “try to make it”? Have they arrived? Most likely, they didn’t. Why? Because we use the term “tried” to give ourselves some leeway before using it. “Do or do not, there is no try,” Yoda stated.

6. Don’t be a chicken, but a pig.

The chicken is involved in the breakfast plate of bacon and eggs, but the pig is fully devoted. The resilient mind’s core is commitment; without it, humans would cut and run as soon as things get tough. In the 1500s, Hernando Cortes faced tremendous difficulties in his quest for Aztec treasure. He persuaded his men to go all in and commit. How? Giving inspiring and eloquent speeches? No, by destroying the ships and limiting the troops’ options for returning home. It was a huge success. A superpower with nearly 30,000 troops was defeated by 600 troops.

7. Never lose heart and never give up.

Fearlessness isn’t the same as courage. It is up to you to choose to overcome your fears. When you combine that with a quality that refuses to give up, the war is almost won from the start. Courage and perseverance are the superheroes of resilience, like Batman and Superman. A solution nearly always appears if you are brave enough to face hardship and persistent enough to find a way to stay in the fight long enough. What is it that you are most afraid of doing? What aspects of your life do you haven’t really devoted yourself to? Examine them for the ideal moment to begin your resiliency training.