How to become mentally strong

Many people end up sabotaging themselves by letting minor issues affect their mindset. Over the years, I have realized that knowing how to grow mentally strong is the key to success. Knowing how to worry about things you can control and clearing your mind off your rest can not only make you a better person but also keep you happy.

Mental Strength is the capacity of an individual to deal effectively with stressors, pressures and challenges and perform to the best of their ability, irrespective of the circumstances in which they find themselves (Clough, 2002). Building mental strength is fundamental to living your best life. Just as we go to the gym and lift weights in order to build our physical muscles, we must also develop our mental health through the use of mental tools and techniques.

1. Challenge

This is the extent to which you are driven and adaptable. To be high on the Challenge scale means that you are driven to achieve your personal best, and you see challenges, change, and adversity as opportunities rather than threats; you are likely to be flexible and agile. To be low on the Challenge scale means that you might see change as a threat, and avoid novel or challenging situations out of fear of failure.

2. Confidence

This is the extent to which you believe in your ability to be productive and capable; it is your self-belief and the belief that you can influence others. To be high on the Confidence scale is to believe that you will successfully complete tasks, and to take setbacks in stride while maintaining routine and even strengthening your resolve. To be low on the
Confidence scale means that you are easily unsettled by setbacks, and do not believe that you are capable or have any influence over others. In short, learning how to grow mentally strong helps you in various aspects of your life.

3. Pause for 5 seconds before replying when angry

Anger as an emotion can drive a human being to unexpected reactions. Have you faced a situation where you said something and smacked your forehead thinking, “Why did I say that?”Anger can trigger an unnecessary comment or action which can ruin relationships. What you do or say in a fit of rage can be held against you forever. At times the damage is beyond repair too.

4. They still experience self-doubt

Big mental muscle doesn’t eliminate all self-doubt. But mentally strong people know they can’t trust everything they think. When they catch themselves questioning whether they can succeed, they respond to their self-doubt with some more helpful thoughts.

5. Learn more from the hard times than the good times

When you ask a strong person how they developed so much strength, they almost always share stories about their darkest days. Their pain becomes a powerful teacher that helps turn those struggles into strength.

6. Affirm Personal Responsibility

Accepting responsibility for your actions or mistakes is also part of building mental strength involves. If your student is trying to blame others for the way he/she thinks, feels or behaves, simply steer them away from excuses and allow for explanations.

7. Teach Emotion Regulation Skills

Instead of soothing or calming down your child every time they are upset, teach them how to deal with uncomfortable emotions on their own so that they don’t grow up depending on you to regulate their mood.

8. Stop blaming others

When things go wrong, blaming another person or the situation helps you boost your ego. If you do so, you overlook a fault in yourself. For example, let’s say you have a co-worker whom you don’t get along with. You believe his lack of support hampers your growth. Do you think the situation is completely the co-worker’s problem? Guess what? Your co-worker does not get along with you because of some of your behavior too.
Sometimes when a problem occurs, you realize halfway through that you were at fault too. But your ego prevents you from accepting your fault.

9. Keep learning

Mentally strong people don’t insist on being completely self-reliant all the time. They frequently talk about having a therapist. Or they eagerly acknowledge the friends and family members who inspire them. They walk into every situation expecting to learn something.

10. They admit when they don’t have all the answers

Mentally strong people aren’t ashamed to acknowledge when they don’t know an answer. They don’t put themselves down, and they don’t pretend to have information. Instead, they are up front when it comes to saying things like, “That’s not my area of expertise.”

11. Accept mistakes

For example, when your partner complains about you not giving enough time, you hit back with how you spend effort on the relationship. Accepting your mistake turns the situation into a healthy talk where you can talk about fixing the problem. Telling your partner that you have been busy and asking what could you do to change her opinion would help your relationship a great deal.

12. Practice active listening

When 2 people talk, both keep thinking about what to say next. During this thought, you miss listening to the other person’s point of view. Even if you do, you fail to process it enough. Listening to understand differs significantly from only listening

13. Be A Role Model for Mental Strength

There’s no better way to teach a child than by example. To encourage mental strength in your students or children, you must demonstrate mental strength. Show them that you make self-improvement a priority in your life, and talk about your goals and steps you take to grow stronger.

14. Be humble

Almost everyone I invite to be on the Mentally Strong People podcast says something like, “I won’t be the strongest person you’ve ever had. I still have some areas that need improvement.” They aren’t self-deprecating though. They are humble.

15. Appreciate people

No deaths have been reported due to a thank you ever because appreciating hurts no one. By taking a moment to thank people, you not only make the other person feel better but you also feel good about yourself.
Not always do you need a long conversation or a lengthy email to appreciate somebody. You can thank people on more subtle occasions. Appreciating a waiter at a restaurant with a smile will make his day. Thanking an Uber driver will cheer him up.