The Can Do Mentality

DO OR DIE

Having the strength to leave a fun environment, to then embark on an arduous 3hr bus replacement journey back home from Brighton at 6am after having no sleep - to sit in a hot classroom for 5 hours and try to learn with a foggy hangover - all felt pretty tortuous this morning. 

Most would think this was a nightmare endurance feat. A lot would likely not do it and even if they did, would struggle to get themselves back on track for days after. Yet here I am back on the train, ready for the next two nights of drunken debauchary and actually feeling ok. 

I'd made a commitment to take on a massive 4 day stag-do with my first yoga instructor lesson falling slap bang in the middle. The timing for these two opposing events couldn't have been any worse but I'd made a commitment to myself to get the best of both worlds. I couldn't let down my yoga teacher or my best mate. I'd also be letting myself down and I couldn't live with that so I opted for a day of struggle instead. It was tough, but there are far tougher challenges in the world. All it took for me to accomplish this feat, was to keep a can-do mindset. 

Marathon Monks

The Marathon Monks have a very real life or death commitment to keep. They need to stick with their decision to take the challenge of running the equivalent of about 1000 marathons over seven years. Because they either complete the arduous challenge which escalates their status to that of a supreme enlightened guru - or they must take their own life if they fail. 

So what does it teach us about commitment? Most of our decisions are hardly life and death matters but if they matter that much, then we need to stick to them. And if it means enduring a few hours schlepping across country on our poor public transport services or getting through a day or two of feeling ropey, one needs to think of these monks running marathons daily and how easy we have everything in relation to all those who have hardships daily in their lives. 

Knowledge Is Power

THE POWER IS IN OUR HANDS

The power to gain knowledge is within reach for us all. Great scholars and free thinkers have dedicated their lives to gathering information and writing it down for all to read. If we want to get our hands on these great writings, it's all out there - thousands upon thousands of words waiting for us to look at in books and on the Internet. If we want that knowledge & power, it just means reading and digesting a lot of information. 

There's so much great stuff out there to learn and I could quite happily do nothing but soak up knowledge every day, except there's so much else that also needs to be done and it's about finding the quality time to go it. 

20 Pages Per Day

So, the smartest way to get through so many of these books, is to allocate time around the other important tasks and chores. I've been making a pact with myself to read at least 20 pages of a book a day, which can be tough at the crack of dawn and equally at the end of the day when the eyes are tired but if we stick to certain times - it makes it easier to stay on track with a daly routine.

Training The Eyes

One trick I've learned, is to train my weaker eye. My left eye does most of the work and my right - which is perfect but lazy, cannot see the words as easily or as clearly so it doesn't get much use. To get it fired up in the morning, I bought a beautiful aged leather eye patch off Etsy and wear it in the mornings when reading my 20 pages. I now have a much stronger right eye and don't have to squint my left eye shut - avoiding headache-inducing tension from holding one eye closed.  

Robot Reader

Another technique I'm using is to turn on the built-in iPhone dictation tool. There's a better quality version that you can download called Alex, which adds the breath and pauses, making it seem more natural. It's not perfect, but considering the audiobooks are usually over £10+ you can get the iBook, ebook, kindle or web pages read out while cycling, on the tube, in the car or lying down resting your eyes - that way the daily total pages go up considerably and the quest for genius becomes ever more closer!

Testing The Metal

ALTERNATIVE STRENGTH TRAINING

Training for an endurance event and want to harden the resolve? Try a festival. Cutting down on food intake and jumping around in a hilly field with no sleep for 3 days straight will test the strength of body. This, combined with a bit of time invested at the gym, will help with your half/full marathons, sprint triathlons and any Tough Guy equivalent assault courses. 

But, after all this weekend revelry, if you can then push through the day after to perform a tough 6am start doing intense boxing training - when the mind is saying no, stay in bed - that will really prove you have the strength of character to take on an iron man race, euro event or ultra marathon. I truly believe that after this morning's boxing session. 

We All Need A Little Help

DONT BE AFRAID TO ASK

We can't be masters of everything we do and we aren't always the best placed person to make the right decisions.

If there's something we need help with, many people would rather convince themselves that they can handle a situation rather than seek help. This is even more the case when it comes to discussing our personal life with an advisor or professional therapist.

We could all do with opening up a bit more to discuss our concerns, worries and dilemmas. It's good to talk. Yet, a lot of us - especially men, will never admit to having a weakness, preferring to bottle up their feelings, where they fester away, until they can't be contained any more.

It's really ok to speak with an expert but if we just can't make that step - the next best solution is to write our feelings down. The very act of writing, will help to purge the thoughts that are making us feel anxious, fearful and vulnerable. And when these words are out there, they can be measured and action taken to fix the issues or the much needed help can be sought after. 

Rising To The Challenge

TOUGHEN UP

Rising to the challenge every morning has taken on an extra meaning for me these days. Getting out of bed to do something physically challenging like boxing - before most have even thought about getting out of bed, has given me a new strength of character and ability to take a lot of lesser taxing challenges on the chin without a wobble, throughout the day. 

Agreeing to commit to this morning's challenge with my boxing trainer and most importantly - keeping this commitment with myself - when I could so very easily have taken a few more hours in bed, has meant other aspects in my life have also been set in concrete. It's tough training but by following it through consistently and always taking the challenge, means other tough challenges have also been risen up to - and taken face on. 

Daily Discomfort

My partner and I now stick to a morning exercise routine every day - come rain or shine. It's usually at 5.30am and involves some tough physical challenges like sustained planks. Sometimes, after a late night with a little too much alcohol involved, it can make this challenge even more uncomfortable than it usually is. It's on these occasions that the extra effort to complete these exercises really strengthens our resolve. By sticking to the plan even though the mind has been telling us not to and having discomfort at such an early point in the day - lays down strong foundations for dealing with whatever the rest of the day throw at us. Chances are, as the discomfort becomes tolerated enough over time, a toughness will be built up meaning everything following on from that will feel like a breeze in comparison!

Continue Onwards

PUSH THROUGH FOR BIGGER REWARDS

I've been feeling a little below par the last couple of days. I've been having some fun - so maybe the focus has dropped a little... Truth be told, the previous couple of weekends have been a little boozy, so I'm a tad run down, tired and struggling to find motivation. My resolve is at a low ebb when it needs to be strong. Now is a key time for me to step up working towards something new and great. The last 6 months have all been in the right direction for me to do this and there's still a lot more work to do if I'm going to get there. It's just that the goals, which are temporarily out of sight, don't feel within my grasp at this moment in time. But, I know in my heart, that they will be again once I turn the next corner and if I choose to stay on this right path.

Looking this morning at great feats others have achieved in their lives, I've stumbled across another apt post from James Clear - someone who's been writing a blog consistently for 2 years and who's become somewhat of an inspiration for me (and many others). Yet again, his writing has come at the perfect time to help nudge me on when I could so easily have downed tools this morning and allowed my goals to slip.

When Success Is Just Around The Next Corner
It's great having someone to nudge us on/motivate us - but we can do this ourselves too. We just need to remind ourselves of why continuing onwards will bring the solutions and this can easily be achieved by simply revisiting a time of where we've had our previous successes.

I've just been thinking back to the past moments when I've pushed through in times of doubt. And there's been quite a few instances jumping to mind where I've convinced myself and others to keep going that bit further. So many people in this situation don't make it. they don't push on nd don't have the success to fall back on and remind them. Just knowing I can be in that other small group that do push on - spurs me on every time to attempt success. It's funny how it always seems so hard to do at the time yet so insignificant looking back after the event has finished. And it's also worth remembering that it's always those extra pushes past the comfort zone that make for the best rewards.

Challenge Signifies A Reward
I've just realised that this moment in time is the greatest moment to be in! Already, my mood has lifted, because I know how it feels to go on when your mind or others tell you to stop or turn back. I've been here before. It's amazing how much sweeter the successes feels pushing on to the end when you falsely believe you can't go on any further. It's that last little bit between being an almost made it - to the person that's crossing the finish line, where the greatest benefits are found in everything we do. We all potentially have the strength to apply ourselves that extra bit, to make that last push towards the goal which is out of sight, but so close and just around the next corner.

Fresh Challenges

EVOLUTIONARY CHALLENGES

Whenever we set ourselves a fitness and performance challenge, we need to factor in a time scale to work within. If the challenge has no indicated limit, how can we measure our progress over that time frame properly? And how can we gauge the intensity of the challenge against our progress to set up the next challenge?

We evolve over time. Our bodies adapt and grow stronger with a focussed training schedule. It takes a maximum 4-5 weeks to adjust to a training schedule. By the fourth week, the progress & results over a month will give us a much clearer understanding of what our bodies are capable of and help us set up a new higher level for the challenges to come.

To see this phenomenon in operation, try the 100 press-ups in 6 weeks challenge.

Standing Up For Yourself

BEAT THE BULLIES

Bullying is ugly and it happens more than you realise. You'll probably think back to that bigger kid at school as the last time you felt it but it comes in many forms. It can be from groups of people, your boss, government agencies, even people closest to you like your parents/children or husband/wife. It's really not nice when you are on the receiving end and if left un-challenged, can really wear you down and destroy your self-esteem/confidence to the point of no return. Bullies favour the weaker push-over, so to win - you have to stand up to them.

My First Time
I was quite popular at junior school. It was a decent school and I got on with pretty much everyone that I can remember. There were the odd occasions where I'd had to stand up to a bit of abuse but it was usually handled by a teacher and never amounted to much. It was only when I attended senior (secondary) school that the real bullying took place. It was evident that the differences in backgrounds from the many kids - some of them from tough areas of London, were able to handle a lot more abuse than the soft-skinned types like myself. When you're a 13 year old boy, you're going through a lot of changes physically, mentally & emotionally. One minute you're playing on your BMX bike - then suddenly, you're faced with making decisions for making the switch from boy to man.

My switch happened almost overnight. I'd been a studious kid and my grades were good, so I sat with the other kids that were willing to learn. This put me on the receiving end of some unwanted attention from the back of the class, from some of the kids that were known to be bullies. Suddenly, I was in the cross fire of one particular boy, aptly named Damien. He used to punch, trip, kick, spit on and generally hassle myself and the other bookie/studious types. Coming from a family of five older brothers and being about six months older, meant he was a lot tougher and bigger. One day, he'd been particularly savage with his antics and the 'camel back-breaking' moment came after a cowardly punch in my kidneys. I'll never forget the feeling as I turned, grabbed him by the throat, pushed him over a desk and punched him in the eye in front of the whole class. While I don't condone violence - this was likely the only retort to work with this abusive kid. He was so shocked that I'd retaliated with such force, that he took ages to register what had happened. Once he'd come back to his senses and witnessed everyone looking on, he regained some composure and threatened to 'kill' me. But as I stared back at him, looking squarely in his newly blackened eye, I could already see, his power over me had gone.

Standing Tall
If we do nothing to stand up to our bullies, they will take over our lives. They will drain your power and erase your self-confidence. From the day after facing my fear of standing up to the bully, my stature changed. I grew. I became respected. I became powerful and the bully shrank away. He lost his influence to stike fear in others and ended up being one of the bullied himself. I hope he finally addressed his insecurities and grew strong again, learning from his experience and using his new powers to help rather than hinder others going forward.

Career Off Track
I now find I'm in a similar situation with a career change looming. I'm fearful of the future but excited for what it may bring. I'm holding in my core that feeling I had when I turned to face my demon and will relish the power I'll have after tackling it face-on.