Day 336 of 365 - Tough Enough?
When I think about mental toughness, my first impression is the ability to grin and bear it. Apparently, there is more to it than that, from a psychological research perspective. An article about a questionnaire to assess your mental toughness caught my attention. My initial reaction was a negative one as I was thinking it was going to be yet something else about putting additional pressure on ourselves to excel and achieve high societal expectations for performance. Frankly, I feel like a lot of us have had to tough it out for far too long, with unhealthy consequences.
However, research has linked higher levels of mental toughness with being better able to cope with stress and less likely to be depressed. I was interested in reading more about what their definition of mental toughness entails.
A psychology researcher, Peter Clough, characterizes mental toughness as being a composite of four components, all beginning with the letter C. First there is Challenge, referring to how we reframe obstacles as opportunities for growth. Second, there is Commitment, referring to persistence despite setbacks. Third, there is Control, which refers to mechanisms for coping with stress and regulating emotions. Fourth, there is Confidence, referring to approaching challenges with confidence that you can overcome them. There is an emphasis on positivity and empowerment.
A related researcher, Kostas Papageorgiou, comments that there is usually societal pressure to be modest about our attributes, lest we be perceived as narcissistic. He advises that when we find out what we are good at, that we not be modest about it, and that we address challenges with confidence and the desire to take control of our life. He recommends evaluating opportunities against our own standards and skills rather than blindly accepting societal norms.
So, what kinds of statements are on the mental toughness questionnaire? They are ones related to how we react under pressure, our attitude towards life in general, and our sense of control. It provides an opportunity to look at strengths and areas for growth. Mental toughness is believed to be something that is trainable and is not set in stone.
Having read all that, I can now see that mental toughness can be a powerful attribute to resisting the societal trends that may run counter to our own personal desires and tendencies. Fostering mental toughness could give us confidence to say no to expectations which are unrealistic. It gives us more choice in where we opt to direct our energies and commitment to life on our own terms, rather than what might be expected.
I think I could use mental toughness to support my desire to promote health and vitality in myself and my peers in the senior age category. We can use it to challenge the stereotypes around getting older. Despite the setbacks that can come with aging, we can define our lives as seniors as opportunities to shift the societal expectations of being 'less than' in so many ways, to one of being diverse, adaptive and contributing individuals who know how to live our lives in a way that best supports our strengths and needs.
However, research has linked higher levels of mental toughness with being better able to cope with stress and less likely to be depressed. I was interested in reading more about what their definition of mental toughness entails.
A psychology researcher, Peter Clough, characterizes mental toughness as being a composite of four components, all beginning with the letter C. First there is Challenge, referring to how we reframe obstacles as opportunities for growth. Second, there is Commitment, referring to persistence despite setbacks. Third, there is Control, which refers to mechanisms for coping with stress and regulating emotions. Fourth, there is Confidence, referring to approaching challenges with confidence that you can overcome them. There is an emphasis on positivity and empowerment.
A related researcher, Kostas Papageorgiou, comments that there is usually societal pressure to be modest about our attributes, lest we be perceived as narcissistic. He advises that when we find out what we are good at, that we not be modest about it, and that we address challenges with confidence and the desire to take control of our life. He recommends evaluating opportunities against our own standards and skills rather than blindly accepting societal norms.
So, what kinds of statements are on the mental toughness questionnaire? They are ones related to how we react under pressure, our attitude towards life in general, and our sense of control. It provides an opportunity to look at strengths and areas for growth. Mental toughness is believed to be something that is trainable and is not set in stone.
Having read all that, I can now see that mental toughness can be a powerful attribute to resisting the societal trends that may run counter to our own personal desires and tendencies. Fostering mental toughness could give us confidence to say no to expectations which are unrealistic. It gives us more choice in where we opt to direct our energies and commitment to life on our own terms, rather than what might be expected.
I think I could use mental toughness to support my desire to promote health and vitality in myself and my peers in the senior age category. We can use it to challenge the stereotypes around getting older. Despite the setbacks that can come with aging, we can define our lives as seniors as opportunities to shift the societal expectations of being 'less than' in so many ways, to one of being diverse, adaptive and contributing individuals who know how to live our lives in a way that best supports our strengths and needs.
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