THE BASIS OF MENTAL STRENGTH Imagine a man who feels nervous about social situations. To minimize his anxiety, he avoids starting conversations with his coworkers. The less he speaks with his coworkers, the less they initiate conversation with him. When he enters the break room and passes people in the hallway without anyone speaking to him, he thinks, I must be socially awkward. The more he thinks about how awkward he is, the more nervous he feels about starting conversations. As his anxiety increases, his desire to avoid his coworkers also increases. This results in a self-perpetuating cycle. To understand mental strength, you have to learn how your thoughts, behaviors, and feelings are all intertwined, often working together to create a dangerous downward spiral as in the preceding example. This is why developing mental strength requires a threepronged approach: 1.
Thoughts—Identifying irrational thoughts and replacing them with more realistic thoughts.
2.
Behaviors—Behaving in a positive manner despite the circumstances.
3.
Emotions—Controlling your emotions so your emotions don’t control you. We hear it all the time: “Think positive.” But optimism alone isn’t