As a psychologist, one of the most common complaints I’ve heard since the start of the COVID pandemic (and even before the pandemic) was that employees wanted better mental wellness support. Unfortunately, way too many employers hear the same comments and responded with “You want mental wellness? No problem – here’s a casual Friday and a pizza party! Now, go back to work.”
Fortunately, corporations learn, as do individuals, and based on the lack of results and, in fact, an overall decline in the mental wellness of many people, there has been a really genuine thirst for approaches that work. While many corporations have found success with their more enlightened approach to mental wellness, one exceptionally valuable concept has often been overlooked, partially in North America. That concept is mental toughness.
Mental toughness, broadly defined, is how we can use our own self-knowledge to approach difficult situations and learn from both our successes and relative failures. A mentally tough individual is one who, when faced with a challenge, says’ “Okay, I’m willing to give this a try” as opposed to “That is way too much for me to deal with…so I’m not even going make an attempt.” The mentally tough individual thinks “Interesting, what have I learned from myself or others that will help me overcome this obstacle,” while those who are lacking in mental toughness may think “That obstacle is simply too much for me…so I’ll quit before I fail.”
And really, it’s pretty obvious who is going to find more relative success.
The advantage mental toughness has over more “pre-packaged/ manualized” self-help/ mental wellness enhancement programs is that it has its roots in philosophy extending back to the Ancient Greeks, while also having a robust body of contemporary research that supports its validity. The Mental Toughness Questionnaire (MTQ+), for instance, is a highly regarded psychometric measure that has been used to enhance individual and team performance. Researchers from the UK and continental Europe have found that mental toughness can account for up to 25% of the variability in individual performance.
Think on that for a moment.
If you could enhance your sales, your job satisfaction, your confidence by 25%, would you not consider that to be a success?
I have used the MTQ+ and introduced the “4C” model of mental toughness in educational and corporate organizations with considerable success. The 4Cs are best described with the following image:
There are a number of advantages for enhancing individual and team mental toughness.
- People with higher degrees of mental toughness tend to me more goal oriented and, as a result, are more successful in meeting their targets and take accountability both for their successes and their relative failures (which are not really “failures” as much as they are learning opportunities – as people in addictions often say, they are willing to accept AFLOs (“Another F---ing Learning Opportunity”!)
- Dealing with stress and stressful situations. Most work-related situations have the potential for stress. Mental toughness allows us to work through inevitable stressors in positive and meaningful ways.
- As noted, mental toughness can account for up to 25% of variation in performance. The greater the degree of mental toughness, the greater the potential for positive change which also keeps stressful situations from becoming overwhelming.
- A key component of mental toughness is a sense of control. People with higher degrees of mental toughness have more realistic expectations of what is within their control, and what is truly not under their control.
- Mentally tough individuals tend to be more assertive and less passive – and less aggressive – than others, resulting in more effective communication.
- People with higher degrees of mental toughness tent to stick with hard things, in part because they make commitments both to themselves and others.
- People who are mentally tough prepare more effectively for more varied situations and possibilities. They tend to hope for the best, but anticipate the worst.
- Mentally tough individuals have an excellent sense of self-awareness, resulting in more effective behaviour. They know their strengths and their challenges and capitalize on both.
- People with higher degrees of mental toughness tend to shoot high in terms of goals, while also helping those around them set realistic goals for themselves.
- Perhaps most importantly, mentally tough individuals have a desire to continuously improve – they are willing to commit and make sacrifices to deliver on promises.
So, in summary,
To enhance mental toughness, there are a few very basic strategies that can be implemented. For instance, a quick example that you could implement immediately is to try something today, that you have not done before that may push you ever so slightly out of your comfort zone.
For instance, try brushing your teeth before bed with your non-dominant hand while standing on one foot. Notice how something so easy and routine quickly becomes a challenge – and notice how you work through it. Simple, basic, and not likely to change your overall mental toughness, but certainly enough to make the experience of facing and working through a challenge, even a very minor one. However, to truly enhance mental toughness, most people benefit from engaging in a solid program of using a sound measure of mental toughness (beware of free online assessments – you tend to get what you pay for!) and working with a professional with expertise in mental toughness, which is likely to yield maximum benefits!
