I am currently reviewing a program called “Unbeatable Mind” from Former Navy Seal Commander Mark Divine to help with my mental discipline on getting to my goals.  His first training video can be found here.  He has a very clear understanding of what I refer to as mental toughness.  In his training he refers to 5 character qualities that are needs to develop an unbeatable mind.  They are desire, belief, attitude, discipline, and determination.

Desire

What is your “why”?  Focus on what motivates you.  One of the things Mark emphasizes is that you need to keep your “why” foremost in your mind.  Your “why” is what fuels your desire.  You cannot let your “why” fade into the background.  Your “why” is what motivates you and you need to ensure that it is always top of mind.

My motivators are simple:  Family, Employees, and Friends/Extended Family.

My family always comes first.  Kids, wife, and then myself.  They are the people that I see everyday.  When I go on wakeup, eat, sleep, and vacation, they are there.  My wife and kids are the ones I want to see do something with their lives in a big way.  I throw myself in the mix because my family would suffer if I don’t look out for myself.

Employees are really important.  I take responsibility for their needs and happiness.  I know that if they are successful and happy that will go a long way to meeting my goals.  People might say “Why is your friends and extended family not before your employees?”  As an entrepreneur you are responsible for the day-to-day success of a company and its employees.  You also spend most of your life working.  It makes sense to focus on the people that you spend the most time with.

Finally, my friends and extended family.  This is an area that is definitely underserved in my opinion.  I will come out and say it, I miss my brothers.  They don’t live in the same state as us.  One of my goals is to be able to visit them more often and to eventually be able to work with one or both of them.  I think of them often and miss them everyday.  My hope is that one day we will be able to spend a considerable amount time together on a regular basis.

My score (based on my own self assessment) is based on my current motivators.  I need to ensure that my motivators are always with me and always top of mind.  Sometimes it is easy to forget.  Fortunately your motivators are always easy to remember.

Score: 3/5

Belief

Do you have the belief that you will achieve victory?  Do you have the expectation of victory?  Do you believe in yourself?

This is probably the one area where I am very strong.  I believe in myself.  For what I do, I am considered one of the best.  Not because I say so, but because others do.  Having others that believe in me is very important for me to believe in myself.

I have the habit of getting stuff done.  More importantly I have the knack for finding solutions to problems that many say cannot be done.  I have a “can do” attitude.  When I am motivated, nothing holds me back.  This is an attitude that has always been with me.  I attribute this to my childhood when it was just my mother, two brothers and I.  Times were not always good for us.  There were days when my mother didn’t have enough money to buy groceries.  She didn’t mention that, but we knew.  Fortunately we were surrounded by an extended family that always looked out for us.  Then there was the sons that went to work.  All of us got jobs at young ages to support our family.  For me, that was at age 11 when I lied about my age to get a job.  At the time you had to be 13 to legally work.

I am a continuous learner.  I spend a great deal of time learning and thinking about the type of work that I do.  I back this effort up with doing.  Just because someone thinks about something doesn’t mean they can do it.  If have found that knowing and doing are great ways to instill confidence and belief in myself.  Being a continuous learner is one of the traits I look for in anyone that I interview.  It is a trait that I know leads to belief in oneself.

Score: 4/5

Attitude

This is the daily drive that powers your will power. You need a “kick ass” attitude of “I Can” and “I Will”.  Your attitude is what propels you to do great things.  One of the things that is important is to have an outwardly positive attitude.  This helps to motivate others.

I will give myself a low score here.  Others will say that I am being harsh on myself.  Many say that I inspire and motivate others.  Of course I motivate others.  When I work with someone, I see their potential and know they can be better.  That inspires me to help them.  Unfortunately that is not always the case and I need to remember that my attitude affects others.  So if I am having a bad day, it is important to not let it show.

Score: 2/5

Discipline

Discipline means you’re a disciple to something greater than yourself.  Your daily actions are connected to a higher purpose.  It is easy to focus on people and things that are not important.  Yes, both people and things.  Discipline is about 100% focus

“Oh the noise, noise, noise, noise, noise.” – The Grinch

Noise is distracting and is the enemy of progress and often prevents you from reaching your goals.  The key is to focus on those things that are important and eliminate those things that will distract you from your goals.  This means building up habits that focus on what matters.  It also means giving up those things that are unimportant and distract you from reaching your goals.  Be prepared to give up those things that are unimportant.

“Squirrel” – Doug, The Movie Up!  Give up those distractions that will prevent you from getting where you need to go.

You need to surround yourself with the right people in your life.  Having the wrong people can be a significant distraction and demotivating.  Fortunately I associate with a lot of people that I would consider the right people.  My wife and kids, my best friend, my brothers are all great examples.  The key is to build a team that helps mobilizes you, keep you focused, and holds you accountable.

Score: 2/5

Determination

I am constantly reminded of the phrase “Stay the course” from the movie the Patriot when someone mentions determination.  After long suffering and the death of his oldest son, Benjamin Martin was reminded that victory was within their grasp and that he should stay the course.

Determination is your staying power over the long haul.  How many times have you started something very exciting only to find that you lose focus over time?  You need to have a single purpose in mind when it comes to your goals.  That is determination.  Only then will you have enough determination to accomplish your goals.

Commander Divine refers to this as a “burn the boats” attitude.  For those that don’t know the quote, Cortés when he sailed to the New World ordered his men to burn the boats.  The result was that his men were faced with either death or victory.  He was determined to have victory or die trying.  There is debate whether he actually burned the boats.  Whether or not he did, is irrelevant.  Hernán Cortés was determined to motivate his men to victory.  Fortunately for him it worked and he became the first man in 600 years to suc­cess­fully con­quer Mexico.

Score 2/5

Summary

Check out the video to Commander Divine’s Unbeatable Mind program.  I found it to be very motivational.  For me, I have given myself an assessment score for mental toughness of 13 out of 25.  My goal is to reevaluate myself every 3-4 months.

Overall Score: 13/25