Summer 2023 - 23

on the job or in their personal life, like anyone in
the general population. When encountered with
a stressful period of life it is those key factors
that were employed to alleviate and subside
that particular event. We can be aware of and
recover from that event and proactively change
for the new circumstance. It has been referred to
as " bouncing back, " however in reality it is more
than that. Resiliency is the ability to adapt, change
and improve for the better after that isolated
event or moment of adversity. Therefore, when
we encounter said event, we must essentially
change our trajectory of where we are headed for
a successful outcome.
Mental toughness, on the other hand, is a
series of strategies devised through our cognitive
abilities that will pre-emptively meet the potential
stressor or aggravating circumstance head-on
and will assist the individual in mitigating or
overcoming that event. To be mentally tough,
we must prepare intellectually for the ensuing
event and positively hardwire our minds. When
you are mentally tough, you are prepared to be
situationally aware of your eventual ensuing
stressors or circumstances.
HOW DO I DEVELOP MENTAL TOUGHNESS?
Mental toughness is a positive quality that
can be fostered within oneself in time, but there
is a series of psychological techniques that
must be utilized to attain this positive mindset
to produce and achieve optimal performance
when embattled with duress. We can call upon
our previous life experiences that look back
and remind ourselves of what we did to move
forward, however, it is a well-devised strategy
going forward that will help us the most. No
matter the difficulty or unpleasantness of our
previous encounter, the ensuing outcome will be
beneficial to the individual. When one is mentally
tough, they are in control of their emotional
behavior, energy used, and all thought patterns
no matter the event or situation. When one has
mental toughness, they can bring about a positive
outcome, because they think positively.
Some recommended techniques include
mental imagery, self-efficacy, self-talk, and goal
establishment for an ultimate vision. Mental
imagery is the ability of the tactical athlete to
mentally prepare and visualize an unknown
situation for preparation although there may
be minimal encounters of this said event. The
individual visualizes these situations in their mind
for better preparation if the situation does occur.
It is similar to a sports athlete going through
their macrocycle or yearly program of training in
which they physically prepare themselves in their
off-season, pre-season, and actual in-season.
The time spent and countless hours of physical
and mental preparation far outweigh the actual
time spent in actual competition. A lot of tactical
athletes and sports athletes quite often remark
how the preparation was a lot more difficult and
taxing than the actual anticipated event itself. The
tactical athlete can use this technique of preparing
for a possible life-or-death encounter/situation or
event which may or may not take place.
Self-efficacy is the individual belief that an
individual can complete a certain event, task, or
situation in a specific instance. Unequivocally, the
individual believes that they will be successful in
the event. If an individual has the physical skillset
to perform efficiently in their job and has the
mindset of achieving a successful outcome in their
tasking then they will perform optimally.
Self-talk is the conversation that we have deep
within ourselves. If we are motivated to achieve
a tasking or objective, even more, while under
duress, we can then safely and cognitively train
our minds that we will be victorious in our mind
tacticaltrainingandconditioning.com | 23
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Summer 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Summer 2023
