Jacob Have you ever seen those people in India who are sitting on top of a bed of nails? Just imagine yourself in their place and how it would feel on your body. So how are they able to do it? It’s not like their bodies are built any different than ours, so what’s the secret?
Ever heard of Mind over matter? Mind over matter is something that is used to describe a situation where someone is able to use their mind to control a physical condition with their mental capability. And it is more than often in the corporate world that we are faced with situations that require strong mental fortitude.
Arnold Gerrit Henskes (1912-48), who was also known by his pseudonym Mirin Dajo was a radical performer of Dutch origin. He was capable of piercing his body with skewers and rapiers; imagine a rapier through a man’s body and that person standing still. As hard as it may sound to believe, but it is possible.
So how is it possible? You see, Arnold’s mental fortitude was so strong that he was able to withstand being pierced by a rapier. Besides being a medical mystery, if he wasn’t so mentally strong, he may have thought twice before doing something so reckless. But the risk he took was calculated and managed to baffle medical experts for a long time.
Coming back to the present, the rapiers of the corporate world are piercing hundreds and thousands of people on a daily basis and only those, who carry exceptional mental strength are able to withstand the blows irrespective of the impact. These people may have not been born this way, but they learned to adapt and fortify their minds. There are certain things that mentally strong people don’t do:
- Waste their time feeling sorry for themselves. They make their own fortune; so learn to do be mentally independent and know that feeling sorry for yourself will not bring any value to you.
- Give away their power. They always remain kind to others. Respect doesn’t require authority, but authority needs to be respected.
- Shy away from change and learn to grow with it.
- Letting what they can’t control bother them. By overthinking and letting things you cannot control bother, you create unnecessary anxiety and stress, so never let it get to you.
- Worry about pleasing everyone. For as long as they are right, there is no need to be socially accepted all the time, sometimes you need to believe in what you stand for even if it means people will hate you for it.
- Be afraid of taking calculated risks. Never taking a risk means shying away from unlimited opportunities for success.
- Dwell on the past. It’s called past for a reason.
- Repeat their mistakes. Learning from your mistakes is one of the brightest signs of strong minds, so never repeat your mistakes but turn those mistakes into learning opportunities to better yourself in the future.
- Resent the success of other people. This can cause you to lose focus and behave illogically.
- Let failure put them down. failure is the best teacher, granted that you are willing to learn.
- Afraid of being alone. Being alone from time to time is actually really healthy for your state of mind and it can improve creative thinking.
- Have a sense of entitlement. They know that the world owes them nothing, and everything needs to be earned.
- Expect immediate results. Patience is a virtue, and they understand it well.
You may or may not have all of these traits, but to have a stronger mind, you must try to apply those traits to yourself. If you are open and willing to learn them, you can be taught. Ask yourself if you are willing to learn, and we can lead the way for you.
