7 WAYS TO BE MENTALLY TOUGH AS A HIGH WIRE STUNTMAN

7 Ways To Be As Mentally Tough As A High-Wire Stuntman

BY DR. JASON SELK
AUGUST 8, 2013 5:00 AM EDT

Nik Wallenda, the famous high-wire stuntman, wowed the world on June 23, 2013, when he walked 1,500 feet across the Little River Gorge near the Grand Canyon, balancing on a 2-inch wire. He confronted 48 mph winds, made more fearful by the fact that he was wearing absolutely no safety equipment.

Afterwards, Wallenda told reporters and fans that "mental toughness" is what got him through those challenging 23 minutes.

Mental toughness, you'll be glad to know, is something one can learn. In fact, I teach mental toughness strategies to athletes, professional sports coaches, and business executives, and it's the subject of my last two bestsellers, 10-Minute Toughness and Executive Toughness.

Mental toughness strategies can help you perform at your peak in impossibly demanding situations that require follow-through, focus, and optimism, whether it's at home or at work.

Life can feel like a tightrope walk sometimes. Let's look at seven ways Nik Wallenda applied mental toughness strategies in his work, and how you can use the same practical mental toughness strategies in your life.

1. Know yourself and what's important to you.

Growing up in the famous "Flying Wallendas" family, Nik Wallenda has known who he is and where his path would lead since he was a young performer. What about you? Be able to define your self-image, including your purpose and priorities. That's the first mental toughness principle on which all others are built.

2. Create a mental reel of your challenge.

Nik Wallenda and his team spent four years planning his stunt and made numerous trips to the "Little Grand Canyon," as it's called, to measure everything from temperature changes to wind speed. That way he had a detailed vision of what was to occur. To accomplish a major goal, create a 30-second video in your head that stars you doing exactly what you want to do. Make it as detailed as possible and replay it in your mind at least once a day.

3. Be accountable to yourself.

Accountability is a necessary trait for success. Nik Wallenda couldn't slack off when it came to his fitness, his readiness, or details such as how well he tied his cable. The same is true for you. If you're not doing your best and following through on tasks that get you closer to your goal, then you're only cheating yourself. The difference between wanting to win and actually winning is accountability and follow-through. Identify three smaller goals to finish every day that will help you achieve your larger end goal. 

4. Strive to outdo yourself on a regular basis. 

Nik Wallenda is always coming up with a stunt that's more ambitious than the previous one. Prior to his Little River Gorge walk, he walked across Niagara Falls. For that stunt, he wore a safety harness; this time he did not. What would you like to improve in your work or life? For 15 full seconds every day, look in the mirror and evaluate your personal progress and effort. I call this "15 seconds of accountability." Identify areas where you can do better, and keep a written log of your progress.

5. Keep your eyes on the wire.

For Nik Wallenda, losing his focus for even one second could have cost him his life. One of the fundamentals of mental toughness is to have unwavering focus. You can develop focus by knowing and practicing what you're going to say before you say it. Create and memorize scripts for key interactions to help you maintain calm and focus. These scripts build confidence and reduce the anxiety that often gets in the way of consistently high performance.

6. Learn how to maintain a positive outlook.

Like all athletes and peak performers, Nik Wallenda understands that staying positive is essential for mastering a difficult task. Every time you think about a problem, replace that thought with solution-focused thinking instead. Another optimism technique is to acknowledge, daily, something you did well. Finally, ask yourself, “What's one thing I can do differently to make this better?” When you answer that question instead of thinking about problems, you demonstrate mental toughness.

7. Be a model of discipline.

Nik Wallenda has a family legacy to uphold, and that's a factor that keeps him disciplined. But you can create the same self-motivation by internalizing someone you admire, and keeping him or her in your mind’s eye as your own personal mental coach to motivate you. When you set your mind to do something, find a way to get it done, no matter what. Limit temptation that gnaws away at your discipline. Practice being disciplined so that it will eventually get easy and feel natural.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock.com

OTAK KECUT

Puasa dpt mengelakkan otak daripada mengecut

Kajian saintifik terbaru perubatan Barat mendapati berpuasa dua kali seminggu, sebagai contoh, boleh mengelakkan otak individu daripada mengecut dengan pertambahan umur, selain manfaat kepada mereka yang menghidapi penyakit jantung, diabetes dan kanser.

Berpuasa pada masa dulu pernah digunakan dalam rawatan perubatan namun kajian terbaru menunjukkan ia perlu diterapkan semula.

Ini kerana ia mampu mencetuskan pelbagai hormon yang membantu meningkatkan kesihatan selain perubahan metabolisme badan.

Berpuasa selama beberapa hari hanya melibatkan pemakanan makanan antara 500 dan 800 kalori sehari sahaja berbanding hari biasa iaitu 2,000 kalori bagi wanita dan 2,500 kalori (lelaki).

Ia menurunkan tahap hormon yang dikaitkan dengan kanser dan diabetes selain kolestrol ‘tidak baik’ dan triglyceride dalam darah serta pengurangan radikal bebas, molekul yang dikaitkan dengan pelbagai penyakit.

Ketua Neorosains Institut Penuaan Nasional Amerika Syarikat (AS), Profesor Mark Mattson berkata, faedahnya sama seperti anda bersenam. Ia boleh melindungi otak daripada penyakit kemerosotan otak seperti Alzheimer dan Parkinson.

Dalam satu kajian yang dilaporkan oleh Jurnal Obesiti Antarabangsa tahun lepas, sekumpulan wanita obes dan gemuk diberikan pemakanan melibatkan 1,500 kalori sehari untuk satu minggu.

Satu lagi kumpulan diberikan pemakanan 500 kalori untuk dua hari dan kemudian 2,000 kalori setiap hari pada lima hari seterusnya.

Pakar diet Universiti Manchester, Dr. Michele Harvie yang mengetuai kajian itu berkata, kedua-dua kumpulan menunjukkan penurunan berat badan yang sama selain pengurangan sama penanda biologi yang boleh meningkatkan risiko kanser. – Agensi

SUMBER

MOTHER - KAULAH BIDADARI SHURGA

Love U Ibu,,

Kau ajari aku membaca pedoman hidup kita,

sebagai bekal menjalani hidup ini...

Semoga Aku Bisa menjadi sepertimu ibu...


Kaulah Bidadari Surga...
---

TRUE STORY ; PLEASE FORGIVE ME

KISAH BENAR : Maafkan Cikgu...



Saya mengajar di sekolah rendah di tengah2 Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur. Saya mengajar sesi petang. Salah seorang murid saya setiap hari datang lambat ke sekolah. Kasut dan bajunya selalu kotor.



I am a Teacher at one of the Primary School in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.  I am on the afternoon session.  One of my student always come in late to class. His uniform and shoes look dirty always.



Setiap kali saya bertanya tentang baju dan kasutnya dia hanya berdiam diri. Saya masih bersabar dengan keadaan pakaiannya, tetapi kesabaran saya tercabar dengan sikapnya yang setiap hari datang lambat.



Every time I ask him about his uniform and shoes that always dirty, he just keep quiet and bow his head down.  I think I can accept that dirty uniform and shoes, but my patience running dry and really test me when he make it a habit of coming late to school everyday.



Pada mulanya saya hanya memberi nasihat. Dia hanya menundukkan kepala tanpa berkata2 kecuali anggukkan yang seolah2 dipaksa. 



As usual, I give him a sermon about cleanliness and punctuality, every time he keep looking down and shake his head in agreement forcefully, to indicate that he understood every single words I said.


Kali kedua saya memberi amaran, dia masih juga mengangguk tetapi masih juga datang lambat keesokannya. 


After gave him a second and sternned warning with a promised to can him if he does not change, he shake his head in agreement to indicated that he understood and yet he still coming late to school as usual, the very next day. 


Kali ketiga saya terpaksa menjalankan janji saya untuk memukulnya kalau masih lambat.


And after the third warning and last warning, I have to keep my promised to can him if he still coming late to school.


Anehnya dia hanya menyerahkan punggungnya untuk dirotan. Airmata saja yang jatuh tanpa sepatah kata dari mulutnya. 


Surprising though, he allow his back side to be canned without protest.  He is crying a silent tears without saying a word.


Keesokan harinya dia masih juga lambat, dan saya memukulnya lagi. Namun ia masih tetap datang kesekolah dan masih tetap lambat. 


And yet, the very next day, he still coming late to school and I canned  him again.  Over and over again, day after day, after being canned, surprising though, he still come back to school and as usual late.



Suatu hari saya bercadang untuk mengintipnya ke rumahnya. Setelah mendapatkan alamatnya, saya meneruskan niat saya. Dia tinggal di sebuah kawasan setinggan tidak berapa jauh dari sekolah. Keadaan rumahnya sangat daif. 



One day I decided to follow him home.  I am curious about his family.  After checking his address from the school administrator, I am start searching for his house.  He live at the poor  area in a run down and shabby house on the other people land meaning they live there on the permission and charity by the Landlord and any time they can be ask to leave when the Landlord ask them to do so without compensation.

.

Saya nampak murid saya itu sedang berdiri di depan rumahnya dalam keadaan gelisah. Seorang wanita yang mungkin ibunya juga kelihatan gelisah.



I saw him standing infront of their house with his mother.  They look tensed.



Lebih kurang pukul 1.30 petang seorang anak lelaki sedang berlari2 sekuat hati menuju ke rumah itu. Sambil berlari dia membuka baju sekolahnya. Sampai di depan rumah baju dan kasutnya diserahkan pula kepada murid saya yang terus bergegas memakainya. Sebelum pakaian sekolah sempurna dipakai, dia sudah berlari ke arah sekolah. 



At about 1:30 p.m a boy running look like as a  group  of hungry Lion chasing him running with his mighty speed,  toward the house. While still running he take off his uniform and shoes at the same time.  Once he reach the house. the uniform and the shoes was hand over to my student and he put it on with the help of his mother.   He tuck in his shirt while running toward the school.



Saya kembali ke sekolah dengan penuh penyesalan. Saya memanggil anak itu sambil menahan airmata yang mula tergenang. 



"Maafkan cikgu. Tadi cikgu pergi ke rumah kamu dan memerhatikan kamu dari jauh. Siapa yang berlari memberikan kamu baju tadi?" 



I come back to school with heavy heart and heavy feeling. I call him  with the tears in my eyes.


"Please forgive me, I went to your house and saw you and your mother from a far.  Who is that the boy who is running and give you his uniform?"


Dia terkejut dan wajahnya berubah. 


"Itu abang saya. Kami kongsi baju dan kasut sebab tak ada baju lain. Itu saja baju dan kasut yang ada. Maafkan saya, cikgu." Jawabnya 



He look at me in disbelieve and his face changed with shock.


"He is my brother Sir.  We share the school uniform and shoes because we don't have other uniform since mother could'nt afford it.  It is the only one we have.  Please forgive me Sir"



"Kenapa kamu tak beritahu cikgu dan kenapa kamu biarkan saja cikgu pukul kamu?" 



"Why didn't you  inform me about it and why  you let me canned you everyday?"



"Mak pesan, jangan meminta2 pada orang, jangan ceritakan kemiskinan kita pada orang. Kalau cikgu nak pukul serahkan saja punggung kamu." 



"My mother reminded us that we must not ask favours from people, never let other people know that we are poor.  If the teacher want to punish us because of this problem, just let them can us."



Sambil menahan airmata yang mula berguguran saya memeluk anak itu,



Blinded by tears in my eyes, I tried very hard not to cry as I hugging the small and fragile body.



 "Maafkan cikgu, ......Cikgu akan cuba bantu.".

"Am sorry, please forgive me.....I will try to help you"


Translation by AIN YoLI

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