Would you say you\u2019re a tough person? OK, maybe not the extreme cage fighting, put cigarettes out on your arm, swim icy waters in your birthday suit kind of tough\u2014but mentally tough? Because it\u2019s becoming clear that mental toughness is a pretty important skill to have while navigating an increasingly complex world. And don\u2019t just take Hult Labs\u2019 word for it. Professor Mark Esposito, in a recent #HultTweetUp on complexity, summed up very succinctly why the very nature of the business world has changed drastically in a short amount of time.<\/p>\n
So in addition to having the core skills to meet the requirements of your job (or the one you hope to have), there\u2019s another set of skills that you need to make sure you\u2019ve got covered if you want to succeed. Some of those include managing uncertainty and ambiguity, being an effective communicator, and the ability to persuade and influence your peers, as well as those above you. But you could argue, and we\u2019re just going to go ahead and do that, that all those skills can be wrapped up into one: the ability to be mentally tough in the face of challenges\u2014like incomplete or disparate data, shifting deadlines, dysfunctional team dynamics, and still find solid, workable solutions.<\/p>\n
It turns out that a lot of top leaders also agree<\/a>. In 2010, IBM conducted a study among 1,500 CEOs from all over the world. \u201cThey felt the greatest issue facing them was the escalation of complexity,\u201d writes Christine Riordan in her article \u201cSix Elements of Mental Toughness<\/a>.\u201d And Riordan herself is also acutely aware of how important the issue has become\u2014she\u2019s the dean and a professor of management at the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver. In her article, Riordan draws compelling parallels between CEOs and another group that must perform well in stressful environments: top athletes.<\/p>\n More specifically, Riordan believes that we can cull from sports psychology\u2014yes, that\u2019s right, sports psychology\u2014lessons about the real world. Unsurprisingly, it provides examples of some pretty rich parallels with the business world. \u201cResearch and common sense tell us that top competitive athletes succeed because of their physical talents and their dedication to training. However, they also succeed because of their dexterity in dealing with the psychological pressures of a sport. In short, mental toughness and resilience are tremendously important,\u201d writes Riordan. Sound applicable to the business world now?<\/p>\n Riordan highlights \u201csix markers of mental toughness\u201d that readily apply to the business world\u2014so take note.<\/p>\n 1. Flexibility<\/em> <\/strong> :<\/strong> The world is subject to change, because change is inevitable. That\u2019s why it\u2019s important to maintain agility\u2014and Riordan says, a sense or humor. Both will allow you to maintain persistency when things aren\u2019t going your way and you need to identify a new course of action. \u201cGame-ready leaders have the ability to absorb the unexpected and remain supple and non-defensive.\u201d<\/p>\n 2. Responsiveness:<\/em> <\/strong> Today\u2019s business problems are thorny, complicated, and not at all straightforward. And because things change so quickly, it\u2019s important to keep an eye out for what\u2019s occurring on many different levels: industry trends, both regionally and nationally\u2014and the rest of the world. \u201cWe must pay close attention to economic trends, market trends, consumer trends, industry trends and competitor responses. Relying on old assumptions about how business operates and assuming that last year\u2019s trends still hold today is dangerous, \u201d writes Riordan.<\/p>\n 3. Strength: <\/em> <\/strong>Stress, pressure, and tight deadlines are the new normal. But it\u2019s important not to succumb to the paralysis that can overtake us when we feel overwhelmed, stymieing any progress we hope to make. Says Riordan: \u201cGame-ready leaders are able to exert and resist great force when under pressure and to keep going against insurmountable odds. They find the strength to dig deep and garner the resolve to keep going.\u201d<\/p>\n 4. Courage and ethics:<\/em> <\/strong> This is a critical one, because a really common piece of feedback we at Hult Labs have received from business leaders all over the world is that they want highly ethical people in their organizations. They want to trust that when the going gets tough, employees will choose to do the right thing. \u201cGame-ready leaders do the right thing for the organization and the team. They suppress the temptation to cut corners or to undermine others so they come out on top. They have the courage to make the hard but right decisions for the organization,\u201d writes Riordan.<\/p>\n 5. Resiliency:<\/strong> You know what else is inevitable, apart from change? Failure. We have all failed at some point, and will fail again in the future. And while it\u2019s important to absorb learnings that come out of that (maybe after we\u2019ve taken a minute or two to mope), it\u2019s really important to be able to bounce back from failure and forge ahead. Says Riordan: \u201cGame-ready leaders rebound from disappointments, mistakes and missed opportunities and get right back in the game. They have a hardiness for enduring the downs of a situation. They remain optimistic in the face of adversity and quickly change when necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n 6. Sportsmanship:<\/strong> Everyone has a bad day, right? Whether you\u2019re the one experiencing it, or can see that a colleague is, it\u2019s important to remain steady and professional. Because the ripple effect of a verbal attack or an unkind action can ripple much farther than you think. \u201cClearly we all experience disappointment, attacks from others, an occasional blow to the stomach. However, the behavior exhibited by game-ready leaders after losing or being attacked by others or the situation sets the tone for the rest of an organization,\u201d writes Riordan.<\/p>\n If all this sounds like a tall order, take solace because these skills can be strengthened with time and intent. If need be, keep the list in plain sight at your desk\u2014or discreetly in a notebook if you\u2019d rather not display it for the world. We would add one qualifier to this list: the point is to be mentally tough within yourself, not tough on the people around you. Maintaining a calm external demeanor is the hallmark of true mental toughness and will make you stand out that much more when those around you are showing signs of cracking under pressure. Now, anyone up for an arctic swim?<\/p>\n Photo courtesy of Tony Alter<\/a>.<\/p>\n Make the most of what your career has to offer with a Masters in International Business<\/a> from Hult. To learn more, take a look at our blog Skills & networks: How my MBA made me an entrepreneur<\/a>, or give your employability a huge boost with an MBA in international business<\/a>. Download a brochure or get in touch today to find out how Hult can help you to explore everything about the business world, the future, and yourself.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Would you say you\u2019re a tough person? OK, maybe not the extreme cage fighting, put cigarettes out on your arm, swim icy waters in your birthday suit kind of tough\u2014but…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":1852,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[24],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n