The power of mental preparation.

Some battles that we face in life are just too hard to keep up. We always quote, “There is always a light at the end of every tunnel”, but there are tunnels that may seem just too long, and they seem to never come to an end. At times, it looks like we have put our best shot, but the results never match with the effort we have invested. Shores that are just too deep to come out of, no matter how well we think we have prepared for them. It is where the capacity of our mental preparation comes on board.

Some battles, cannot be won if the mind is not stable enough. Life throws bullets daily at us therefore, it will require more than just a ‘preparation’ to get through to the other side of victory.
There is more to overcoming challenges than just being prepared beforehand. Sometimes is the ongoing preparation, even in the difficulties themselves. The real question is: Are you going to give up when it gets hard simply because you thought you prepared enough for the challenges you are facing. The battle is in the mind. So what does it mean to be mentally prepared?

Mental preparation is a way of getting your mind ready to cope with stresses in a survival situation.

Jacob Hunter

We usually neglect our mental states because the hustles and the bustles of life grips us and occupy most parts of our lives. We mainly forget that there is an engine, the mind, that requires a daily examination to help us attain our goals. That is the power of mental preparation. Say you want to venture into entrepreneurship or business, and you have all the necessary tools in place.
But you lack enough funds, or some of the sponsors seem to impede the process. You begin to lose the enthusiasm you had in the beginning, such that you even consider throwing in the towel.
It does not mean you did not prepare, but your mental capacity to encounter distress could not carry you through. Once you experience a slight setback, you are most likely to give up because your mind is not trained on how to handle setbacks.

For years I struggled to prepare my mental state for setbacks or hardships. I had always been a bright child who did quite well in school. It happened that when I was at a higher level, I failed most of the first tests. That was my first experience with failure. I could not believe my eyes because I always knew how well I performed. The fail changed the trajectory of how I perceived myself. I began to see myself as a failure, and it affected the other coming tests because I never prepared for failure or a setback.
If I prepared my mind for setbacks, I would have handled the situation better. But I took a while to accept the reality, and I did not take it so well. It affected my confidence. It is crucial to prepare your mind for any setback and deal with it head-on.

The risk which comes with not preparing ourselves mentally is that – we lose focus. When the mind is thoroughly prepared for adversity, you remain focused. You will be able to overcome every setback you encounter in your life. It’s not easy, but you need to remember the end goal. Life keeps putting unexpected hurdles at us, but we need to choose to stay focused.

Before the lockdown, many of us were doing well at work and even about to get promotions. And when we were working towards the promotion, the country went for a 21days lockdown. We all tried to keep ourselves busy, prepared, and motivated.
We took advantage of the break, and then the lockdown was increased, and the days were longer. And then our spirits went down, but we kept going. Some of us got retrenched, and at that point, we may have been depressed. Some of us lost our loved ones. The situation was a lot take in, but we kept going. Had we given up, we would not be where we are today.

Patience is a virtue. It gets cultivated when the mind is stable. Your heart begins to be patient. When you face a setback, you will not panic because you understand, it is not your time yet. Everything happens at its appointed time. Allow yourself to grow at your own pace without any pressure from people. Be patient with yourself. Do not deprive yourself of the beauty which comes with you preparing your mind.

Set goals for yourself. When it gets tough, set achievable goals and faithfully work towards them. As you celebrate small wins, you begin to develop courage and realize that you can do more than that. Your mind will start to be open to executing more tasks because of that small win. Pay careful attention to your habits. Make sure your daily habits, are in sync with your goals and do not move you away from your position of power.
I do not deny that there are sudden challenges we encounter every day in our lives. I have been distracted a couple of times, but I always make sure I crawl myself back to the right path. Develop habits that will eventually draw you closer to anything you want to achieve.

It takes effort, time, and luck, but over and above all, PREPARATION.

Myles Munroe

Remember that you are destined for greatness. Prepare your mind for war and watch yourself evolve into a great and dynamic individual fully transformed by the renewal of the MIND. Mental preparation is the key to ongoing life maintenance. We continue to prepare ourselves even when life keeps throwing hurdles in our lives. Continue to laugh at the face of the enemy. Soldier on. You got this.

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How do you prepare your mind for setbacks? Have you ever made poor decisions because your mind was not ready to handle the pressure? Let’s talk on the comments section.

Do not forget to check out my other posts below:

• Happy Women’s Day
• The Madishas – Varsity Connects
• The Kamberes – Love at first sight
• Beauty has no limits
• Love Kinks