More on mental strength

I said previously that mental strength is about reasoning being supreme over our fight or flight response. Daniel Goleman describes this as impulse control. I will go one step further and say it's also about character.

Let me use an example here. Lets say we have reasoned that the only way we can become a strong chess player is to improve our game. That will mean we must continually learn with no short cuts. That means we only strive to beat our opponent by out thinking him on the board. Full stop. And by the rules.

This is important for when we win that way we know deep down inside what our real achievements are. A test of character. For it is so much easier to take the side road, the easier road.

I hope you'll reflect on this. Note: This is important for that feeling is your source of fuel for the long road ahead. For the road to being GM is out thinking your opponent again and again.

You can't fix the matches in a big tournament, in the bigger world. You can't cheat and win for you will be found out. And if you dont cheat, you'll find yourself out thought and out prepared. That road leads to a dead end.

And so every time we do the right thing, refuse to take the short cut, we develop our character, we become stronger. We develop mental strength and a step closer to the GM.