You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.

Michael Jordan

Now I know far fetched right ? we all have some though rest assured. If you’re anything like me it’s not the type you call upon when you want to. We hate to hear it but life sucks and sometimes we see many succumb to the weight of their problems. My physical strength is easier measured and consistent so I prefer to rely on that. The thing that I am starting to learn is the latent energy is boundless.

Inner Strength: resoluteness of will; mental resistance to doubt or discouragement

Lying on the couch of a good friend just yesterday, a realization came to me. I need to build my inner strength, rekindle my Will of Fire, my Will to Act. For some time I’ve found myself struggling and believe it or not it was by recognizing how agressive I had become even in the simplest of things. I became cold to some of the things that used to matter and I found myself withdrawn and aggressive.

Aggression is a means of covering weakness and with the trials and tribulations being high recently I found that my movements became more aggresive and depressed. I’ve been stuck in my own head for months. In the gym I could see fatigue and lackluster results, at work i was very impatient, with friends and family indifferent. I couldn’t find my inner strength when I needed it because I haven’t been nurturing it. I hadn’t pushed myself when it mattered, I hadn’t been honing my skills or growing as an individual, so as life punches hardest I was taking them in the face hands down.

I think that sometimes we tend to think of our strengths seperated but they cannot be. They work in synergy and feed off each other so lacking in any one area can in fact affect the others. An old friend once told me that the pillars of mental health included exercise. It’s because true strength requires equal training and time. It means self care, physical exercise, mental recovery, and emotional reassessment.

Mental strength is hard to track I will admit. Physical strength I look for fat loss, muscle gain, or setting a new PR( Personal Record). Spiritual strength (which as the others are is unique to every person) I look for how many times I meditate or pray.

It’s not something that comes or goes but inner strength is self confidence, it is resilience, it is perseverance. It is trained by our experiences and grows in the face of adversity. It is hope, it is the power of self reflection. I therefore implore each and every one of you take hone your inner strength and if something seems off take the time to recognize it and work toward a better you. It is taking the small victories and celebrating them. It’s getting your adrenaline pumping doing that thing you fear the most, it’s that mental health day from work, it’s forgiving those who have wronged you repeatedly or those who have wronged you accidentally. Take that leap of faith, do the things that make you uncomfortable, do the things that call for you to meet fear and acknowledge but not give in to it. That’s the first step to calling on Inner Strength.