The Power of Tenacity and Resilience Combined

Photo credit: Logan Weaver @LGNWVR of Unsplash.com

The Power of Tenacity and Resilience Combined

I’m sure I’m like you in that when you set your mind to something, you work hard to make it happen. Setting a goal and intending to reach it takes both tenacity and resilience. They are a very powerful combination.

Last summer after my second knee replacement, I wanted to get back to skiing more than anything, so I set a goal to be back on my skis by December 20^th the date I broke both my ankles. It seemed a little outlandish to set such a goal at 75, but as they say, nothing ventured nothing gained. I couldn’t just lay on the couch and feel sorry for myself.

It seemed like a worthy goal and with the help of my physical therapist and my gym I worked out diligently several times a week plus rode my bicycle once or twice a week weather permitting. 

Being tenacious comes second nature for me, but resilience doesn't. I have to work at being resilient. I often was sore from exercise and didn’t want to go to the gym. I’d lay on the couch telling myself that I needed the recovery time to heal, or I hadn’t slept well the night before and I was tired or whatever I could think of to not go. 

I found that if I set my timer on my watch for 20-minutes and closed my eyes, I would awaken from that short nap ready to go workout. That short nap allowed me to recover and rest and re-energize.

We need to use all of the tools available to activate our TRIP muscles. I’m like you in that I need those tools, like a nap, to get me out the door. Resilience is a crazy trait, sometimes it’s there ready to help an sometimes it’s not. 

The key is energy. A nap helps me re-energize and changes my mental talk from negative to positive. I can keep a goal in mind with tenacity, but I need a little help with resilience. I don’t want to be a quitter or procrastinator those two names really get to me. Taking a nap helps me avoid them and push on toward my goal.

Motivation is a funny thing, isn’t it? I get motivated because of a goal and yet I need to talk myself into taking action. Sometimes I feel like I’m being lazy and have to talk myself out of that too. We all need to be self-motivators in life, it’s what keeps us working toward our goals. But it’s not always easy.

Music helps a lot when I get to the gym. Put my earphones in with some great tunes that I can get a rhythm going with my exercising and pretty soon I’m off and running…so to speak.

I hope this helps you get started on your goals, give it a try.

Remember to take a TRIP for a lifetime, not a trip of a lifetime.

In the end, its one man’s opinion…mine.

Keith……