“Strong People Are Harder To Kill”
That’s the message delivered in an April 2015 podcast by Ben Greenfield*, a renowned fitness trainer, coach, and author. I listen to all of Ben’s podcasts, and he’s constantly testing new life hacks to gain an edge. Ben spent time with a group of arguably the toughest people in the world – Navy Seals – to learn about how they train and achieve success.
Iron sharpens iron
It is hard to find a group that is collectively and individually stronger, faster, and smarter than Navy Seals. They have to be prepared for almost any imaginable obstacle, and almost always come out ahead. In most situations, their balanced and diverse training will simply out-duel any competition they face. They are at the top of the food chain because not because they are specifically smarter, faster, or stronger, but rather, they are superior at training to be harder to kill.
Well-rounded preparation changes everything
 |
| A Tough Mudder race is a humbling and valuable experience. |
You will be hard-pressed to find anyone who can compete with a Navy Seal. That being said, I believe we can learn a thing or two from how they prepare. We face regular moments of truth that separate us from our competition. Our jobs and responsibilities are far different from the Navy Seal, but I argue we often take for granted the complexity of the battles we face every day.
Take a presentation at work as an example. We often think that content is the key, but in truth there are many obstacles that may impact the success of your presentation. Are you a skilled presenter? Do you project a sound image? Are you agile enough to adapt on the fly? What if your time slot was cut in half? How will you address objections that could derail your presentation? A person armed with great content, but not prepared for the other obstacles, would ultimately not see the success they had hoped for. Like the Navy Seal heading into combat, you need to be ready for anything, and you have to rely on your preparation to achieve success.
Success is a process, not an event
This is where training and preparation come into play. To be a great presenter you need to invest in your body of work – including your ability to create content, but to be the best at delivering it, understanding how your audience perceives you and your message, how you adapt to your environment, how you defend and overcome obstacles, and how you maintain composure in a world of chaos. All of those skills take separate and distinct work, refinement, and practice. Finding ways to develop these skills requires us to often branch out, try new things, and get out of our comfort zones. You may find these volunteering, coordinating an industry event, or joining your local Toastmasters chapter. Bringing them all together can be the difference between winning and losing. Mentally and physically, you want to be harder to kill in the conference room, too. What do you need to do to be tougher in your everyday job?
It’s easy to lose touch with many of our basic ancestral skills. We are fortunate – we don’t wake up in the morning and think about how we are going to simply survive the day. Lost in the exercise, however, is realizing how to interpret our own personal definition of survival. Whether it is making the big sale, or striving for that next promotion, it will take more than mastery of a singular skill to be successful, and that takes continual development and practice. We rarely face the life-and-death consequences that Navy Seals deal with, but we can learn from their preparation and focus to be “tougher to kill” in what matters most to us.
jamescoope.com 