Customer Reviews

Mental Strength

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I would characterize this short piece as a no nonsense presentation of the key ideas behind living a successful life. There is nothing in this that I have not heard from before, and nothing is expounded upon. So if you are looking for the technical aspects to certain things or ideas then this book is not for you. If you are looking for more depth I must say Jim Rohn is my first recommendation.

However, it is not a bad piece of literature because I am a person who believes success is a simple formula. So, just hearing the "basics" again can be helpful and reinforcing.

All in all, I would only recommend this if you are looking for a short read that reinforces the essentials.

I have to thank my friend Nick for sending me a copy of this book. While I was a bit familiar with Iain Abernethy from martial art circles, I'd never read any of his books. I found "Mental Strength: Condition your mind achieve your goals" to be a very good read. Maybe it is because I'm also a martial artist and writer that I found it especially interesting and on point, since Abernethy uses examples from his own martial art and writing journeys to illustrate the points he makes throughout the text. And while I think any martial artist or writer will enjoy and learn from this book, it is not solely for those engaged in those activities. The book will help anyone, in any field, develop greater mental strength to overcome fear, self-doubt, and the lack of confidence standing in the way of achieving goals and dreams.

Abernethy writes in a direct, straightforward style, using himself and his journeys as examples, but he also includes stories of others in this inspiring book that focuses on developing the mental strength to face the negative thoughts and daunting situations that make up most of the obstacles preventing one from achieving all they want.

The book contains sixteen chapters on these topics: what is mental strength, mental resistance, overload, the importance of consistency, the necessity of discomfort, you are what you think, the importance of action, developing talent, proactive and everyday resistance, strength in numbers, foes and enemies, the lost art of independent thinking, approaching risk, intense intent, the plan, and progress non product. All of these chapters, or topics, contain elements of mental strength, or mental toughness. Combined, they will allow a person to achieve more and live a more satisfying life.

Some of the things said in this book have been said before by others. But that does not negate the fact that Abernethy does a good job of organizing and illustrating these concepts, and encourages the reader to take the information presented in this book and use it to achieve all the things you want from life. Nor does he say it is going to be easy, in fact he tells you that at times it is going to be hard, maybe very hard. But those times are what help build mental strength. Overload and discomfort are necessary to forge mental discipline and strength and you need them to grow both in the physical sense and with your mind.

I enjoyed the book, and found it to be a good reminder of the principles of mental strength that are needed to succeed. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to be mentally stronger to pursue and achieve goals. But you can't just read it, you must act on the advice provided. And as Abernethy says at the end, "It's time for action!"

Reviewed by Alain Burrese, J.D., author of the Lock On Joint Locking Essentials series.

Iain Abernethy decribes mental strength as "the ability to overcome mental resistance and cause things to happen." In other words mental resistance, such as negative thoughts, are necessary for increasing mental strength. He points out that if there were no negative thoughts or obstacles to overcome, increasing mental strength would be impossible. He compares this to weight lifting, if you always use weight that you can lift comfortably your muscles don't experience the resistance they need to grow. In order to grow your muscles you must increase resistance, but not so much that you injure yourself. Abernethy describes how you can move outside your mental comfort zone just enough to cause mental growth and therefore mental strength. He also points out, what most other self-help books don't, and that is that not all negative thoughts are bad. Some negative thoughts are necessary for survival, the trick is to separate the good from the bad and Abernethy shows you how. I have two minor criticisms of this book. One, I wish he had spent a little more time explaining the role of the subconscious in developing mental strength. Two, I disagree that anyone with normal intelligence can develop the talent to do anything if he has the desire. Each individual is born with certain positive and negative tendencies. For example, I don't have the voice to become a great singer even if I had the desire. I'm sure I could take lessons and become a better singer but I would never be world-class. However I can use my positive tendencies, develop my talent in that direction and do very well. Neither of these criticisms should keep anyone from buying this book. It's the best of its kind.

While most of us know that mental strength can be developed in the same manner as physical strength, very few of us really know how to go about doing it save by serendipitous discovery. Based on his considerable success as a martial artist and author, Iain Abernethy lays out a step-by-step methodology for overcoming doubt, building self-confidence, and achieving your dreams. Nothing in this book is rocket science yet his codification of a straightforward, understandable, and implementable process is nothing short of brilliant. As I read through his excellent tome I found myself thinking, "Yeah, that is how I did that" several times. Without knowing it, I've followed his process in achieving most of my major successes in my life, stuff like earning a blackbelt in karate, publishing three books and dozens of articles, gaining promotions at work, and building strong relationships at home. Abernethy's clear, encouraging guidance will show you how to develop a strong, powerful mind, grow your talents, become the person you want to be, and live the life you want to live too. This information is extremely well laid out, masterfully written, and most importantly, it works. Very highly recommended.

Lawrence Kane

Author of Surviving Armed Assaults, The Way of Kata, and Martial Arts Instruction

I bought this because I loved the book. The book is 192 pages so I should have questioned why only :42 minutes? You get one chapter worth of the entire book. How can they do that? What a rip off. Save your money!