The Fortitude Chronicle: A Weekly Digest of Athletic Determination

Monday’s Mindset

Welcome to this week's newsletter! We've compiled the most popular quotes and writings from our recent blogs based on your feedback. With many new subscribers joining us, we're excited to share the sections that resonated most with our readers.

Don’t seek to be understood. Being misunderstood is the greatest of compliments.

When you are chasing greatness, you will do irrational things. Average people won’t understand you. They’ll question everything you do, trying to drag you down to their level. You can smile, knowing they just gave you the greatest compliment ever: you’re on a path they’ll never understand. Once we get good at it, we will never want to know average people again. Average will begin to disgust us. If everyone understands you, you’re doing something wrong. Seek to be misunderstood for the vision you have for yourself.

Challenge yourself. Don’t settle for easy wins.

I’d rather lose to a superior opponent and learn something than win against an inferior opponent and learn nothing. Nothing beneficial comes from intentionally beating up on competition lesser than you. Confidence doesn’t come from “wins”; that’s a misnomer. Confidence comes from overcoming challenges over and over again. Got beaten? Get back up, learn the why behind the loss, work your butt off to correct it, saddle back up, and get after it again. Don’t seek out easy challenges; you’ll find yourself stuck with a litany of confidence and belief issues when you finally start facing tougher competition. To be the best, you have to beat the best.

Be the Dumbest Person in the Room

Aim to be the dumbest person in the room. This is something I frequently discuss because it’s one of the most powerful lessons I have had the pleasure of adopting. I borrowed this idea from the great former Pittsburgh Pirates manager, Clint Hurdle. When you are consistently putting yourself in rooms with people smarter than you, the only thing that can happen is internal growth. This principle is directly related to improving your environment. Show me your environment, and I’ll show you your future. Once you find yourself to be the smartest person in a room, find a new room. That’s how you continuously grow. Our ego often wants us to be the smartest person, providing false gratification. Check your ego at the door. Not knowing is normal; a thirst for knowledge is a superpower. Elevate your life by putting yourself in rooms where you don’t belong. Be tenacious in that pursuit. If you don’t see a door, create one. There are always new rooms to enter. Choose the right ones.

The Perception of Good Versus Bad

Conquerors don’t view moments or events in their life as good or bad. They view them as “what they are.” At the simplest level, good or bad is merely perception. Good = pleasure. Bad = pain. However, pain can turn into strength. Pleasure can turn into weakness. As a result, anything not channeled properly can be a detriment. What the best in the world do is simply analyze these events as simple anecdotes and channel them in the right direction. Yes, they do feel emotions; they’re human. However, they don’t sit in those feelings or emotions very long. They take the information, process it, and use it to move them forward in some way. They’re outliers for a reason. They don’t act and behave the same way as others. That’s why they’re so fascinating to study. Their perception of the world is different. You won’t find them over-celebrating victories, nor will you find them over-mourning defeats. They’ll quickly find themselves back in the gym, training for what’s next. Good or bad doesn’t deter them. They simply accept them for what they are and show up the next day with the same intensity. They are the product of their work. Their work is the product of intentional design and focus. Good or bad doesn’t matter. They’re world conquerors. They’re focused on what’s next.

You’re Human and That’s Okay

Do you feel stressed? Do you have anxiety? Do you get mad? Do you get sad? Good, me too. It’s called being human. Getting angry or sad is normal. It doesn’t mean something is wrong with you. Stop trying to escape being human; you can’t win that fight. There’s no magic pill that’ll eliminate pain or sadness. It’s a part of life. It’s also important to know that you don’t need to explore every feeling. Not everything needs to be talked about or examined. Sometimes you just feel what you feel. The perspective shift from “No matter what happens, I need to be smiling and happy,” to “This really sucks, but I can handle it,” is a life changer. Life and athletics are full of ups and downs and things we can’t control. I’ve found myself to be much more joyful in life by accepting and addressing reality as opposed to throwing window dressing on my life suggesting I’m always happy.

To Building Fortitude.

 Best Regards,

Colin Jonov, Founder & CEO Athletic Fortitude

P.S. Want to share your experiences or challenges with us? Reply to this newsletter or connect with me on social media @ColkyJonov10. I’m here to support you on your journey!

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