Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // Face the Truth

Show me a person who won’t face the truth in their life and I will show you a person who is ruled by their emotions and the opinions of others.

Take a look at yourself, are you living and staying true to what you say you believe? Are you in control of your attitude and effort or are you easily swayed?

Making yourself accountable to your truth comes before living an authentic life filled with purpose, it’s never the other way around.

The important question becomes what’s your truth, what do you believe in?

If you’re ready to do the work to get reorganized and develop clear language for your Identity and Values, we invite you to head over to click the link below and get signed up.

https://jim-hensel.mykajabi.com/landing-page-mayhem-mindset

Keep Coming Forward

Jimmy Hensel

Mental Conditioning By Jimmy Hensel // Fighting The Fear In Your Life

Dragons only exist in fairytales, just as fear only exists in the stories we make up. Fear is a mental response to a perceived danger or threat. Fear is not real; it’s made up in our minds. However, the danger is very real, and we need to assess it and respond appropriately.

Fear is a manufactured emotion based on something that might happen. Think about it; most of what we are afraid of never actually happens in our lives, but we suffer the mental and emotional consequences anyway. Fear lives in the future. There can be so much clutter in our minds, that it becomes hard to distinguish between danger and fear. The best mental tool I have to fight fear is BEing Present.

~Practice this Mindset Tool~

First, capture the emotion and only allow yourself to think and react to what is happening in the Present. Acknowledge the negative thought, but don't allow yourself to dwell on it.

Next, replace the fear with a positive value and act on that value. For example, Hope is one of my core values. I defined Hope as “the spring that moves me forward.” I may feel afraid, but my actions or response will be to do what a hopeful person would do. We must capture the fearful thoughts then convert that into energy based on the value of hope in order to move forward and get something positive done. Take a minute and think, what is your positive value that will help you re-aim and move you forward?

Even in high-pressure situations, you are capable of handling what’s in front of you when you limit your thoughts and emotions to what you’re dealing with right now. I’m not talking about sticking your head in the sand and ignoring life‘s problems or failing to plan for the future, but I am talking about fighting the fear in your life.

Stop for a second and think, are you really in danger, or are you just afraid?

KEEP COMING FORWARD!

Jim Hensel

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // Perfection VS Excellence

Trying to be perfect left me frustrated and defeated. I was imperfect, broken, and fallible. Perfection was unattainable in my life, but I could continuously pursue Excellence in everything that I do.

As I defined myself and refined my mindset, I realized that development and growth for every human being starts in a state of imperfection. It’s just true, our body, our minds, the systems and structure we live in, none of it is perfect or ever will be perfect as long as humans are involved. 

The proper perspective for growth for me is to retain what works well, build on it, improve it, and correct the mistakes. I can and should always be moving toward Excellence. For me, the pursuit of Excellence understands that making improvements will require me to take purposeful risks; taking risks means making mistakes. If I’m not making mistakes, I’m not learning; I’m not aiming high enough or pushing hard enough. My pursuit of Excellence requires me to fix those mistakes and not to make them again. 

Striving for Excellence isn't flashy, it's actually mundane. Excellence is accomplished through deliberate actions, ordinary in themselves. These actions must be performed consistently, made into habits and goals, then compounded together over time. Since achieving Excellence is mundane, it's within everyone’s reach.

I understand that I am imperfect, but I make no excuses. Minute by minute, day to day, I’m working to improve to develop Excellence in my life. That’s the way it works for me. My life is a constant journey to get better by daily re-aiming at the value of Excellence, and that journey won’t end until I’m dead. 

KEEP COMING FORWARD!!

Jimmy Hensel

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // How to Re-Aim Your Life Everyday

It’s just true that any mature person is trying to make the biggest choices for their life based on their strongest beliefs. It’s also true that how we live our lives, how we respond to adversity is a reflection of what’s in our heart Identity and how we think Mindset through the lens of our Core Values strongest beliefs.

In the Mental Conditioning Process, this is the formula to aim your life properly: Identity + Core Values + A Great Routine = A Vision that will work for your life.

Now, I love to shoot, so I'm going to use a gun analogy, it will surely offend someone, but I will keep coming forward and lay this out in a way that makes me happy. I definitely could have explained this in simpler terms, but I had so much fun writing this!

In simple shooting terms, If you have trained with a reliable rifle that has trustworthy sites so that you can aim it properly, hitting your target is possible. If the bullet finds its mark, it’s said “the bullet flew true.” I think that this definition of the truth applies in all areas of our lives. If it’s true, then it works, you can hit what you're aiming at.

Let’s plug my gun analogy into the Mental Conditioning Formula for creating a Vision or plan for your life.

ESTABLISHING YOUR IDENTITY- Understanding your Personal Identity is like owning a reliable rifle. From your personal experience, you understand your rifle design. Your rifle is a tool you know well because you maintain it, you train with it, and you know it’s capabilities.

Understanding your Personal Identity is knowing why you were created and being prepared to live your life intentionally with purpose. Understanding your Personal Identity means you understand the way your heart is wired, and you know how it works. It means you are secure in the knowledge that you are enough and that you are prepared to operate in adversity. You know you can count on yourself, and the people you are responsible for know they can count on you. Being secure with your Personal Identity means you can live your truth under pressure and you are capable of supporting the truth in your life reliably.

For me, being clear and secure with my own Personal Identity is like owning my Daniel Defense rifle. I understand how it works, I consistently train with it, and I know if I aim it correctly, I know it will reliably respond. I know who I am as an individual, I know I am reliable, and I know I can support and use my Core Values to aim my life intentionally.

ORGANIZING YOUR CORE VALUES - Core Values are like the sites or optic on a reliable rifle. Without sites or a scope, hitting your target (goals, motivation, habits, etc.) consistently is unlikely. Core Values are the lens you use to consistently re-aim your life. Doing the work to organize your Core Values, defining them, putting them into language that's meaningful and authentic to you personally is vital. Your Core Values need to be actionable, not just some cool words you write down. They must represent your personal strengths, your emotional weaknesses, and the ideals you are reaching for.

When you have done the work to establish your Personal Identity and connect that to solid Core Values, then you have the foundation or platform to reliably aim at a Great Routine and work intentionally to become 100% of the person, athlete, family, team, or business you were designed to BE.

Having a clear understanding of your Personal Identity and staying connected to your Core Values is like owning a reliable rifle with good optics/sites. When it comes time to shoot, under pressure, in the best or worst of conditions you know you can get on target and stay on target consistently.

A GREAT ROUTINE- This is the target your aiming at! Never underestimate the importance of a Great Routine! When I talk about creating a Great Routine, I’m talking about creating mindset tools, setting goals, and getting and staying motivated, including controlling your emotions and using momentum in your favor. Developing a process and becoming excellent with the X’s and O’s, in the system you use, is the last part of the Mental Conditioning equation to develop a vision and a plan that will work for your life.

Here is the problem! Many people are principally focused on developing a Great Routine without doing the foundational work to establish their Personal Identity and Core Values. To use my gun analogy, it’s like trying to hit the target with an unreliable rifle with no sites. They end up frustrated when they don’t hit their target or reach their goal. They struggle with staying motivated when their emotions betray them. The struggle to be present and live or train consistently is real! Finally, many people limit themselves by staying one dimensional. You must develop a Great Routine for your life physically, mentally, and spiritually.

If you're going to be successful in your personal life and reach your potential in business or athletics, knowing how to bridge the gap between your personal identity and your business/athletic identity is a requirement. Anyone who is successful in their interpersonal relationships and excellent in business or performance has formulated answers and developed perspective for their life physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Using my gun analogy: They have developed a working platform (reliable rifle) of Identity to operate from. They can accurately aim their life through the lens (scope/optic) of their Core Values, and they have created a Great Routine or (target) to aim at in all the important areas that make us human beings. S&H

Identity + Core Values + A Great Routine = A Vision that will work for your life.

Keep Coming Forward!

Jim Hensel

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // Be Where Your Feet Are

Some people spend so much time lost in regret that they never are able to live in the present. Some people are so worried or afraid about the future that they miss the meaning their life was supposed to bring them today. Many of us are not the influencer of our own lives; instead, the momentum and the moment's emotion hold power, so many people aren’t aware enough to see life is happening to them.

It’s just true that our strongest beliefs or core values aren’t useful unless we have the mental awareness and ability to apply those truths to what we are doing today, in the present. Just thinking about or wishing for good things won’t get it done. Being able to recite words that seem to represent or sound like what you believe is not the same as choosing to live and demonstrate your values through your actions.

Here is the rub, none of what I’m saying matters until it does. For most of us in the western culture, our lives have been comfortable enough. Most of our needs are met that we quit intentionally challenging ourselves to grow and intentionally face the adversity (not looking for trouble, challenging ourselves) that is necessary to continue to refine our personal character, sharpen our body, mind, and spirit for greater opportunity or a tough time that lies ahead. Consequently, we arrive in that opportunity or dark time, and we haven’t done the work to be prepared to respond from a position of strength. Instead of being able to capture our emotions and use momentum as a tool, it’s the other way around. We are a slave to our feelings, trying to swim against the current. Again, none of this matters until it does.

First, we have to realize we need to be the influencer of our own lives intentionally. To understand and practice operating in the freedom, we have been given. Just the momentum of our modern culture will control you if you aren’t daily correcting your course. Next, it’s necessary to have answers for our lives physically, mentally, and spiritually. If you neglect any of those areas, your power and purpose will leak out in the area you have neglected. To be human means that everything we do starts with feelings and emotions. Feelings and emotions give our lives meaning; life wouldn’t be worth living without emotion. However, our emotions will betray us or be used against us if we aren’t clear about our personal identity and core values. If we neglect to create mental tools to control and practice with those tools to prepare for opportunity or adversity.

BEing present, BE where your feet are. Today is the only day you have. All you can control is your attitude and effort right now. Thinking is the job of your mind. You must consciously choose the thoughts you want to engage with and grow those thoughts to create your reality. I believe the most important mindset tool is the ability to bring your mind to the present and focus on the task at hand. In your personal life, as an athlete or in business, the ability to clear your mind and heart and respond based on what you think (values-based) rather than reacting based on emotion (trying to feel right) in order to dictate the outcome is the goal. Do the work to get prepare for when it matters. Define yourself, or be defined. S&H

Keep Coming Forward!

Jim Hensel

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // Don't Stunt Your Own Growth

Here is the problem! Many people are principally focused on their schedules, rules, habits, and staying motivated without first doing the foundational work to establish their Personal Identity and Core Values.

How do you quickly re-aim when you just aren’t motivated, you fail to reach your goals, your systems break down, or when your emotions betray you? How do you step back and create a new plan or vision? The fight to stay present, to live and train consistently is a real-life challenge! Don’t unwittingly stunt your growth by staying one-dimensional.

In the Mental Conditioning Process, being able to re-aim every day and to cast a vision for your life that is actionable, will mean you have done the work to establish a clear understanding of your Personal Identity. Living consistently in a purposeful way will require you to know how to define and exert your Identity first as an individual. You have to know who you are as an individual so that you can understand your place in your family, on your team, and in society as a whole.

Being secure in your Personal Identity means you know you can count on yourself and that the people you are responsible for know they can count on you. Being secure with your Personal Identity means you can live your truth under pressure, and you are capable of supporting your truth in your life reliably.

The next fundamental key to re-aiming your life every day in the Mental Conditioning Process is doing the work to organize and choose your Core Values, define them, and put them into language that's meaningful and authentic to you personally. Your Core Values need to be force multipliers, actionable, not just some cool words you write down. They must represent your personal strengths, your emotional weaknesses, and the ideals you are reaching for. When was the last time you stopped to rethink and re-organize your Values? Simply put, your Core Values are your strongest beliefs put into language and written down. Could you pause right now and quickly make a list of 10 Core Values you use to guide your life? Can you describe how those principles and beliefs help define your Personal Identity?

After you have done this work to define yourself, now you are prepared to clearly aim and connect to the schedules, rules, habits, and motivation necessary to move your life forward, all from the authentic position of strength your Personal Identity and Core Values give you. Being able to re-aim daily, to cast a vision for your life that will work, means you have developed a working platform of Identity to operate from. You can accurately re-aim your life through the lens of your Core Values, and you have created a Great Routine of motivation, habits, systems, and goals that become your targets to daily point your life at in all the important areas that make us human beings. S&H

Identity + Core Values + A Great Routine = A Vision that will work for your life.


Keep Coming Forward!

Jim Hensel

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // It's Time to Grow

Sometimes people decide to remain immature and actually choose to stay an undeveloped person. Becoming more competent can be intimidating. The understanding that becoming a better person means facing adversity can be difficult to embrace. Many people simply will not choose to be uncomfortable and grow. Some people intentionally fill up their lives or even create chaos in order to avoid the adversity and the challenge it takes to really move forward. It’s human nature to get complacent.

Becoming 100% of the person you were created to BE will require you to work hard and face adversity. Adversity is one of the key ingredients in living a life full of purpose and makes the quest to reach your potential meaningful. The realization that you’re headed somewhere better than where you are now is directly related to your willingness to face adversity and is crucial to self-development. Ideally, we should always be looking to improve and replace the good things in our lives with something better.

Are you growing? Are you unclear about what to do next in your life? Can you imagine what you could become if you intentionally faced the adversity it takes to improve? We have all been there! DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!

Keep Coming Forward

Jim Hensel

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // It's Never Too Late, You Cannot BE Replaced

I often make the joke that I’m almost dead, “I’m on the back nine of my life; I just don’t know what hole I’m playing.” Right off, please don’t misunderstand me. I’m not trying to be dark or make light of death. However, I am looking at my life with the perspective that places extreme value on living in the present and reminding myself that my time on this planet is limited and to keep moving forward. I believe that every human being was created with a purpose. Each of us has something positive to contribute that is critically important to our family’s, community, society, and even the world.

I re-aim each day by reminding myself it’s my individual responsibility to facilitate my own freedom and to protect the freedom of the people that look to me for strength. I recite my personal code and hold myself accountable to what I have established as my personal identity and the core values I have chosen for my life. I recognize the opportunity I have to play offense and make a contribution, and that sense of purpose resonates in my heart and motivates me.

My life counts, and so does yours! If you don’t step up and take your place in life and the lives of the people who need and trust you, you WILL NOT/CAN NOT be replaced. There is no replacing who you were created to BE. For example, the power that I possess to be a positive force in my daughter's life cannot be replaced. It’s possible for it to be replicated, but not replaced. If I’m not intentional and planning/thinking/executing in their lives, they will miss out on the person I was designed to BE in their development as a person. I’m not saying that their lives wouldn’t go on without me, but I believe their development would be placed at a deficit without me as their father. I believe from the beginning of time, I was created to BE everything they need from a father, and it’s my responsibility to do the work necessary for that growth in my life and theirs.

I believe each of us as individuals was created with a specific purpose. Each one of us is designed with talents and purpose for our families, communities, and our society. When, for whatever reason, we forget or don’t realize our value as an individual, we must stop and do the work to define ourselves. When we fail to organize and grow our own lives in a manner that develops our ability to be something positive for someone else or to stand in the gap for others, then we fail to BE the leader our families and communities need us to BE. We miss out on an important part of what is purpose for our lives. From this perspective, it’s pretty easy to see how things can fall apart.

I despise it when I hear some religious person (my definition of religion: rules without relationship) say, “Well, brother bless you, God’s a big God he will get it done some another way.” If that’s your first response to this blog, then I think you are minimizing the importance of your life and the role the Creator specifically designed for you. Don’t forget that we each have the responsibility to choose for ourselves first, then live out that commitment as an example for our family and community. For sure, life will go on without you; the sun will rise tomorrow. For sure, the lives of those that love you and need you will go on, BUT they go on at a deficit! Why would you want someone else to attempt to do what you were created to BE!?!

Do not let your response to this blog be with fear or condemnation. There are no perfect with people. Life is supposed to be a constant effort to minimize mistakes and maximize our effort with a positive, values-based attitude. It is possible to do the work, to knock the rough edges off your life, and be there for the people who are counting on you. You can’t put spilled milk back in the bottle, but you can repair yourself starting right now and make your life begin to reflect that transformation. It’s never too late; my life is proof of that.

Re-aim by holding yourself accountable. Do the work to define yourself. Establish your personal identity. Get your core values/strongest beliefs organized and written down so you can use them as force multipliers in your life. Work to create mindset tools so that you can always be in more control of your emotions. Next, put it into action by developing a great routine.

Taking the right action for yourself and the people you are responsible for must be based on what you personally believe and are committed to, not because of what someone else says or does. Your response to the adversity in your life must boil down to what you believe the right thing to do is, regardless of other people's opinions or actions. This type of response is trained and will come down to doing the work ahead of time to prepare. Responding and reacting are two very different things. The proper response means you have done the job to define yourself, and you have practiced how you want to think. S&H!

Keep Coming Forward

Jim Hensel

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // How to Create a Vision for Your Life

In the beginning, vision for my life was just to do something valuable, something purposeful. If somebody were to ask me “What's the meaning of life?”, I would've said, "Hey man, do better. Do better, BE better, and help somebody. Do something valuable, do something purposeful."

I quit worrying about me and my problems, and I had a lot of them. I would say I was an idiot, and I was trying hard in a lot of ways, but I was not very wise and made a lot of mistakes. As my vision for my life started to shift to helping somebody, doing something purposeful, doing something valuable… That began to set me free and my life started to straighten out.

And the truth is, it's no different now, I just have it really clearly defined. I continued to work down to the roots of the idea of “vision”, which was defining who I am and my strongest beliefs, my values. How can you create a vision that will work in your life, if you don’t know who you are and what you believe in? I created my “code”, that states exactly who I am, what I believe, and how I’m going to live that out in my life. Having strengthened the roots, my vision had the power to become reality in my life.

That doesn't mean that I don't make mistakes, because I screw it up all the time, but at least I have this accountability in what I said is truth in my life to aim at every day. I understand what my calling is, what my purpose is, what my design is, and I think in the culture today we would call that vision. S&H

Keep Coming Forward

Jimmy Hensel 

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // The Strong Silent Type

Live life with emotion, not because of emotion. We can throw away our strength mentally, physically, and spiritually when we allow our emotions to cause us to run off at the mouth.

Don’t get it confused when you see superstars in sports or even politicians “marketing” themselves by talking trash.

Communicating what we feel and what we think consistently and intentionally is a sign of strength. Emotional consistency takes self-discipline. Reaching your potential, living well, or giving your best effort will take more self-discipline, not less.

Emotional inconsistency will cause those around you to mistrust you because they will never be sure what to expect from you. Saying everything you feel with no ability to capture your emotions or filter what you say will also cause you to mistrust yourself.

Emotional inconsistency is fatal for any leader. If you expect people to listen to you and trust your judgment, then you must be a sure and steady force in words and deeds. Many immature leaders think that they need to “play on emotion” to motivate people; that’s just manipulation, not leadership; it’s a strategy that is sure to fail. Leadership means being able to demonstrate and walk out what you expect from those you are responsible for.

Mindset Tools:

1. If you need to express your emotions, do it with intentionality and intensity, not by emoting. There is a big difference. 

2. If you have to have an emotional breakdown, do it in private. Out of control emotion is a sure sign of weakness. 

3. It’s just true; your words have the power to create or destroy in your life and the lives of others. Understand the power of your words by defining yourself. Don’t give away your strength and power because you refuse or don’t know how to control what you say. 

4. If you are not sure what to say, then don’t saying anything until you know. There is nothing wrong with being the STRONG SILENT TYPE.

Keep Coming Forward!

Jimmy Hensel

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // READY is not enough, get PREPARED.

In your life's greatest moments of opportunity or in your darkest hour, will you be enough? Have you done the work to be Prepared?

Many times as a coach, I witnessed athletes right before the game or competition, brimming with a false sense of confidence based on emotion and the momentum of the moment. I know they haven’t done enough work, and when their motivation waivers and emotions shift, they are not Prepared to keep coming forward in an intentional and disciplined way. The opportunity or the adversity will be too big for them. 

In the Mayhem Mindset Game, being Ready means you have your emotions in the right place at the moment, but you haven’t done the work required to succeed. Being Ready is not enough. Being Prepared means your emotions are under control, and you have done the work to make the most of the opportunity in front of you or to give yourself a fighting chance when you're facing tough times.

Being Prepared for the significant events of consequence in your life starts with knowing yourself. Finding your place in life, building culture in your family, team, or business begins with knowing yourself. Your ability to clearly articulate who you are, what you believe, then describe your intended purpose is one of the key determinating factors in being Prepared. 

Becoming Prepared is fluid and dynamic; learning is in the doing. Becoming Prepared is an important part or the process in the Mayhem Mindset Course; getting Prepared starts by defining yourself, creating language and personal philosophy, or code for your life. 

Don’t hope you're READY, do the work to become PREPARED!

Keep Coming Forward 

Jimmy Hensel

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // ARE YOU A GOOD MAN?

Can you imagine living your life where every word you spoke, you actually meant? I’m not sure that’s obtainable but I believe it’s worth working toward. We say so many things we don’t really mean from worry, fear, ego or just being offended. For me, it all stemmed from the insecurity of not believing that I was man enough. 

Back when I started the process defining myself, I made a list of 10 things I believed a good man should do in order to have a clear target to aim at. I defined a good man as someone who knew their personal identity and core values, then was genuinely trying to live those values as a lifestyle. When a good man makes mistakes, he quickly asks for forgiveness and fixes the problem. I thought a good man was a man who would readily forgive and did not hold grudges or was quickly offended. One of the most important things I believed I needed to do as a good man was to BE POWERFUL. Here’s how I broke that down into a way I could live out in my life…

BE Powerful = Say what you mean, mean what you say, and take what you get.

1. Forgiveness and forgetting are not the same thing. A powerful man understands unforgiveness is poison that eats you up from the inside out. We can forgive but not forget, and not allow ourselves or the people we are supposed to protect to be walked on.

2. Being offended means you are not practiced and developed with your language. Regardless of how someone makes you feel, you control your response. Replace bad speech with better speech.

3. Holding grudges keeps us from being present. A defensive mindset will inhibit your ability to play offense, making an impact here in the present, and to do the work to be prepared for the future.

4. Being a powerful man means that I handle all of my responsibilities. It’s not a macho mindset that says “I don’t need any help.” We can all use help. I’m talking about not making excuses or waiting for someone to handle our responsibilities for us.

5. Finally, from the perspective of living as a “good man” (not ego driven or needing to be right) and from clearly defined roles and responsibilities, it is not my job to make sure that everybody feels good about everything I say. It’s not my job to make sure that everything I say lands well. Sometimes you just have to take what you get, if you’ve done your best.

Strive to BE a good man! BE POWERFUL! 

Keep Coming Forward

Jimmy Hensel 

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // STOP then GO

STOP  looking outside yourself for someone to tell your purpose and mission in this life. 

STOP  waiting to be rescued.

STOP  expecting your husband or wife to make the most important choices and decisions alone. 

STOP  counting on your mom and dad to tell you what to do; move out and grow on.

STOP  expecting the government to cut you a check to supplement your life.

STOP  guessing about your purpose; intentionally live your values and pursue relationships with people who share those values.

STOP  just thinking only about yourself; contribute to your family and then to your community.

STOP  being defined by other people's opinions and emotions.

GO  do the work to define yourself, establish your identity and mission, organize your core values, and develop a solid routine that moves your life forward. 

Keep Coming Forward

Jimmy Hensel

Check out the online course is at MAYHEMMINDSET.COM 

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // If you don't know who you are as an individual, you can't know where you belong in the world

Success and happiness is a direct or should be a direct product or result of your values in action; if you don’t understand what your values are, then you can’t or re-aim or create a vision for your life in a way that keeps you on track and keeps you moving forward. So one of the things that you have to do personally is be able to analyze, “Am I really clear about my strongest beliefs? Are my choices and decisions today being made based on those strong beliefs, or am I mostly being pushed around by momentum and emotion and hoping to keep that on track?”. Then we’ve got to look at it from a world view. With what’s happening in America right now, are we staying true to those traditional values that got us where we are and that gave us the results of the freest culture on the face of the planet, or are we in danger of losing those things from a national level to a cultural and societal level all the way back to who you are as an individual? Because here’s the last thing; “If you don’t know who you are as an individual then you won’t know where you fit in your family, you won’t know where you fit on your team, you won’t know where you fit in society, and you won’t know where you fit in the world, so you’ve got to do that work from your heart out, so you know where you belong!”

Keep Coming Forward 

Jimmy Hensel 

Mental Conditioning with Jimmy Hensel // What Happens When The Moment Is Too Big For You?!

If your level of responsibility or your platform grows faster than your personal character development, sooner or later the underdeveloped places of your character become the weakness or the crack that in that big moment under extreme pressure split wide open revealing the truth about you. 

Character development counts. Don’t let anyone tell you different. It’s easy to prove what I’m saying is the truth and we can see examples where the moment is too big for someone and the truth about where they are mentally, physically or spiritually is on display for everyone to see. The truth about where that person is in their character development is revealed, regardless of the their intentions.

When I was growing up I remember the preacher quoting a bible scripture that said something like “be sure the truth will find you” and it was always said in some manipulative way to scare us into avoiding sin. It was much later in life that I understood this concept and how it practically works, regardless of your ideology.

The highest definition of the truth in my mind is “If it’s true, then it works.” I mean others will see the evidence of the truth in our lives in the way we live and behave. I think this is especially true in the big moments when we feel extreme pressure. It’s simply human to react based on feelings in the moments that are too big for us. The only way to be able to handle more pressure or the bigger moments is to prepare by continuing to intentionally grow and develop your character, to continue to become a better person. We all must continue to develop our ability to control of our emotions, and our reactions and responses under pressure. This kind of character development must be intentional. You must put in the work to prepare for this moments instead of hoping to react and feel properly in the big moment. 

When we analyze these moments in our own lives, and the lives of the people around us, there’s always a a couple of key ingredients in this kind of failure. Taking offense or being offended exposes our under development as a person. The feeling of being offended extends from someone’s inability to form an appropriate verbal response and stay in control of your emotions. Many times it means that you can’t respond with the proper words, because you haven’t developed your vocabulary enough to respond appropriately, make thoughtful choice about the proper response based on what you think and not what you feel. The big pressure moments also expose our need to be affirmed, to be liked, to feel like we are enough, to be validated. Any insecurity or inadequacy that we would not normally feel at any other time can overwhelm us and causes the emotional reaction and the underdeveloped parts of our character to be exposed under extreme pressure, so “The truth finds you out.”

By the way, It’s troubling to me and should be troubling to you when the leaders of our country or the rich and famous in our society aren’t held a accountable for these kind of failures, especially when it has a negative effect on the rest of us because of the obvious responsibility that goes along with their platform. These kinds of failures affect each of us financially. They affect the stability of our culture and society. For sure what I am saying here applies in my own life and I believe that I am personally responsible and accountable for that growth in my life. For sure I have certainly failed in this area of my life and let other people down. Personal development and character growth applies in all of our lives. It’s our responsibility to add value as an individual, in our families, and in our society as a whole. For sure character counts, it’s pretty hard to argue it any other way. Do the work to define yourself. Don’t let the moment be too big for you! 

Keep Coming Forward

Jimmy Hensel 

Mental Conditioning by Jimmy Hensel // #WINMYLIFE

Sam Cournoyer talks Lesson From Mayhem Freedom with The Morning Chalk Up:

Though Rich Froning is one of the best CrossFitters on earth, Cournoyer said his biggest takeaways from his season with Mayhem Freedom were "more outside of the gym than inside the gym," adding, "I learned what's really important and what's not." Ever since going the crew in 2020, Mayhem Mindset coach Jim Hensel has been working with Cournoyer to get crystal clear on his identity and purpose beyond the competition floor- something that, unlike a competitive CrossFit career, will last a lifetime.

"There's a code I live by right now- Win My Life," Cournoyer shared. The phrase has become a daily mantra for the CrossFitter, so much so, he chose to include it on his signature Sam Cournoyer Freedom Grips. So what does that mean?

"I'm not going to be 'Sam the CrossFit Athlete' my entire life" he said, adding, "I want to be able to say, at the end of my life that I did everything possible to be the best Sam I could be - to be the best dad possible, the best husband, the best friend, and the best athlete."

Ironically, Cournoyer is finding that shifting his focus from being “the best CrossFitter” to being "the best human" is making major improvements in his performance—an important factor considering the competition in the individual men’s division has only increased since his last Games appearance as an individual...

Read Sam's full story HERE!

What is YOUR code that you live by? If you're interested in going through the same process, check out our course.

Keep Coming Forward 

Jimmy Hensel