Many can write; few can do. Iain Abernethy is an urgent and compelling writer, simply because he has demonstrated the art of the possible. As a decorated martial arts expert and 5th Dan Karate Black Belt, he has proved that consistent and diligent focus can yield results. Abernethy’s core argument is that success is much like resistance weight training; progressive effort and overload will build muscle over time. Gradual and purposive steps outside the comfort zone slowly boost confidence and then a snowball effect results.
Mental Strength is written like an instruction manual. There is no fluff or feel-good popcorn; rather an honest and highly useful treatise on how to build your capabilities. Resilience doesn’t fall like manna from heaven – it has to be earned. Breaking through the thick fog of reflexive mental resistance is not pleasant, but it is a necessary condition for progress. A reinforced self-image and carefully planned action steps need to work in tandem to enable true change. This may not be a sexy or glamorous formula, and the 10,000 hours of concentrated effort that many authors cite to achieve excellence in any field rarely are. Yet it delivers results in spades.
I learned three valuable insights from Abernethy. The first is pithy and hard-hitting: “delay can be dangerous”. The corrosive effect of time, the passivity of the complacent life, ensures that so many of us miss out on the fierce urgency of now. If we truly wish to achieve our dreams, then the clock is ticking. The second lesson Abernethy teaches is honesty. We are not gods, but men and women born to try and fail and try again. This realism should give us strength, and a day of resilient optimism is better than a month of wishful thinking, or a year of turgid negativity.
His final insight is that intention and independent thought requires real mental strength. To escape a suffocating culture that revels in mediocrity, hard work is called for. We are urged to reject received wisdom and develop our own narratives. Contrarians of the world unite, for you have nothing to lose but your chains. Let me cite Abernethy: “As we grow older and more indoctrinated in mediocre thinking, it becomes harder and harder to think independently. To lead truly happy lives we need to be able to reject conventional thinking and be prepared to go against the crowd”.
If you prefer your self help manuals suntanned, shallow and glitzy, look elsewhere. If you are looking for an adrenalin shot of honesty, by a man who has achieved excellence in a professional arena outside the motivational circuit, then Iain Abernethy is the writer for you.