Exit
ly common roadblock for Generation
Y, according to Gen Y expert Paul
Harvey, assistant professor of management at the University of New
Hampshire, who observed that many
Millennials have “unrealistic expectations and a strong resistance toward accepting negative feedback.”
Mentally strong people recognize that their entire life plans,
and life itself, could be derailed
at any moment — and they
don’t waste their effort feeling
wronged by destiny when things
don’t quite go their way.
THEY KEEP AN EVEN KEEL.
Mental strength is not so much
about always being happy as it is
about “keeping an even keel at any
and all times,” says Holiday.
Emotional stability and the ability to keep a cool head is an enormous asset when it comes to dealing with challenging situations.
Fortunately, emotional stability
tends to increase with age — and it
should come as no surprise that we
become happier as a result.
THEY DON’T ASPIRE
TO BE HAPPY ALL THE TIME.
Excessive preoccupation with
happiness can actually lead to an
unhealthy attitude towards nega-
THE THIRD
METRIC
HUFFINGTON
03.02.14
tive emotions and experiences.
Mentally strong people don’t try
to avoid negative emotions —
rather, accepting both positive
and negative emotions and letting
different feelings coexist is a key
An attitude of entitlement
— thinking that we deserve
to get what we want most
or all of the time — can make
it much more difficult to
deal with challenges when
they come around and take
you by surprise.”
component of resiliency.
“We so value optimism and
happiness and all these positive traits, which are themselves
abstractions, that we get caught
by surprise and can’t deal with
their opposite,” says Holiday. “If
we were more middle of the road,
things would be better and we’d
be able to take advantage of the
things that happen to us because
there’s more objectivity.”
THEY’RE REALISTIC OPTIMISTS.
Mentally tough people make a
habit of getting up after they fall.
Instead of getting upset, feel-