Trident Health System - January 31, 2017
by Rod Whiting

I talked to a young man who had recently completed the United States Marine Corps 13-week Recruit Training in Parris Island, SC. Like the hundreds of thousands of men and women who'd gone before him he said looking back on the experience there was one thing that uniquely prepared him. It was mental preparation more than it was physical.

Months before leaving the comforts of his home he said he started running and lifting weights, exercising, eating well, getting plenty of rest, and preparing himself in many other ways for what he had heard was a struggle of mind, body, and spirit. The physical preparation was helpful he said, but the mindset of not giving up is what helped him earn the title of United States Marine. The motivational force behind not giving up, he explained, is what kept him going through the 54-hour rite of passage the Marines call The Crucible. Injured, sleep deprived, hungry, sometimes confused and disoriented were barriers that could only be overcome by not giving up. He didn't.

If you say the phrase slowly - don't give up - it can be a motivator to take one more step when you don't think you have any left. It can be a reminder that what you're moving towards is far better than what we're leaving behind.

So, if we start the second month of a new year looking back on resolutions that were made and already broken don't give up. Start again and keep moving forward.

If your resolution was relationship, financial, or personal health related and the steps you took in January weren't as consistent as you'd like for them to have been - don't give up. Start again. Celebrate the new month as a new opportunity to reach your goal.