HBR's 10 Must Reads on Mental Toughness (with bonus interview "Post-Traumatic Growth and Building Resilience" with Martin Seligman) (HBR's 10 Must Reads)
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- Create Date：2021-10-14 09:55:05
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Harvard Business Review
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Summary
Come back from every setback a stronger and better leader
If you read nothing else on mental toughness， read these ten articles by experts in the field。 We've combed through hundreds of articles in the Harvard Business Review archive and selected the most important ones to help you build your emotional strength and resilience--and to achieve high performance。
This book will inspire you to:
Thrive on pressure like an Olympic athlete Manage and overcome negative emotions by acknowledging them Plan short-term goals to achieve long-term aspirations Surround yourself with the people who will push you the hardest Use challenges to become a better leader Use creativity to move past trauma Understand the tools your mind uses to recover from setbacks。This collection of articles includes "How the Best of the Best Get Better and Better，" by Graham Jones; "Crucibles of Leadership，" by Warren G。 Bennis and Robert J。 Thomas; "Building Resilience，" by Martin E。P。 Seligman; "Cognitive Fitness，" by Roderick Gilkey and Clint Kilts; "The Making of a Corporate Athlete，" by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz; "Stress Can Be a Good Thing If You Know How to Use It，" by Alla Crum and Thomas Crum; "How to Bounce Back from Adversity，" by Joshua D。 Margolis and Paul G。 Stoltz; "Rebounding from Career Setbacks，" by Mitchell Lee Marks， Philip Mirvis， and Ron Ashkenas; "Realizing What You're Made Of，" by Glenn E。 Mangurian; "Extreme Negotiations，" by Jeff Weiss， Aram Donigian， and Jonathan Hughes; and "Post-Traumatic Growth and Building Resilience，" by Martin Seligman and Sarah Green Carmichael。
Reviews
Khalid Hajeri
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Toughen up your mental capabilities on your path to becoming a leader！If you are looking for a book containing fast ways to increase your self-resilience in the face of challenging situations， then "On Mental Toughness" is for you。 Selected scholarly articles dealing with tactics on how to persevere in personal， business， and even military environments are presented in this book。Part of the "HBR's 10 Must Reads" book collection， this book concentrates on the idea of using pressure to your advant Toughen up your mental capabilities on your path to becoming a leader！If you are looking for a book containing fast ways to increase your self-resilience in the face of challenging situations， then "On Mental Toughness" is for you。 Selected scholarly articles dealing with tactics on how to persevere in personal， business， and even military environments are presented in this book。Part of the "HBR's 10 Must Reads" book collection， this book concentrates on the idea of using pressure to your advantage。 Whether short or long-term， the troubles you are facing can be creatively funneled into good outcomes simply by using them to make things better。 The authors of each article give real life examples of families going through hard times， managers and employees coping with stressfull situations at work， and soldiers using key negotiation skills with foreign citizens in the battlefield。 Some of these stories are relatable and the strategies can be implemented in your life regardless of the setting。There are times where the strategies discussed need further exploration。 That is to be expected since this book is simply a collection of chosen articles; I would have liked to see a page or two listing further reading on the topic of mental toughness。 Readers will need to do their own further research after they are finished reading the book。Otherwise， "On Mental Toughness" works quite well as a light inspiring self-help book。 It is also a great resource for people studying psychology。 Good stuff！ 。。。more
Ashley Knipp
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Only a couple articles worth reading in here。 Many were too high-level and salesman-pitch to actually apply to real life。 The authors chosen were disturbingly devoid of female representation， furthering the flawed idea that women are neither physically tough nor mentally tough。I did not glean anything useful from the majority of the book's essays。 Only a couple articles worth reading in here。 Many were too high-level and salesman-pitch to actually apply to real life。 The authors chosen were disturbingly devoid of female representation， furthering the flawed idea that women are neither physically tough nor mentally tough。I did not glean anything useful from the majority of the book's essays。 。。。more
Noor Abu Hassan
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Good reading， includes alot of new information I enjoyed it。
Kerliza
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I really liked the chapter on Cognitive Fitness。
Will
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While I think this is a good read and is written by people a lot smarter than myself， I didn't find any of their papers that insightful。 Most of it seemed to be simply common sense。 This would probably be a good book to read prior to starting a managerial job later on in life。 While I think this is a good read and is written by people a lot smarter than myself， I didn't find any of their papers that insightful。 Most of it seemed to be simply common sense。 This would probably be a good book to read prior to starting a managerial job later on in life。 。。。more
Carole Martell
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Amazing and inspiring stories that will put you in the right direction but falls a bit short on practical application。
Juriaan Karsten
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A Quick read but not amazingSome interesting thought nuggets in this collection of stories。 Some of the stories are inspiring， some are less inspiring。 On to the next one。
Lisa
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Fabulous book -- so useful from so many perspectives。 Contained numerous， applicable nuggets and case studies。
Gaurav Bansal
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Good wisdom through collection of articles about mental resilience， coping with adversity， and extremis negotiation。 The bonus article covers a good and practical framework about turning a traumatic experience head-on into a growth propelling phase。 The model is about creating mental toughness， leading with strength， and social skills in the leadership。 I consider the framework has applicability beyond extreme traumatic by opening doors in dealing with stages of regular anxiety and depression。 O Good wisdom through collection of articles about mental resilience， coping with adversity， and extremis negotiation。 The bonus article covers a good and practical framework about turning a traumatic experience head-on into a growth propelling phase。 The model is about creating mental toughness， leading with strength， and social skills in the leadership。 I consider the framework has applicability beyond extreme traumatic by opening doors in dealing with stages of regular anxiety and depression。 Overall a good read but the value of this knowledge will only com if one commits to apply these learnings in everyday life。 。。。more
Jasmine Wright
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Noteworthy book， great tips and inspiring methodical approach to retraining oneself！
Rob
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As with most HBR 10 must reads， this one contains some excellent articles and some duds。 Particularly great in this collection were Martin Seligman's "Building Resilience，" and "How to Bounce Back from Adversity，" by Joshua Margolis and Paul Stoltz。 As with most HBR 10 must reads， this one contains some excellent articles and some duds。 Particularly great in this collection were Martin Seligman's "Building Resilience，" and "How to Bounce Back from Adversity，" by Joshua Margolis and Paul Stoltz。 。。。more
Greg
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I've read Harvard Business Review articles over the years （and even did ads for the magazine early in my career）， but I'd never picked up one of their "Must Read" collections。 HBR has published a series with topics like leadership， managing， and strategy。 I picked up On Mental Toughness in the wake of our agency losing several clients after the founder made some racially insensitive comments。 I'm glad I did。 I found these articles comforting and motivating。 I'll definitely pick up more in the se I've read Harvard Business Review articles over the years （and even did ads for the magazine early in my career）， but I'd never picked up one of their "Must Read" collections。 HBR has published a series with topics like leadership， managing， and strategy。 I picked up On Mental Toughness in the wake of our agency losing several clients after the founder made some racially insensitive comments。 I'm glad I did。 I found these articles comforting and motivating。 I'll definitely pick up more in the series。A few highlighted parallels between Olympic athletes and corporate leaders。 One in particular demonstrated that just as professional athletes have to train their bodies to quickly cool down after intense effort， people in business need to do the same。 READ IT IF: You hold any kind of leadership position in any kind of organization。 。。。more
Karmen
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Pragmatic and informative book on resilience and mental toughness。 Simple takeaways that we constantly need to be reminded of， such as this one:Personal program for exercising your brain 1。Read funny book 2。 Play games 3。 Act out 4。 Find what you are not learning5。 Get the most out of the business （personal） trips6。Take notes and then go back and read them7。 Try new technology8。Learning a new language or an instrument9。 Exercise， Exercise， Exercise
Omar Mohamed Alaa
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So this was one of these books that had a halo about it even before I started reading it， I felt that this book will have an impact， and it didn’t disappoint。This is a selection of articles from Harvard Business Review discussing the concepts around being more resilient and mental toughness。 The book is stock jammed with fascinating insight and data and helpful advice。Yet one of the key messages I came out with， was that it’s all in our minds， the way we choose to view struggles is up to us and So this was one of these books that had a halo about it even before I started reading it， I felt that this book will have an impact， and it didn’t disappoint。This is a selection of articles from Harvard Business Review discussing the concepts around being more resilient and mental toughness。 The book is stock jammed with fascinating insight and data and helpful advice。Yet one of the key messages I came out with， was that it’s all in our minds， the way we choose to view struggles is up to us and we can change it， and you will be amazed by the positive impact on your life they will have if you choose to see them in a different light。Definite Read，Definite Buy。Thanks to the walking school of knowledge Karim Mamdouh for lending me this amazing read。 Love u Bro。 。。。more
Carlos Castillo
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Great book with compilations of resilience and reference stories。 It was a great reading in 2018 when I was facing some challenges at work。 I didn't knew that it would be helpfull for the upcoming months in which things turn out to be thoughter。Great value and compilation of articles。 I recomend to anyone as a must。I'll read it again soon for sure。 Great book with compilations of resilience and reference stories。 It was a great reading in 2018 when I was facing some challenges at work。 I didn't knew that it would be helpfull for the upcoming months in which things turn out to be thoughter。Great value and compilation of articles。 I recomend to anyone as a must。I'll read it again soon for sure。 。。。more
Maraina Frabbiele
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Definitely the best book I’ve read all year。 Kept me engaged from start to finish。 A must read for those with a research or psychology background。
Robert
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Alot of good information， some of it makes sense。 Essentially with HBR， you take what sticks and run with it and what don't， won't be it。 Alot of good information， some of it makes sense。 Essentially with HBR， you take what sticks and run with it and what don't， won't be it。 。。。more
Robert Kagiri
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This book is not only life changing and profound but what I needed to deal with what I went through。 I feel so well equipped to face my struggles in life。 Am entirely grateful to whoever was involved in the writing and producing the content。
Gayatri Vaidya
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HBR series never fails to inspire me to have a different perspective to a managerial issue。 This book speaks on resilience and at instances， I saw myself extending it to even some personal life experiences。
Noof Matar
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3。5/5
Rogelio
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It's interesting how a few articles can concentrate that much of practical advice。 Every each of it has a very focused and precise knowledge to the reader's improvement in his skill set at work and life。 It's not strange that this compilation of top material came from Harvard。 Highly recommended。 It's interesting how a few articles can concentrate that much of practical advice。 Every each of it has a very focused and precise knowledge to the reader's improvement in his skill set at work and life。 It's not strange that this compilation of top material came from Harvard。 Highly recommended。 。。。more
Rajiv Vohra
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Good read specially in the current time。
Rita Arens
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Good stuff but better free from the library。
Cher
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 What doesnt kill you makes you strongerRecognise that certain reactions are normal
Said AlMaskery
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Covid19 must readThis book on mental toughness is a must read at the age of Covid19。Most of the lessons are beyond a single event or adversary， its life long lessons that deal with multiple types of chaos and vulnerability are much needed for nearly everyone。 Some articles were better than others。 However this might be due to the relevance to my specific situation。
Shweta Jha
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This is my second book from the HBR series， the current COVID situation has changed so much for all of us and at times even doing routine things and keep us in the business requires mental discipline and agility。 I thought this book may be good read and may help me in dealing with current situation in better way。 The book is great and gives you perspective on how to not just survive but thrive under pressure， how to focus on your strengths and why we need to work on cognitive fitness and more。 F This is my second book from the HBR series， the current COVID situation has changed so much for all of us and at times even doing routine things and keep us in the business requires mental discipline and agility。 I thought this book may be good read and may help me in dealing with current situation in better way。 The book is great and gives you perspective on how to not just survive but thrive under pressure， how to focus on your strengths and why we need to work on cognitive fitness and more。 Five key takeaways for me are:Managing pressure – personally， I perform better under certain level of pressure， the key to deal with pressure is to focus on your own excellence， look through what you can and can’t control。 Understand the long term goal and channelize your energy。 Competition can be good， use the competition – its opportunity for you to retrospect and reinvent。 Keep the desire to win and finally don’t forget to celebrate。 😊Building resiliency – failures are tough to deal with， no one likes to fail， but it’s part of our professional career and essentially of our lives。 Sometimes， we feel so helpless and its okay to feel that way， there is always a way to bounce back， focus on your strengths， be optimistic。 It’s important that you have emotional， social and spiritual fitness。 Reach out and develop your signature strengths， it will help you lead though setbacks。 Cognitive fitness – this one is my favorite， cognitive fitness is equally important as physical fitness， sometimes in a situation where you have to take a decisions or you are dealing with conflicts it is must。 Both physical fitness and cognitive fitness are complementary to each other。 Many of us follows a regime for physical fitness， but very less people focuses on building cognitive fitness。 There are few great ideas stated in this book – if you are under stress - start walking， read funny books， play games， find out what you are not learning， take notes and go back and read them， learn new things， indulge in hobbies and exercise， exercise and exercise。 The more cognitively fit you are， the more you will be able to solve the problems， take business decisions and deal with the stress and change。The making of the corporate athlete – if there is one quality that executives seek for themselves and their employees， it is the sustained high performance in the face of ever increasing pressure and change。 The books has great example on performance management and how one can improve by addressing different aspects of the body， the emotions， the mind and the sprit。 Physical capacity – helps build endurance and promotes mental and emotional recovery， take break， go out on walk， hit the gym。Emotional capacity – create the internal climate that drives the ideal performance state， - find value， learn to recognize negative emotions and engage yourself with positives。 Mental Capacity – focus physical and emotional energy on the task at the hand， don’t limit yourself by defining mental boundaries， challenge to do more， set small targets and continue working towards it。 Visualize the success， it generates positive energy and help you push beyond。 Spiritual capacity – provides powerful source of motivation， determination and endurance。 You can increase spiritual capacity by tapping into deepest value and defining strong sense of purpose。 A great example could be - how Satya Nadella and his SLT team are inculcating and thriving on our responsibility towards each and every person on the earth and the environment we live in。 Dealing with extreme negotiation – we go through negotiations all the time， be it your pay raise discussion， promotions， getting feature committed or bring everyone to the same page。 The key points are to understand the big picture， uncover hidden agendas and collaborate with other side， get genuine buy-in， build relationship that are build on trust， pay attention to the process as well as desired outcome。 Few example in the book during Afghan war is great。 。。。more
Przemek Kotowski
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One of the main factors distinguishing between successful and unsuccessful leaders is how one responds to adversity。 We live in times of unprecedented hardship that will put leaders to the extreme test。 These leaders do not know how to react to a global pandemic and what the post-Covid world will look like。 This collection of articles is a timely and very relevant read reminding us of the need to view challenges as opportunities and helping us understand the physiological and emotional toll hard One of the main factors distinguishing between successful and unsuccessful leaders is how one responds to adversity。 We live in times of unprecedented hardship that will put leaders to the extreme test。 These leaders do not know how to react to a global pandemic and what the post-Covid world will look like。 This collection of articles is a timely and very relevant read reminding us of the need to view challenges as opportunities and helping us understand the physiological and emotional toll hardships have on us and our organizations。 This is also a great source of inspiration， strategies， and case studies originating from professional sports， military， and business that can be easily applied。 For example， how to change post-traumatic stress into post-traumatic growth， what is the role of crucibles of leadership and what is their role in leadership growth， how to manage stress， and how to apply professional athlete’s regimen in business。 。。。more
Rhonda T。
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Must read for coaches/managers。 Great tools and short articles for reflection and taking action。
Christoph Weber
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Not bad， but I'm not the target audience。 Not bad， but I'm not the target audience。 。。。more
Dave
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