First, stop making excuses. Face the worst you can think of, then do it again and again. Train your mind to stay calm when the temperature drops or supplies run low. Push your limits in training – do hard, repetitive tasks, and never say you’re done until you’re physically tired. Then ask yourself if you’re really finished. Use short, brutal mental cues like “Keep going” or “No pain, no gain” and repeat until it becomes automatic. Keep a journal, write the day’s hardships, then write what you did to overcome them. That rewires your brain to expect adversity. Lastly, rest is part of training. Let your body recover, but keep your mind in that hard, steady state so you’re ready when the next challenge hits.

Writing it down turns thoughts into evidence. If you get distracted, keep the page small – just a few lines, the same format each day. Set a timer for five minutes and write until it stops. After the timer, don’t look back at the page; let it be your record. The key is to keep the rhythm of writing as part of the training – a mental drill that reinforces the same tough mindset you use in the field. Keep it short, keep it brutal, keep it moving.