Mount Vernon High School

October 27, 2023 Is Your Toughness Counterfeit? According to the US Department of Treasury, an estimated $70 million in counterfeit currency is currently in circulation. $70 million! In recent years, advances in technology have made counterfeit money look even more like the real thing than ever before. Only an extensive form of testing can typically reveal what’s authentic and what’s not. For counterfeiters, fabricating the fake stuff is easier than earning the real stuff. That’s true for money like it is for most of the valuable resources in life. Take toughness, for example. Toughness is a quality that each of us wants to possess because we recognize it as a valuable resource in our pursuit of any meaningful achievement. Not only does a lack of toughness typically keep us from being able to do the big, important things we want to do, it’s also a somewhat embarrassing admission to have to make - that we don’t have the toughness that winning really requires us to possess. That’s why many people work hard to fabricate a facade of toughness. They talk a big game about who they are and what they’re capable of. Some people have gotten really good, in fact, at convincing others - and even themselves - that they are pretty tough. But the truth is, a lot of that toughness is fake. Today is a great day to stop and evaluate whether or not you’ve developed the authentic toughness that winning really requires you to possess. If you’re serious about doing something big and important, it’s a great day to ask yourself this important question: are you really tough, or is your toughness counterfeit? Today is a great day to stop and evaluate whether or not you’ve developed the authentic toughness that winning really requires you to possess. Just like with currency, when it comes to toughness, only an extensive form of testing can typically reveal what’s authentic and what’s not. Each one of us is administered these toughness tests on a daily basis, and our response to these tests helps to validate what we're really made of. Some toughness tests are physical. We are challenged, either by ourselves or by someone else, to push our body beyond its comfort zone. Despite being sick, tired, sore, or in pain, there are responsibilities that success in some important area of life requires us to meet. Sometimes those tests are administered publicly for everyone to see, and sometimes they're administered privately for no one else to see, but those physical challenges have a way of revealing the reality of our toughness. Just as often - maybe even more often, in fact - the toughness tests we are administered are mental. We are challenged to respond effectively to some unwanted or unexpected adversity. We are faced with some sort of unfairness, or we don’t get something we think we are entitled to. We feel lazy, negative, anxious, or fearful. Once again, some of those tests are administered publicly for everyone to see, and some are administered privately for no one else to see, but those mental challenges have a way of revealing the reality of our toughness. If your toughness is counterfeit, then in your moments of testing you’ll probably do what losers do. You’ll bail on your responsibility and work hard to generate an excuse for why it can’t get done. You’ll find someone or something to blame or to complain about. You’ll focus on the unfairness of your situation and you’ll play the victim. Your moments of testing will reveal that, sadly, you just don’t have what winning in that moment really requires. If, on the other hand, your toughness is authentic, then in your moments of testing you’ll probably do what champions do. You’ll acknowledge those negative feelings, then set them aside and get to work anyways. You’ll push through the sickness, the soreness, the fatigue, or the pain because you recognize that your progress and your performance today matter. You’ll give your very best effort, and choose to do with with a great attitude - despite the struggle - because you recognize this moment of testing as an opportunity to validate that you are in fact someone worthy of winning today, and recognize it as an opportunity to earn more toughness for the tests that are to come moving forward. Counterfeit toughness is a lot like counterfeit currency. At first glance, it looks a lot like the real thing. In both instances, fabricating the fake stuff is easier than earning the real stuff. And in each case, only an extensive form of testing can typically reveal what’s authentic and what’s not. I want to challenge and encourage you to recognize the toughness tests you are administered today, and to recognize the opportunity they present to you - to prove you’ve got what winning really requires you to possess. -Travis