Forbes came out with an article not too long ago entitled “Mentally Strong People: The 13 Things They Avoid.” It emphasized the need for mental strength as a foundation of our lives in addition to the typical physical strength and health people push. Out of this article came a list of a more positively-focused way to look at it, which is the list of habits mentally strong people do practice. We discovered it and added our own twist to this essential list.

So here it is. Take it as you need it and apply these practices as you see fit:

18 Things Mentally Strong People Do:

1. They move on: rough circumstances? Hard times? Unthinkable difficulties? They don’t sit around moping, feeling sorry for themselves. They continue onward.
2. They keep control: they don’t let other things take away their power, whether it’s people or situations that are challenging them. They center themselves knowing that they are in control of their lives.
3. They embrace change: change is a challenge that we all take on whether we want to or not. It’s a matter of how we let change affect us, and to them, they conquer it and find new opportunities, rather than let it overwhelm them.
4. They stay happy: they don’t waste energy on what they can’t affect. Instead, they find the silver lining and zero in on what makes they happy. They certainly don’t waste time on complaining, either, and making their negative words a reality to themselves.
5. They are blessings to others: kindness, fairness, and speaking up for themselves and others are three tenants that they advocate with their own lives. They aren’t afraid of what other people will think about these things, either.
6. They are willing to take calculated risks: living life in a bubble, too afraid to try anything, isn’t living at all. They don’t jump headfirst into danger, either, though. They look at the risks and the benefits, and then decide.
7. They invest their energy in the present: being present is huge. By not expending energy on the unchangeable past or uncertain future, and instead enjoying and centering on the now, they give themselves true freedom and their best performance in the present.
8. They accept full responsibility for their past behavior: mistakes happen, but they learn from them without shame, knowing they aren’t perfect and yet that they need to be responsible for all their own actions.
9. They celebrate other peoples’ successes: they aren’t encumbered by jealousy, knowing they have their own power and contribution to the world. They don’t resent what other people can or have accomplished.
10. They are willing to fail: failure doesn’t deter them from trying and trying with their whole hearts. Even if their endeavors aren’t successful, they don’t give up. To them, failure is a chance to improve.
11. They enjoy their time alone: they don’t absolutely need to be around other every moment of the day. They are confident enough in themselves to be left alone with only themselves. Being alone isn’t scary anymore.
12. They are prepared to work and succeed on their own merits: they know what they are capable of and what they seek, and they don’t expect the world to hand it to them. Instead, they seek to earn what their hearts desire.
13. They have staying power: they don’t expect results immediately. They can out-wait anything patiently once they are invested.
14. They evaluate their core beliefs: they look and aren’t afraid to modify as they see fit. They learn new things every day and reassess what they believe.
15. They expend their energy wisely: they look at the time they have available and make use of it to the best of their ability. They don’t waste time on things that are just blackholes for their energy with nothing in return for the investment.
16. They think productively: thoughts are powerful, and negative thoughts have no place in productivity. They don’t get down on themselves or let insecurity take over. Instead, they hold on to the positive and what they can take away from every situation, good or bad.
17. They tolerate discomfort: they do feel those uncomfortable or difficult situations, but these do not control them. They have the ability to push through no matter what.
18. They reflect on their progress every day: they make time to consider the good things that they’ve achieved, and also time to refocus on the direction they wish to go. Then, they alter their courses from there to be where they want to be, no matter how fast or slow.