Bringing together the expertise of two leading authorities on Mental Toughness, Doug Strycharczyk CEO of AQR International and Penny Mallory, motivational speaker and mindset coach, Mental Toughness Matters is a new resource hub designed to introduce you to and guide you through, the world of Mental Toughness with insightful podcasts and useful downloads.
So what exactly is Mental Toughness?
Mental Toughness is a personality trait which anyone can develop. It is about being resilient, bouncing back from difficult and stressful situations, developing confidence, realising life is full of opportunities – and, with the right mindset, dealing with anything life throws at you.
What’s the key to Mental Toughness?
It boils down to one thing: self-awareness. Regardless of whether you consider yourself mentally tough or sensitive, being aware of your qualities, how you use them, and your approach is key. By practising self-awareness, you can use your qualities in the right way at the right time, avoiding potential pitfalls and achieving your goals.
How do we assess our Mental Toughness?
Measuring Mental Toughness is a multi-faceted approach. It centres around four key elements: Control, Commitment, Challenge and Confidence. Each element has two further subsets to delve further and really understand each individual. Mental Toughness can be measured using AQR’s questionnaire, the MTQPlus.
Meet the Team
Doug Strycharczyk
CEO - AQR International
Doug is the CEO of AQR International – Founded in 1989, AQR is now recognised as one of the most innovative people development organisations in the world working in more than 80 countries.AQR has established its reputation as a thought leader in mental toughness. Doug has worked with Professor Peter Clough and Dr John Perry for 25+ years to define Mental Toughness and to create the world’s leading measure of Mental Toughness, the MTQ.
He is co-author of the leading text on the concept and its applications – Developing Mental Toughness (Kogan Page 2021).
Doug is now recognised as a leading authority on the application of the framework to the worlds of work, education, social mobility and coaching. He speaks regularly at major conferences and events on the importance of Mental Toughness in improving wellbeing, agility, performance and managing aspirations.
Penny Mallory
Former Rally Champion | TedX Speaker
Penny Mallory is one of the UK’s top female motivational speakers and a leading authority on Mental Toughness. Drawing from her experience in motorsport as a Rally Driver, Penny is living proof that building and developing mental toughness are vital if you are to thrive in this world.
In the fast-paced world of motorsport, Penny learned first-hand the sheer power of mental toughness. The ability to stay focused, resilient, and determined amidst the chaos of high-speed racing isn’t just a skill – it’s a necessity. Every twist, turn, and challenge on the track taught her valuable lessons about perseverance and grit.
But her journey didn’t start there or stop at the finish line. Penny realised that the principles of mental toughness aren’t exclusive to motorsport; they’re essential for success in every aspect of life. That’s why Penny made it her mission to share her experiences and insights as a motivational speaker and mental toughness coach.
Whether Penny is addressing a packed auditorium or working one-on-one with clients, she’s passionate about encouraging individuals to develop their full potential. Penny knows first-hand that with the right mindset, anything is possible.
You can find out more about Penny here.
Want to learn more?
Developing Mental Toughness by Doug Strycharczyk, Peter Clough and John Perry (Published by Kogan Page) was the first book to look at applications of Mental Toughness at the organizational level and to provide a reliable psychometric measure.
The new edition includes greater coverage of how mental toughness relates to other behaviours and can be applied to leadership, creativity, emotional intelligence, and motivation. It also looks at its applications in employability and entrepreneurship and has expanded coverage of coaching for mental toughness. Written for anyone coaching individuals and teams for improved performance, the book contains practical guidance and techniques, exercises, case studies and the Mental Toughness self-assessment tool, all reflecting the exciting developments in this field over the last five years.
365 Ways to Develop Mental Toughness by Penny Mallory: This book is designed to give you a new idea every day, to help you develop your mental toughness. Practice them regularly and see the difference it makes. Keep applying them and you will be developing your mental toughness every single day. And today is the very best day to start making those positive changes!
Resources
Delve into the world of mental toughness with Doug and Penny and listen to the highly informative and relatable discussions on the key elements of mental toughness. See how these are all applicable in everyday life, and how they can help you on the way to developing your resilience, managing stress and handling pressure.
Useful Links
To Be Trusted, I Must First Learn To Trust Others
Trust is a topic that matters. A lack of trust is a major impediment to most leadership, teamwork and development activities. If I can’t be trusted, I am shot as a leader. If others do follow me, they likely do so for all the wrong reasons, and it doesn't deliver...
Building a Culture of Resilience AND Positivity
Resilience and Positivity or Optimism come together in the Mental Toughness concept. The terms Resilience and Mental Toughness are often confused which means that desired outcomes such as thriving can be targeted but not achieved. There is a difference, and it is...
What business leaders should address – Psychological Safety
Why Psychological Safety Matters Psychological Safety has gained attention in the workplace for good reasons. It matters. It impacts everything from the bottom line to staff wellbeing and aspirations. Psychological safety matters because: Team members feel more...
Directed Forgetting – Can Deliberate Forgetting Be Useful?
Why Directed Forgetting matters for creating resilient and optimistic people and organisations All of us come across events and situations which we see result in setbacks or failure. In extreme cases, some can be catastrophic – such as a business failure, making a...
ARE THERE MORE TYPES OF CARS THAN THERE ARE PEOPLE?
Nope! People are more complex and varied and we need to grasp that! You are not a type or a colour. You are unique. Your ability to thrive depends on your uniqueness. It’s what self-awareness must address. The Car and Automakers Database, says there are 129 brands,...
35 Years and Counting – What’s Next?
I founded AQR International on January 1st, 1989, in the middle of a recession. In my last post of 2023, I reflected on the changes since then. Sometimes it felt as though we were in a permanent recession. Where once we were a consultancy working directly with...
35 Years of Progress – Still Growing. Still Learning.
Founded in 1989 as TCA Consultants, in January AQR International will reach 35 years of existence. Given that the average life of a UK company is around 7 years, we feel a degree of comfort from that. We must have done something right? Like any business, we have had...
Unlocking Anger’s Potential: A Surprising Key to Goal Achievement
Why understanding Mental Toughness might be the key to unlocking that potential. Anger is often thought of as a negative emotion. Something to be avoided and potentially disruptive and destructive. Research published by the American Psychological Association...
Mental Toughness and Curiosity
Mental Toughness correlates closely with Curiosity with an interesting twist. It could be key to developing and optimising curiosity. Why curiosity? In 2017, the World Economic Forum (WEF) identified Curiosity as one of 16 key skills that people will need for success...
The Eighty Five Percent “Rule” for Optimal Learning
Is there a sweet spot for failure and making the most of it? Might your mental toughness matter? The conventional wisdom is that we learn more from our mistakes than our successes. There is some truth in that. But that doesn’t mean that failing at everything all of...
Impostor Syndrome – It’s normal to feel this and it is important to master it
Impostor syndrome describes how normally high-achieving individuals who, although successful, have persistent self-doubt and a fear of being exposed as a fraud or impostor. Those with impostor syndrome can struggle with attributing their success to their abilities...
6 Reasons Why Resilience And Wellbeing Development Often Fails – & What You Can Do To Make This Work
In March 2023, a paper from Oxford University* found that resilience and wellbeing programs in 143 UK organisations failed to deliver satisfactory results and some did more harm than good. Another study on wellbeing programs in the Dutch Police Service, using the...
Contact Mental Toughness Matters
If you have any questions for the team, please fill in the form below.