THE Mental Toughness Podcast with Matt Phillips Matt Phillips: Speaker, Author, High Performance Coach

Transitions can be tough. Especially in the wake of falling short of a dream you’ve worked for more than a decade to achieve.
But that’s exactly the position Jen Hudak, freestyle skier turned writer and life coach, found herself in after a crash tore her ACL, knocked her out of contention to be named to the first-ever U.S. Women’s Olympic ski halfpipe team and effectively ended her professional skiing career.
Well versed in mental toughness as a former world champion skier, Jen joined Matt to discuss the transition away from skiing into the “real world,” as well as themes that include facing your fears, the power of visualization, having willingness to fight through adversity and so much more for the Mental Toughness Podcast. 

Change is hard. Especially when you’re making a big life change — be it leaving your job, starting a new company, moving on from a relationship or any other difficult decision.
But change can be even harder when the change you’re in pursuit of is the intensely challenging process of becoming an expertly trained and highly specialized member of the Navy’s Sea, Air and Land Forces — commonly known as SEALs. Requiring “the kind of mental and physical fortitude that few possess,” retired Navy SEAL Commander Mark Divine knows what it takes to make a big change — an unbeatable mind. This podcast is exactly what you need to hear today.

It’s time for another episode of The Mental Toughness Podcast, and I’ve got a good one for you today!  
 
Meet Jenna Powers! Jenna is a 51-time marathoner and ultra-marathoner since 2014 and has completed races of up to 206.5 miles. 
 
She believes strongly in the intersection between an endurance sport and career success and works passionately to help others seeking to improve themselves in both areas. 
 
When she’s not running, Jenna leads a global team of over 200 people, as the Director of Recruiting Operations for Amazon.com, where she has been employed for 7.5 years in a variety of capacities, including labor and employee relations, training, leadership development, and M&A.
 
She’s powerful, passionate, and was a blast to have on the podcast. I know you will enjoy this one too! Check it out!

I was stoked recently to sit down with Jason Khalipa, 2008 CrossFit Games champion, founder of NCFIT, and author of The AMRAP Mentality and a new book, As Many Reps As Possible. Throughout his 8-year CrossFit Games career, Jason has only placed outside the Top 10 once, has won every regional competition he has participated in, and won the Spirit of the Games award in 2009.
 
Now obviously Jason is the epitome of Mental Toughness, but how he got there is perhaps a different path than most. As an elite CrossFit Games athlete, Jason had to develop both physical and mental toughness at an unbelievable level to be able to compete in – and win – what is considered one of the most grueling physical contests in the world.
 
So what is his advice? You will have to listen to find out!

We’ve all faced experiences where who we thought we were — or wanted to be — doesn’t work out for whatever reason. And this is, oftentimes, when most people have nervous breakdowns or spiral out of control.
Whether it’s losing your physicality after an injury, being diagnosed with a disease or losing a job you have had for 10-plus years, pushing through that unexpected loss of identity can be challenging.
While Jeff Harmon couldn’t pinpoint a “magic moment” for his identity shifting back to rediscover his purpose, after a difficult conversation with his wife, he realized that how he leads matters and that it’s not all about him.  
“I was full of crap, and here's why. Because I'd stand on stage or I'd stand in front of a group of leaders and I'd preach. I talked a good game but I can remember the conversation with my wife, she said, ‘you teach about this stuff, but you don't do it here.’ I teach it, talk about it, coach it, but I wasn't fully living it.”
For Jeff Harmon, the underlying element is fear. Fear of failure, of being embarrassed, of looking inferior because they don't have the answers.
Fear stops people from stepping into a new way of thinking about how they lead and how they show up. We live in a crazy world and unpacking where fear is showing up in your life and how it is holding you back is a constant, ongoing battle.

We’ve all reached low points in our lives, but how many of us had someone shooting at us, trying to kill us in those moments?
For Charlie Engle, ultramarathon runner and author of “Running Man,” that is precisely the precarious scenario he found himself in before beginning his journey to overcome addiction. Charlie recently sat down with Matt to discuss the transformational power that running has had on his life for the Mental Toughness Podcast.
Diving into themes that include motivation, goals, failures, progress and taking ownership of every aspect of one’s life, Charlie and Matt’s enlightening discussion offers listeners interesting insight into how to overcome your inner demons and be successful in every aspect of your life.