How do we stay grounded when the world unravels around us? This is an important question. I believe groundedness is an essential characteristic for men. God designed us to be a source of strength for those around us. We are to be the rock among crashing waves and the oak that bends but never breaks in the storm. When we are strong and grounded, the world around us can be in utter chaos, but we can think with clarity; we are steady inside and are able to make the calls that need to be made.

I have led within the steel industry for years. I have faced stressful situations and led teams out of challenging scenarios to victory many times throughout my career. I have done this from the ground floor, supervisor, manager, and general manager levels. But it was only recently I stepped back and thought about how to develop this groundedness. So, over the past few years, I have zeroed in on building this ability and becoming stronger. This post summarizes how I am doing this in my life.

Staying grounded is directly correlated to our inner strength. Building inner strength is something I am doing in three ways. The first is in developing my relationship with God. The second is the daily development of my body, mind, and spirit. And the third is developing purposeful relationships with strong brothers. Continuous development of these three areas has built the core of my inner strength as a man more than anything else in my life.

The Core of My Strength

God My Strength

At the center of my core is God. God is the ultimate strength in our universe, the Almighty God. There is no power or strength beyond him. He is my main source of strength and wisdom. He is the one I completely trust with my life.

We can fool ourselves and are often blinded to reality as human beings. Our assessment of ourselves and others can sometimes be skewed and distorted because of the influence of sin in our lives. God is apart from that influence, and he sees all things outside the confines of time. He sees things as they are. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. In him, we have insight that goes far beyond human understanding. He directs our path according to what is best for us from an eternal perspective. He guides us in living in ways that support his mission in this world. In following Jesus, I have entrusted my entire life to God. He is the Creator and Master of my soul.

God will always be at the center and the primary source of my strength. He offers through his spirit supernatural strength in my soul. The more I am plugged into him and doing his will; the more evident his supernatural power will be in me.

I develop this strength in God in a few ways. One way is by reading and studying the Bible, which gives me a better understanding of God, myself, and how to relate to Him. I also talk to him often throughout my day. I speak to him about what I learned and ask His wisdom regarding applying it in this life. Finally, and most importantly, I put what I learned into action by faith. Putting God’s principles into action requires faith and trust. Faith in action is when God’s power becomes a reality in us. Taking action triggers the supernatural power of God. Action aligned with His truth brings power for life.

Body, Mind, Spirit

After God, the second piece of my core inner strength comes from routinely engaging myself in building a strong body, mind, and spirit. There is an interconnectedness in these three that many do not realize. I have discovered that building strength in my physical body also strengthens my mind. One way my mind becomes stronger is by overcoming difficulties. It is hard to consistently train. In doing so we are often overcoming hardship. For example, I find myself often fighting the battle in my mind to skip a workout or cheat on my diet. But I have discovered that every time I overcome these things, I gain strength mentally. The man who can routinely step up and do something he does not feel like doing physically will also leverage that into many other aspects of his life. That man will multiply his wins.

This mental strength also enables me to be more disciplined in my spiritual life. I find it easier to establish daily routines that draw me closer to God and fans His fire in my spirit.

The other thing that happens when you routinely workout is you gain energy and stamina. This makes everything easier. When you are faced with situations that require you to step up to the plate and make things happen, you are ready. Even when you’ve worked hard and are tired, you have developed the ability to go just a little more. You can respond to the hardships and surprises of life the right way because you are not exhausted from a life of lazy complacency. You can always dig deeper and respond according to your values rather than react based on your emotions.

Body, mind, and spirit are interrelated. My recommendation is always to start with the physical. Workout, eat right and get good sleep. Build that routine into your daily life and then build the mental and spiritual. As I did, you will likely discover that many of your mental and spiritual failures/victories are related to your physical condition.

Brotherhood

Lastly, the third piece of my core strength comes from surrounding myself with high-value men who are on a path of continuous improvement. It is not good enough to just surround yourself with men. You need to surround yourself with men that are also dialing themselves in physically, mentally, and spiritually.

These need to be men working to be in the top 10% or better of society. They need to be driven men that are on a mission. They desire to be solid men that lead solid families, influence workplaces, influence the world, and other men. This desire drives action. They are DOING things to become better, not just talking about it.

These men will speak truth into your life and tell you the hard stuff that others will not tell you. These need to be men that are content but never satisfied. They will be improving themselves right up until their last day on this earth. This is hard to find. I could not find this in my life until I found the Fraternity of Excellence. Only there could I see men that were genuinely driven to the degree that inspired me and encouraged me to work hard and become a better man.

Practical Application to Life

I continually ask myself how I am doing in these three core areas. If I am solid, I know I can move out and engage with strength and effectiveness without being sidetracked by the stresses and pressures of life.

Strength in my core puts me in a position of power to be effective as I engage my immediate family, wife, and son. Likewise, being solid with God, self, strong brothers, and immediate family puts me in an excellent position to engage friends and extended family effectively and in strength.

This continues to work relationships, community relationships, and the world.

I routinely assess my engagement and effectiveness in these areas starting from the core and moving outward. Suppose I begin to sense myself unraveling, worrying, not engaging effectively. In that case, I move my focus back toward my core and repair or reinforce the point of weakness until I am solid enough to move out again. This process will never end in this life. It is a continuous cycle that requires work from now to my last day. This also emphasizes how important it is to have strong routines in place to continuously feed the core of our strength.

Once outside my Core,  engagement with others is prioritized by my personal values. For me, my values drive the following priorities in the following order.

Priority #1 – Immediate Family

Priority #2 – Friends and Extended Family

Priority #3 – Work Relationships

Priority #4 – Community Relationships

Priority #5 – World Relationships

So what about you? What is your core? How are you strengthening your core? How often do you assess where you are? How are you doing when the stress levels rise? Start to build your core. Establish your routines and establish consistency so that you will be a man that stays grounded in chaotic times.

Got questions? Reach out @ menofgrit.j3lead@gmail.com

In Your Corner,

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.