If you would not have a man flinch when the crisis comes, train him before it comes - Seneca
A term used frequently among ancient Greek and Roman stoics, voluntary hardship is a way of building resilience in many aspects of life. Of course, nothing can fully prepare us for what life may bring at any given time, but there are practices such as voluntary hardship that can assist us in building a certain mindset that adopts growth over comfort.
Comfort can be regarded as weakness by many, but many prefer comfort over growth. Comfort makes us feel stable, steady and “at ease” from pain and suffering, but in reality we sacrifice an abundance of personal growth and limit our true potential to feel the warm cozy blanket of comfort over our shoulders, but the stoics knew back then that the comfortable life leads to spiritual decay.
It is most important to point out that of course, everyone lives different lifestyles and has experienced different upbringings and life events. Involuntary hardship (real and unplanned life events) and grief in itself are only relative to an individual and should never be compared to others. For example somebody may lose a loved one earlier in life compared to someone losing a loved one later in life, it doesn’t mean that one is harder than the other - who are you or I to pass that judgment? Both of those hardships are relative to the individual at any given time in their life. It is imperative that we never compare grief or hardship with others and to remember that voluntary hardship is relative to an individual’s personal growth because it is VOLUNTARY and in the act of your own free will.
But, why? Why put ourselves through voluntary hardship when we don’t have to. Hardship teaches us the MOST about ourselves, it shapes us and reveals our character, exposes our resilience and our will to persist. There is nowhere to hide in the face of true hardship. Instead of just thinking happy and joyful thoughts, those who excel in the face of hardship are able to see things from a different perspective, by shifting their focus only to the things that they can control, especially in times that seem unfavourable as it is ingrained in the character that you build - to persist and push through the hard times and break through the other side with as little battle scars (emotional damage) as possible.
No man is more unhappy than he who never faces adversity, for he is not permitted to prove himself - Seneca
People who are resilient are able to harness their traumas and use them to motivate and fuel their goals rather than fall into the victim mindset when something doesn't go their way. The ancient Stoics had a blueprint for life in Stoicism through virtues and voluntary hardship was a practice that was part of that blueprint. It is the art of mastering avoidable adversities to build a resilient mind.
At the end of the day, voluntary hardship is a very practical way of preparing the mind for day to day life events, and they will come whether you are prepared or not, but when they do your mind will pivot very quickly to overcome and get on with it whatever it is without complaint or resistance and no little voice in your head saying poor me, what did I do to deserve this. Just work out a plan, prioritise it and execute it.
Think of it simply as deliberately seeking discomfort.
In 2023 we are seeing a rise in people doing this in the way of deliberate cold exposure/ cold showers and people challenging themselves with incredible physical challenges. These are fantastic ways to build resilience. Voluntary hardship in 2023 may also look like this;
Doing menial tasks that you dislike doing - doing them well and with a smile
Not using your phones GPS to find a location - work it out another way
Take cold showers every morning/ deliberate cold exposure
Sauna for a 15 mins or more
Stick to a strict personalised strength program, hypertrophy or endurance program
Turn off your electricity once a week/ fortnight - Light candles, read books
Do the shit jobs at work or at home - This one is a good one because everyone avoids the shit jobs like the plague, but it takes leadership to put your hands up and do them and fucking enjoy it
Volunteer - Although you may not be homeless, volunteering to help people in need will show you what real involuntary hardship is and will make you all the more grateful for what you have.
Don’t rely on temperature control such as A/C or heating. Suck it up
Go minimalist - Give majority of your clothes away, sell useless items that you posses to truly feel what it’s like to have minimal possessions
Fasting for a period of time
Get off socials media and other apps that are not serving you for a week or more
Set your bedtime and early alarm (stop staying up wasting time watching TV)
Gain control over your biggest vices
These are just a few ways of disrupting your day and creating discomfort in your lifestyle. It is up to you how far you want to take it! Some people may already do all of these things and want to ramp it up, but many of you are well and truly in the squishy centre of the comfort zone and don’t realise how good you have it and how comfort is actually crippling you.
It is logical when you think about it, exposure to a perceived struggle will make future struggles more adaptable. Train your mind like you would train a muscle and control the internal monologue. I believe that by adopting at least 3 aspects of voluntary hardship in my day is imperative to gain control over my mind and any self limiting thoughts.
Tomorrow - start your day with an early alarm and a cold shower followed by a hard workout
all before you get to work. The discipline it requires to do those things day after day will undoubtedly develop confidence, self discipline, self esteem, resilience and self belief into your character and subconscious mind.
OR make your own plan on how you might attack voluntary hardship and execute it.
Steno