Do Hard Things: Why We Get Resilience Wrong and the Surprising Science of Real Toughness

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Completing a hard and worthwhile endeavor requires a high level of toughness. People associate toughness with complete confidence, brute force, and bravado. But real toughness is none of those things. Author Steve Magness has explored the science of toughness, and he’s found surprising differences between the traditional toughness maxims and the science of toughness. For starters: One is learning to sit with the pain, instead of pushing through it. That way you’re not giving it power. Because our brain is designed to protect us, it says, “Oh, you’re going to resist, that must mean we must actually be in danger, so I’m going to up the ante so that you actually listen to me.” Train your brain to sit with it, and respond instead of react. Another strategy is using your attention to create some space, so that you can deal with [whatever comes up]. World-class athletes are experts at this, they can zoom into a problem or zoom all the way out. They can flip the switch, put their head down and turn into Michael Jordan in the clutch. At the same time, world-class marathoners have to run for two hours so they zone out for a while until it actually matters, then they flip the switch. Steve Magness possesses an incredible range of wisdom and knowledge about the science, psychology and practical sides of sport performance. Do Hard Things is a master class in how to develop resilience, persistence and confidence under pressure.”— Christie Aschwanden, New York Times bestselling author of Good to Go Toughness has long been held as the key to overcoming a challenge and achieving greatness, whether it is on the sports field, at a boardroom, or at the dining room table. Yet, the prevailing model has promoted a mentality based on fear, false bravado, and hiding any sign of weakness. In other words, the old model of toughness has failed us.

Magness was a columnist for Running Times magazine and is now the co-host of two podcasts: The Growth Equation podcast, with Brad Stulberg, and On Coaching with Magness and Marcus, with Jon Marcus. His writing has also appeared in Runner’s World and Sports Illustrated. In addition, Steve's expertise on elite sport and performance has been featured in The New Yorker, Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Men’s Health, The Guardian, Business Insider, and ESPN The Magazine. The book is a refreshing and insightful take on a topic that is often misunderstood and oversimplified. Magness does a great job of explaining the science and psychology behind resilience and how it can be applied to various situations and challenges. He also shares his own personal stories and experiences as a coach and an athlete, which add credibility and authenticity to his message. Let’s get one thing straight. If something like this has ever happened to you, the problem is not that you’re not tough enough. The problem lies in society’s toxic definition of toughness. In this Blink, we’ll share a new definition of toughness that’s grounded in science and psychology. What’s more, we’ll guide you through strategies for building this toughness within yourself.Steve Magness is a world-renowned expert on performance, well-being, and sustainable success. His most recent work is Do Hard Things: Why We Get Resilience Wrong and the Surprising Science of Real Toughness. He is coauthor of the best selling Peak Performance and The Passion Paradox. Here is a three-part method to reliably return your amygdala to baseline and maintain a state of equanimity (evenness and composure in stressful situations): What is a better conception of toughness than “push through the pan to get on the other side of it?” Admit when you have the urge to give up, or explode. Try and use self-talk to pass through that urge. This is a high-level mental maneuver, and you won’t always accomplish it perfectly. But the more space you can create between experiencing a feeling and capitulating to the urge for a freak-out, the more likely you are to successfully navigate challenging situations. The secret ingredient to real resilience is drive.

Malcolm Gladwell, author of Outliers and Talking to Strangers and host of the Revisionist History podcastA must-read book on a timely and timeless topic, written by the perfect person to explore what it actually means to be tough. Steve's been thinking about these issues for years, and this book presents a fascinating and, more importantly, extremely helpful new perspective on toughness and how to build it." Brad Stulberg Steve Magness has established himself as a leading voice in performance optimization and achieving one's personal bestness, arete as the Greek's say. In Do Hard Things, Magness questions longstanding beliefs that toughness is developed through hubris and infallibility. What he reveals is both hopeful and reassuring. Do Hard Things is essential reading for anyone looking to cultivate inner strength in a genuine and authentic way." Every challenging and worthwhile endeavor brings a heavy dose of discomfort. When discomfort strikes, the amygdala – a small region in the brain that scientists call the body’s alarm system – is activated. People who burnout have an overactivated amygdala they cannot calm down. The Principles of Toughness: The key attributes to apply to your business, athletic, and home life to develop resilience. Do Hard Things (2022) explodes mythologies around the popular conception of toughness. It shows how traditional markers of toughness, like putting on a brave face and pushing past pain, can actually hinder physical and mental performance outcomes in the long term. Instead, real resilience comes from listening to your body and embracing your emotions.

In Do Hard Things, Steve Magness beautifully and persuasively reimagines our understanding of toughness. This is a must-read for parents and coaches and anyone else looking to prepare for life's biggest challenges."— Malcolm Gladwell, author of Outliersand Talking to Strangersand host of the Revisionist History podcast For too long, we have lauded stories of coaches and leaders who practice the ‘weed-out’ school of toughness—subject a bunch of people to something unpleasant, and those who survive must have become high performers because of it. While those stories have grown in prominence, the body of scientific research has grown in a different direction, indicating that fortitude is not a trait that magically grows under extreme duress, but rather a skill that can slowly but surely be cultivated. It is time to bring the stories in line with the research, and I think Steve Magness is perfectly positioned to do just that.”— David Epstein, New York Times bestselling author of Range and The Sports Gene

Chapter 1: The Importance of Resilience

He currently lives in Houston, Tx with his wife Hillary. Once upon a time, he ran a mile in 4:01 in high school, at the time the 6th fastest high school mile in US history.