In a complex and uncertain world, we all need tools to understand and manage our most important asset - our own minds. Our minds are our brakes and our accelerators, and as we face the new world, we need to consider how we respond to change, how we enhance our adaptability and learn to be agile in an ever-changing world.

Just like we go to the gym to exercise, to strengthen our bodies to get physically fit, we want people to be putting the same effort into their mental fitness to learn how to navigate thinking and emotions better, how to approach challenges with patience and empathy, overcome stress and anxiety and apply practical strategies to help cultivate a more positive growth mindset.

Mental Fitness is the rationale and the business case to why mental fitness is the only advantage that matters in business. The book provides the foundations of mental fitness, and is designed to:

• Empower you and your people to skilfully navigate their thinking and emotions
• To approach challenges and setbacks with agility and patience
• Provide practical tools & techniques to overcome stress and anxiety
• Apply practical strategies to help cultivate a more positive growth mindset to business and life.

Jodie Rogers is a human behavior consultant, skills trainer, and facilitator who has been helping people all over the world become engaged in their work, feel more empowered, and become more productive for nearly 20 years. She’s worked closely with teams at Unilever, L’Oréal, Coca-Cola, Jacobs Douwe Egberts and many more.
symbiapartners.com

Preface ix

Acknowledgements xv

Introduction xvii

Part One Leadership and the Hidden Edge 1

1 Under the Skin of Leaders and Their Teams 3

2 The Business Case for Investing in Mental Fitness 17

3 The Future of Fit Businesses 33

Part Two The Power of Meaning and Emotions 41

4 Perception: Do You See What I See? 43

5 The Stories We Tell Ourselves 61

6 Everything Is Connected 71

7 Emotion and Decision Making 81

Part Three Owning Our Thinking 95

8 Navigating Thinking Traps 97

9 Fear Response and Neuroplasticity 109

Part Four Limiting and Empowering Beliefs 115

10 The ‘Rules’ We Should Be Breaking 117

11 How to Reframe Limiting Beliefs 139

Part Five Values: Principles We Live By 145

12 Values and Decision Making 147

13 Uncovering Your Values 163

14 Using Values to Navigate Conflict 173

Part Six Stress and Performance 181

15 Stress and Control 183

16 Overcoming the Amygdala Hijack 189

17 Flow Versus Frazzle 199

Mental Fitness in Practice 219

Conclusion 231

Index 237