Although we can train for anticipated tasks and missions, the fast pace and inherent ambiguity of today’s operational environment demand that we be prepared for unexpected challenges.  The best preparation for operating effectively in such an environment is a fit mind. Just as a fit body has endurance, strength and flexibility, a fit mind has distinct capacities as well:  mental agility, attention, emotional intelligence, and situational awareness.

Mental Agility

Mental agility is cognitive and psychological adaptability, or the ability to think rapidly and creatively under stress.  An agile mind is flexible.  It can anticipate or quickly adapt to uncertain or changing situations and improvise when faced with obstacles.

Attention

Attention is the ability to concentrate and focus on relevant information, while filtering out irrelevant information.  Irrelevant distractions can come from either the external environment or the internal environment (including emotions, mind-wandering, or unpleasant physical sensations in the body).  With the ability to sustain focus, we can learn and perf orm more effectively.

Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence is comprised of four skills: knowing one’s own emotions, regulating one’s emotions, recognizing emotions in others, and handling relationships effectively.  Individuals with high emotional intelligence have a better capacity for regulating emotional responses, seeing situations from others’ perspectives, and tolerating challenging situations and people.

Situational Awareness

Situational awareness is the ability to absorb and assess information accurately and respond most appropriately in light of that information.  While usually considered a military skill, situational awareness is necessary for optimal performance in any realm.  We usually think of situational awareness as pertaining exclusively to the external environment, but individuals can obtain critical information from the internal environment as well.  Situational awareness thus has three components – awareness of self, others, and the wider environment.

                                     situational awareness training