State & Country representative athlete, Dally M Winger of The Year; Josh Mansour is one of the biggest names in the NRL today. The public knows him for his relentless style of football and his miraculous recovery from two traumatic injuries -but this is the private untold story about the man behind the athlete. A story that starts as a witness to abuse, but never ends with a victim. 

Josh Mansour is a man built from adversity, for adversity. I’ve known Josh personally for over ten years, I knew some things about his past, I knew he had it rough, but I never knew the details until now. 

In his most vulnerable version yet; Josh opens up for the first time about his childhood and abusive father – he reveals a side of him that I and most people have never seen or heard before. He bares his scars to the world, but he does so with pride because that past is what has allowed him to be so strong today, and what pushes him to train harder and focus more diligently than the man next to him or anybody else in the game. 

Through our discussion you will come to understand why, against all odds, Josh keeps coming back from all the crap thrown at him and why he keeps on winning. We break down the mental models to his tenacity as well as the reasons for it. You will get a glimpse inside the heart of a world-class athlete and understand the mindset that separates the best, from the rest.

Oh, and he announces something very special on the show, so make sure you listen to this one!

Key Lessons

1. Switch from ‘Why’ to ‘How’: Josh faced two massive injuries, one year after the other, the last injury nearly ended his career and blinded him for life. In his darkest moments, he considered quitting the sport; but it was swapping from a thought pattern of ‘blame’  and as a victim to a thought pattern of ‘planning’ and resolution that made all the difference. He stopped asking ‘why?’ and started asking ‘how’ – why is a question that seeks to put blame and reason externally, how is a question which doesn’t care about the reason, its sole focus is on finding a way to the solution. The question became, “OK this has happened, how am I going to get back in the game?”. 
2. Simulate and attack uncomfortable situations: you need to get comfortable with the uncomfortable as much as possible to be ready for the high-stakes moment. People are never ‘born-ready’ they’re ‘made ready’, through attacking the things that hold them back and through preparing religiously for the ultimate moment that their weakness needs to be tested.
3. Adversity strengthens the heart but love ties it together: this relates closely to lesson #2. The advice is to expose yourself to difficulty if difficult isn’t present in your life because dealing and overcoming adversity will build a foundation of grit in your life that will follow you everywhere. Push yourself to do things you ordinarily wouldn’t, so you can feel what it’s like to hurt, to be pushed, and if you overcome it and continue to overcome that adversity, you’ll be better prepared for life’s biggest obstacles. Josh didn’t have to expose himself to difficulty, it was rampant in his upbringing; from his abusive father, to the financial struggles he witnessed all around him. This pain would push him up any mountain he would face in the future, but it’s also the love he has around him of his family; his mother, wife, sister and daughter, which carries him beyond the skies when the clouds are darkest.  Pain builds resilience, and love builds purpose. 

Follow Josh Mansour on Instagram @joshmansour_

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