In this course, Paralympic gold medalist Dan Cnossen tells two stories where he was pushed to the limit of what he thought he could endure. The first story comes from one episode in the infamous Hell Week training to become a Navy SEAL. How do you persevere through an onslaught of self-doubt? The second story involves his combat injury, the subsequent amputation of both legs, and some of the lessons learned going through this difficult episode. The purpose of this class is to provide the audience with methods for approaching demanding situations in life that push us to our breaking point. 

Principles of mental toughness and perseverance

This is Dan Cnossen from Electives. Thanks for the opportunity to share my story with you. Here are some reminders of what we talked about in the Elective:

Challenging yourself to look at an event from another angle can make all the difference in mindset

Perspective —> Mindset shifts —> Attitude shifts —> Attitude shifts can make all the difference in how you approach a challenge

You control how you choose to respond to events which are outside of your control

Take time to assess what you can and cannot control or influence in your life — then focus and act on what you can control or at least influence; not on what you can’t

Momentum builds and can help overcome challenges

Consider:  Perseverance is often glamorized, as are individuals who demonstrate it. Rarely does society praise people who quit. And yet, it often takes more courage to redirect your life instead of endlessly plodding along the same path. However, the focus on this class relates to scenarios in which you either must, or desire, to navigate a challenge.

Action:  Challenge yourself to look at significant events in your personal history. Which other perspectives could you take? Repeatedly doing this can shift your attitude over time and lead to viewing setbacks in a new light.

I’ll be in touch soon with your second learning nudge.

Here is the second installation in your post-Elective review of the learning material. I would like to review the graph I introduced in class to demonstrate some principles of mindset as they pertain to resilience.

When stress/intensity/anxiety/difficulty increase, your mental outlook can shorten in order to focus on what’s necessary for improving your situation in this challenging moment and not be distracted or discouraged by overwhelming long-term thoughts. Conversely, when stress is low, this is the perfect situation to re-gather yourself, orient to the future, develop strategy, and incorporate past lessons learned.

Action: Remember past challenges in your life. When you faced a high amount of stress, where was your mind? Consider beginning a breath practice, with the intention of spending a few minutes each day paying close attention to the mechanics of breathing. Notice your mind. Where does it go? By cultivating an awareness of your mind (“meta-awareness”), in situations of adversity you can more quickly recognize when your mind has gone astray or succumbed to long-term thoughts, and then re-focus it to the task at hand.

I hope this has been useful and that you can incorporate it into your daily lives.

This will be your final learning nudge and I would like to leave you with some literature relevant to what we’ve covered in Electives. Don’t worry, it’s not homework! I love to read—in addition to many other things, non-distracted reading is great mental focus training! I have found these books quite helpful on my journey.

Wherever You Go, There You Are. By Jon Kabat-Zinn. A book on meditation practices.

Man’s Search for Meaning. By Viktor Frankl. Written by a Holocaust survivor, it explores ways to find meaning through relationships, work, and confronting trauma with dignity.

The Wisdom of Insecurity. By Alan Watts. A very readable exploration of what it looks like to live in the present moment, detached from long-range anxiety-producing thoughts.

All three of these books are short, easy reads and yet very thought-provoking. I hope you enjoy them as I much as I have.

Learning Nudge #1 

This is Dan Cnossen from Electives. Thanks for the opportunity to share my story with you. Here are some reminders of what we talked about in the Elective:

Takeaways:
The power of perspective
Challenging yourself to look at an event from another angle can make all the difference in mindset
Perspective —> Mindset shifts —> Attitude shifts —> Attitude shifts can make all the difference in how you approach a challenge
You control how you choose to respond to events which are outside of your control
Take time to assess what you can and cannot control or influence in your life — then focus and act on what you can control or at least influence; not on what you can’t
Perspective x Focus = Momentum
Momentum builds and can help overcome challenges
Consider:  Perseverance is often glamorized, as are individuals who demonstrate it. Rarely does society praise people who quit. And yet, it often takes more courage to redirect your life instead of endlessly plodding along the same path. However, the focus on this class relates to scenarios in which you either must, or desire, to navigate a challenge.

Action:  Challenge yourself to look at significant events in your personal history. Which other perspectives could you take? Repeatedly doing this can shift your attitude over time and lead to viewing setbacks in a new light.

I’ll be in touch soon with your second learning nudge.

Sincerely,
Dan

Learning Nudge #2

Here is the second installation in your post-Elective review of the learning material. I would like to review the graph I introduced in class to demonstrate some principles of mindset as they pertain to resilience.

When stress/intensity/anxiety/difficulty increase, your mental outlook can shorten in order to focus on what’s necessary for improving your situation in this challenging moment and not be distracted or discouraged by overwhelming long-term thoughts. Conversely, when stress is low, this is the perfect situation to re-gather yourself, orient to the future, develop strategy, and incorporate past lessons learned.

Action: Remember past challenges in your life. When you faced a high amount of stress, where was your mind? Consider beginning a breath practice, with the intention of spending a few minutes each day paying close attention to the mechanics of breathing. Notice your mind. Where does it go? By cultivating an awareness of your mind (“meta-awareness”), in situations of adversity you can more quickly recognize when your mind has gone astray or succumbed to long-term thoughts, and then re-focus it to the task at hand.

I hope this has been useful and that you can incorporate it into your daily lives.

Sincerely,
Dan


Learning Nudge #3

This will be your final learning nudge and I would like to leave you with some literature relevant to what we’ve covered in Electives. Don’t worry, it’s not homework! I love to read—in addition to many other things, non-distracted reading is great mental focus training! I have found these books quite helpful on my journey.
Wherever You Go, There You Are. By Jon Kabat-Zinn. A book on meditation practices.
Man’s Search for Meaning. By Viktor Frankl. Written by a Holocaust survivor, it explores ways to find meaning through relationships, work, and confronting trauma with dignity.
The Wisdom of Insecurity. By Alan Watts. A very readable exploration of what it looks like to live in the present moment, detached from long-range anxiety-producing thoughts.
All three of these books are short, easy reads and yet very thought-provoking. I hope you enjoy them as I much as I have.

Sincerely,
Dan

Resilience

Dan Cnossen was raised on a fifth-generation family farm in Topeka, Kansas. After successfully completing SEAL qualification training in 2003, he deployed numerous times in support of global special operations. As a SEAL platoon commander, he was severely injured in 2009 in Afghanistan, resulting in the amputation of both legs above the knees. Turning to sport for recovery, Cnossen began training full-time for the U.S. Paralympic ski team in 2011 as a cross-country skier and biathlete. He has since competed for Team USA in the 2014 and 2018 Winter Games and is the first male athlete to win a gold medal for the United States in biathlon, a sport that combines cross-country skiing with precision shooting. Cnossen holds a bachelor of science degree in English from the U.S. Naval Academy, a master’s in public administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and a master’s in theological studies from the Harvard Divinity School.