Think about the areas of your life where you are under duress or weighed down by obligation. What are the choices available to you, day after day? You might be surprised at how many there actually are. Are you taking advantage? Are you finding the positives?

His captors deprived him. They tortured him. They beat him. They stripped him of his possessions. But they could not break him.

“He was one jump from a certain victory for the gold medal when he felt his horse go lame. He chose to stop and dismount, sparing his horse’s life, rather than complete the race and win.”

2000 years ago, to the Stoics, Stoicism is something you DO. They were most concerned with how one lived, the choices you made, the causes you served, the principles you adhered to in the face of adversity.

Learning to live in the present moment is vital, because it’s the only thing you have any control over. The only thing you can do to rectify the past or influence the future is to take action now, in the present moment.

If you don’t find the courage to stand your ground, they will strike. In life, to achieve your goals, to complete the night swim, you will have to be men and women of great courage. That courage is within all of us. Dig deep, and you will find it in abundance.

Angela Merkel is the antithesis of nearly every assumption we make about a head of State - especially a German one. She is plain. She is modest. She cares little for presentation or flash. She gives no fiery speeches.

That fighter who has seen her own blood, who has felt her teeth rattle beneath her opponents fist, who has been downed in body but not in spirit, will they know what they can take.

A critical turning point. The moment of truth. Will you be brave? Will you put yourself out there? What will you reveal your character to be?

“So ask now, right now, while you have the courage. Before it’s too late. We are in this mission together. Ask for help. It’s not just brave, it’s the right thing to do.”