On ongoing theme for 2021: Resilience. It’s reflected in the way I live my life personally and professionally. I believe it’s a critical factor in helping each of us to continue moving forward.

Mental strength is key to being resilient. Bending in the face of a challenge—and then bouncing back—requires a strong, focused mindset.

Perhaps no one is better suited to discuss mental strength than is Jay Shetty, a keynote presenter at the recent USANA Americas & Europe Virtual Convention. Jay is a best-selling author, a purpose coach, and a former monk. He is “on a mission to make wisdom go viral.”

The foundation for building mental strength, Jay says, is “realizing the tools that got us here may not be the tools that will get us there.” In other words, just because a strategy or a tactical approach worked in the past, it doesn’t mean the same approach will work in the future.

Put simply, new challenges require new habits.

Fortunately, Jay provided us with a four-step roadmap to build our mental strength. It’s all about T.I.M.E., and I’d like to share it with you here.

Here are four habits Jay says we need to invite into our lives to build mental strength:

1. Thankfulness: When you’re present in gratitude, you can’t be anywhere else
2. Inspiration: Start each day with a dose of inspiring content—an uplifting song, a favorite quote, a well-read passage from a book. Whatever it is, ensure it boosts your spirit.
3. Meditation: Make time for yourself, eliminate distractions, and ask yourself “what do I need to do for myself today to make today a great day?”
4. Exercise: Add movement into your life

In the end, Jay asks: What are you going to let go of in order to make space in your life for these habits?

Resilience: A Theme

The above message went out earlier this week to subscribers to my monthly e-newsletter. If you’re not on the list, I invite you to join. The keynote from Jay Shetty proved to be only one of many outstanding presentations at the 2021 USANA Americas & Europe Virtual Convention.

Also during the event, I set an ambitious goal. I challenged the USANA Family to raise enough money to fund 30,000 garden towers around the world. And let’s do it by USANA’s 3oth-anniversary convention in 2022!

Garden towers are a low-cost, self-sustaining method of planting multiple food crops in a single source, suited for all areas of the world.

I’ve always been proud of the difference USANA makes when it comes to fighting food insecurity. These garden towers are the next step in eradicating world hunger.

A donation of $20 covers the entire cost of the fabric for the tower, the soil, the seeds, and the training on how to use them. $20 is all it takes to provide three to five years of sustainably sourced, nutritious food and a source of income for people who need it most.

To donate toward the garden tower project, and to learn more about USANA’s charitable efforts, please visit: usanafoundation.org.

Behind-the-Scenes

And finally, here are some behind-the-scenes moments from #AEVC21. Thank you to everyone who joined us for the virtual event!