Taking on challenges is often misunderstood – challenges build strength and resilience.
The desire to suffer is not the goal. Instead, something deeper is being pursued. Recently, Terry from Rokman reached out to us all to refine his messaging, asking three simple questions:
1) Why do you take on challenges? What was the reason or issue that drove you to take on challenges?
2) What were you trying to prove to yourself when you signed up for a challenge? What part of you needed a challenge?
3) What kind of person do challenges allow you to become?
I was typing my responses and thought – this would actually make for an intriguing blog pots. Well, it did in my head anyway! So, here was my responses:
1) Why do you take on challenges? What was the reason or issue that drove you to take on challenges?
I take on challenges to reconnect with something deeply human – our need to struggle, to strive, and to grow. In a world that’s often too comfortable, predictable and numbing, I found myself craving discomfort and see what I was capable of. Not for the sake of pain, but because I knew that real growth – mental, physical and emotional – happens on the edge of what’s familiar. I didn’t want to just exist through life, I wanted to feel fully alive. Taking on these Rokman challenges, as well as my other ultra challenges helps me confront the limits I once believed I had, and in doing so, dissolve them. It’s a rebellion against stagnation – and a pursuit of clarity, strength, and purpose.
2) What were you trying to prove to yourself when you signed up for a challenge? What part of you needed a challenge?
When I signed up for my first serious challenge, I was trying to prove to myself that I am not defined by comfort zones. I needed to prove that I could follow through on something that truly tested me – not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. The part of me that needed a challenge was the part that refused to be idle. It was the part that saw modern life – its predictability, its routines, its distractions – and said “There has to be more.” I wanted to know who I was when everything superficial was stripped away, when it was just me, the grind, and the will to carry on.
3) What kind of person do challenges allow you to become?
Challenges allow me to become the most honest version of myself. They peel away ego, insecurity and excuses, revealing grit, discipline and authenticity. They make me more focused, more grounded, and more resilient – not just in sport, but in every part of life. I become someone who is proactive rather than reactive, someone who leads with courage instead of fear. Most importantly, they make me someone who doesn’t just survive the hard times, but chooses them in order to grow. Every challenge shapes me into someone stronger, not just in muscle, but in mindset.
Routines had dulled the senses. Predictability had become a slow poison. The body and mind began to resist it.
Identity was found in effort. Growth was born from hardship. However, strength became the new definition of self.
Challenges create a different kind of person. Not someone stronger in body alone. But someone truer, clearer, and more capable.
Old doubts were peeled away. Insecurities lost their voice. The ego fell silent. What remained was resilience, discipline, and drive.
Every test refined the mindset further. Focus was sharpened. Courage became habitual. Fear was no longer in control.
These traits now bleed into daily life. Not only athletic pursuits, but everything is changed. Challenges created transformation everywhere.
Above all, pain was not avoided. It was chosen. And within that pain, power was found.
