Olympian Klim swimming in a new direction

I was watching Channel 9's 'Business Sense' this morning and came in as they were interviewing Michael Klim. Having retired from Australian swimming (a sport in which he became a world champion, world record holder, 3 time Olympian and Olympic dual-gold medallist), Klim is now producing and marketing skin care products.
In the interview Klim stated how he was working on putting the same passion and drive that he had for swimming into his new career. The reason I'm writing this, is because he didn't sound very convincing. It was like he was hoping he could get passionate about his business the same way he was passionate about swimming.
I'm sure many athletes can identify with the passion for their sport, I know I had it for beach volleyball. What if you could EASILY transfer that passion and drive into a completely new venture? What if you woke up feeling the same way that you did when you played sport, or some other favourite activity, instead of how you are currently feeling - perhaps flat or even dislike!
The work I do with the mindset can easily change how you think about the things you do, the things you eat and even what you believe. This can happen in a couple of minutes by simply changing how you code and store memories in your mind. Curious? You can find out more by emailing info@annetteffect.com.au

Retirement & Comebacks in sport

When is it a good time to retire? It took me three times to finally retire from sport. The first time I retired was because I had reached my goal of playing in the Olympics and thought there was nothing left to do in the sport. The second time I retired was because I thought I was getting old (37 y.o) and I should take care of my back (screws had held it together since '92). When I retired the third time, at age 41, it was for the right reasons - I had a new passion and new goals to finally convince me to put away the competition cozzie/togs/bathers/swimsuit for good.
Australian, Geoff Huegill, just announced his comeback to swimming with aims to swim in 2010 Commonwealth Games. He cites is health and weight as a major reason for returning to swimming and also feels he has unfinished business.
Lance Armstrong is making his official comeback to competitive cycling in January in South Australia for the 2009 Tour Down Under. His reasons seem to be more about raising awareness for cancer, than cycling per se.
And Layne Beachley, Queen of the surf, 7 times world champion, recently announced her retirement, excited about the business opportunities ahead of her.
Each athlete will have their own reasons for retiring, returning or even staying in sport. I think it's important for an individual to wisely consider their motivation for either - is it positive and towards something they want to do, or is it motivated by pain, moving away from an undesired situation eg lack of success outside of sport. Having a positive direction to move towards is inevitably a more empowering motivation that produces results.
A key to successful transition is identity. I realised my identity was wrapped in being a sportsperson and as long as that remained, I always floated back to that. Once I learnt to identify myself as something new - a business person and entrepreneur, it was easy to change my actions, my results and therefore my life.

Trickett turning failure into Gold?

Australian Libby Trickett is poised for a gold rush in Beijing, based on form and world ranking. Much wiser than when she went to Athens as Libby Lenton, and a world record holder, Libby is reported to have learned from the experience. Back in 2004 Libby buckled under the pressure and expectation and 'only' managed team gold in the relay and bronze in her pet event the 100 metre freestyle. This was considered 'failure' in light of her preparation and it is encouraging to read that Libby views her experience as one of "learning'.
I believe there is no such thing as failure unless we choose it be, or if we let a bad result cause us to quit. We either like a result or we don't, and unless we are willing to learn from the result, then we can not grow and move forward. Most of the world's biggest achievers have succeeded after many a failure. In fact, no-one can succeed without failing first. Often we might place higher meaning to where that failure occurs - especially in the big Olympic spotlight as happened for Libby.
That Libby Trickett has continued to work hard in her sport and win the admiration of supporters, sponsors and peers is testament to the attitude of persistence and an ability to learn from the hard knocks.
What can you learn from your least desired results? What do you need to learn in order for you to succeed?

Specificity in your Goals - do you need to use numbers?

In a newspaper article yesterday Libby Lenton denounced the need for the Australian Olympic Committee to set specific numbers on how many Medals would be won at the Beijing Olympic Games. She felt there was no need for 'pressure' for athletes to live up to certain expectations.
I disagree on two counts.
1. Pressure is something we place on ourselves by how we direct our thinking. Putting a figure on a desired outcome can have one person thinking 'towards' that goal with a sense of possibility - I/we CAN win x medals. Contrast that with another person who thinks with 'away' motivation and feels a sense of necessity - I/we HAVE to win x medals. This is often associated with an underlying question - what if I don't? or an underlying fear - what if I can't?
2. A specific and measurable figure gives one a specific target to work towards. If one doesn't reach that figure, it doesn't have to mean 'failure'. If Australia win 7 Gold rather than a projected 8 Gold in the swimming pool, it is still a success. By going for the specific figure an individual or a team has something on which to guage performance. How do you know how hard to train, how much work to do unless you know what you are aiming for.
Magic can happen too when you start being more specific. Think of your unconscious mind like a 7-8 year old child who needs to know EXACTLY what it is you want to direct you towards results. Do you want to be successful? How successful? What does that mean for you? You can find out more on how the unconscious mind determines your results at www.annetteffect.com.au