Attitude of Gratitude & John deMartini

I listened to Dr John de Martini at a BusinessSwap breakfast. John spoke of "The Riches Within" and one thing that I took away that morning was further distinction on the importance of gratitude in your life. By being grateful for what you have in your life, you attract more of that and more.
Afterwards it made me think, once again, how to relate that to sport. I thought of athletes and teams who hit rough patches in their progress - perhaps an unexpected loss, a result that is less than desired or short of a goal. It is often usual that the athlete or team will look at the result for what it isn't - it's not a win, it's not a step towards qualifying for Beijing, it's not a good result.
What if that same athlete/team chooses to look at what there is to gain from the result and start to be grateful for the learnings. Focus on how this very result can propel one further to one's ultimate long-term goal. What was done well in the competition? What was learnt? When this is done, one can leave with greater self-esteem that is empowering towards building towards a better result next time.
Yes, we may be disappointed with the result but quickly, very quickly, turn that disappointment around and focus on the have versus the have-not.
As Jim Rohn says "There is no better opportunity to receive more than to be thankful for what you already have."

Choose your Attitude - lessons from Fish!

I just read the book Fish! by Stephen C. Lundin, Harry Paul and John Christenson which is about boosting morale and improving results in the workplace. I was thinking how the principles apply to the sporting arena. Principle number one is to choose your attitude and it ties in beautifully to key areas I have been talking about - choosing how you want to be when you play, train or compete. Choosing means taking responsibility for your emotions, your behaviours/actions and therefore your results.
Some people want to look outside of themselves for excuses and reasons i.e. reacting to external events. But think about it, when you place reasons outside of yourself, how are you going to create the results that you really really want? By stepping up and taking responsibility, you declare that you are going to get something done, no matter what obstacles come in your way. A coach or a team-mate might get in the way, but you can respond in two ways - point the finger at them and blame them for your lack of results OR choose to overcome the obstacle so that you can get your desired result. It's in your hands. Are you ready?

It's all in the Mind - Happiness, Success, etc

A Twitter post by Dave Lakhani directed me to a video post on Ted where Harvard psychologist, Dan Gilbert talked about synthesised happiness. It discusses interesting research done to show that happiness is really all in the mind and that you can decide to be happy NOW. Happiness is not based on external circumstances though we always run our lives that way. You many know someone who has said "I'll be happy when......!"
You can insert any word for 'happy' and the same thing applies. "I'll be successful when...." The thoughts in our mind dictate the feelings in our body, so why not think happy thoughts, successful thoughts, optimistic thoughts.
Now I know some of you might be thinking "Well, that's just kidding yourself." Yes it is. But guess what, you are kidding yourself too when you are thinking those bad or negative thoughts too. So if you are going to kid yourself, do it wisely and in a way to empower you to success and happiness.
Check out the video now on http://www.ted.com

Life after sport - Scott Miller, Andrew Johns

The headline report on the news last night revealed Olympian Scott Miller and former Rugby Union player, Mark Catchpole had been involved in major drug operation. It is yet another example of a fall from grace for a talented sportsperson and it once again highlights to me the need for athletes to consider their future beyond sport.
Andrew Johns, in being nominated to the Australian Rugby team of the century, declared that Rugby is his whole life. I think therein lies the problem.
Yes, to achieve at the highest levels requires discipline and laser-focus. This narrow focus, however, can close an individual to other opportunities present in their life. In being so caught up in their passion for their sport, it is not uncommon for athletes to forget about setting new goals on retiring from sport.
I know for me, retiring from sport was more about NOT playing anymore, rather than looking purposely towards what I would do now. I wandered around for 6 years and fell in and out of retirement three times, trying this and that, before I finally reignited a new passion.
Don't let it take that long. Start thinking now about what else you want to achieve in life. How can you utilise your sporting success to inspire others or transfer these skills to success in business.
If you have have retired from sport or are doing so in the near future, now is time to ask yourself "How can I continue to live my life with passion?"

Learnings from Dave Lakhani of Bold Approach

I had the extreme pleasure of spending time with author and master of persuasion, Dave Lakhani while touring through Cambodia with Chris Howard's Billionaire Adventure Club.
I learnt alot about selling myself and it got me thinking about how, as athletes, we might sell ourselves short - not only to others, but more importantly to ourselves. Are you selling yourself short? What I mean is are you aspiring to be the best or only to be the best that you 'think' you are capable of. Einstein said that we are limited only by the boundaries of our own thinking. When you dare to go outside those boundaries then you can begin to play in a greater arena. Dare to dream bigger.
When I started going to personal development seminars I started seeing how I can do so much more. I had stopped setting grand goals after I made it to the Olympics - that was what 25 years of my life had been about. Now I see that I can do so much more. I am going for Gold in life. So should you! What do you need to do to get there?
You can find out more about Dave and persuasion at Art of Persuasion

Tiger Woods - Master of the Game

I am ferociously curious about what it takes to be a champion at the highest level. That is why I am always looking to read about the best of the best in sport to find out what makes them tick. I look for autobiographies, articles, interviews and whatever I can find to learn more.
I just read "Tiger Woods entering a zone where few have travelled" on nydailynews.com by sportswriter Hank Gola. Hank describes Tiger's amazing ability to repeatedly come from behind in golf tournaments and raises intrigue to how he has mastered this.
If you could only model one athlete on who to base your mental mindset, Tiger Woods would be the chosen one. From my own readings, I undestand his work with his sports psychologist, Dr Jay Brunza, has enabled Tiger to play in a hypnotic trance. Milton Erikson said that all people are living in a trance, one of disempowerment. When we can awaken within and use that trance state to one of empowerment, then we can truly succeed at any level, at the level of Tiger Woods perhaps.

Creating success through emotion

I am at the FIVB Beach Volleyball championships in Adelaide working with a team and it was wonderful to watch them utilise their new skills to produce a winning result. I am so proud that they decided to switch on to a new level when they were down 9-12 to lift their game and the results showed. From then on they constantly chose how they wanted to be emotionally and stayed in control of the game. They won and they qualified - the main competition starts tomorrow.
Many athletes wait for results to show before they get fired up. In contrast I watched another team play - fellow Aussies so I wanted them to do well. It was as if they were waiting for something to happen before they could play well. They definately didn't show up to win. The commentator urged on the crowd to get behind them, to fire them up. But you can't wait for someone or something else to do it for you. Only you can fire yourself up, and you can do it now. You can do it before you step on to your court, your track, your field - whatever sport you participate. You CHOOSE how you want to be from beginning to end. The Aussies lost. That thing they were waiting for to fire them up never happened. Don't let that happen to you. Make sure that you yourself be responsible for showing up to win.
You can find out more about mastering your emotional state in the latest copy of Spike Magazine or go to www.annetteffect.com.au to find out how you can achieve sporting success.