The Edge is in the mind
THE INVENTORY OF SUCCESS
Here are some characteristics of successful athletes: I got this from one of Don Meyer's clinics. It is taken from What They Don't Teach You at Harvard Business School by Mark McCormack. You can read some excerpts from the book by clicking on the title name link.
- Successful athletes earnestly want to succeed, and they do something about it.
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They set goals for themselves.
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Successful athletes realize that everything worth having in athletics has a price-tag in terms of training and competitive effort. They understand that success has its cost, but they pay their way knowingly, keeping their eyes on their goals.
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They realize their future success in the final analysis will depend upon their own personal efforts.
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Successful athletes consider work a privilege, not a chore.
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They accept personal responsibility for their own success.
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Successful athletes don't depend upon luck, They Know that success goes only where it's invited.
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They know that willpower, not magic, turns dreams, into reality.
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Successful athletes have a high frustration tolerance. They don't become discouraged at temporary setbacks. They learn from these setbacks and look ahead to the next competition with optimism.
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They don't waste time thinking the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. They don't complain about what they haven't got. They develop to the maximum what they have.
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Though willing to change for the better, successful athletes do not flit from one training method or technique to the other from day to day. They determine a long-range course of action and follow through on it with faith in its effectiveness.
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Successful athletes profit by their own mistakes, and they profit by the mistakes of others.
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They avoid negative thoughts and defeatist thinking.
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Successful athletes don't have head-trouble, but they do have guts.
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They are totally reliable and responsible in training matters.
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They don't alibi. They know the best excuse is the one you never make.
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Successful athletes set examples for others.
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They are cooperative with both coaches and teammates.
- Successful athletes are by far the easiest to coach.
- They are not injury prone. They have far fewer injuries than the less successful.
- Successful athletes are enthusiastic. They generate their own enthusiasm. They don't grumble, moan, groan, and complain.
- Athletes who fail tend to be cynical. They believe their coaches are not leading them properly. They are unwilling to be impressed or inspired. This is expected of the phony, the snobbish, the pseudo-intellectual, ... but it dooms an athlete when the coach tries to inspire him and he just sits there saying this is a lot of nonsense. The good athlete does not ridicule the capacities and the ideas of the coach ... HE RESPONDS!
THE EDGE IS IN THE MIND
The better you think you are doing, the greater should be your cause for concern; the more self-satisfied you are with your accomplishments, your past achievements, your "right moves," the less you should be.
The champion's true edge exists solely in the mind, and over the years I have observed three attitudinal characteristics which are common to every superstar I have ever known. They are just as applicable in business as they are in the athletic arena. I have, in fact, adapted them to my own business career and they are the source from which I derive most of my drive and determination.
The first is the champions' profound sense of dissatisfaction with their own accomplishments. They use any success, any victory, as a spur to greater ambition, Any goal that is attained immediately becomes the next step toward a greater more "unreachable" one.
The second is an ability to peak their performances, to get themselves up for major tournaments and events, No one can operate consistently at his or her highest level, yet the legends of any sports era always seem to perform at their best when the stakes are the greatest. This is particularly true in tennis and golf, perhaps the most mentally demanding of all the major sports, and why the major tournaments in both have always been dominated by a handful of players.
Finally it is their ability to put their opponents away. This is referred to as "the killer instinct," but that tells you more about the result than of what is going on mentally.
I In the champion's mind he is never ahead. He distorts reality to serve his competitive purpose. He is always coming from behind, even when the score indicates he is destroying his opponents. He never believes he is performing as well as he actually is.
Taken from:
What They Don't Teach You At Harvard Business School
by Mark McCormack
Compliments of Coach Don Meyer
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