Mediocre athletes begin to care when the post-season begins. Good athletes care once the season starts. Great athletes care before the season. But, the BEST athletes DON’T CARE. If you are going to be successful you need to learn not to care!
Now how could this be? Could the best athletes really not care? The best athletes know what they should and should not care about. The best know to care about things they can control and not care about things they have no control over.
The best athletes care about factors within their control: (1) their effort, (2) their attitude, (3) their discipline following their action plan for success, (4) their mental and physical training, (5) their nutrition and rest etc. etc.
Many athletes, if not most, care about things that are outside of their control. Focusing on factors outside of one’s control takes one out of the moment and add pressure which makes poor performance far more likely.
It is crucial to YOUR SUCCESS to know what you should and should not care about. I would recommend making a list that you can review often and refer back to in times of need. Make the list and then get emotionally involved while reading the list. Become mad, stubborn, and intense when you read the list of things you do not want to care about. Involving your emotions will help drive this point home inside your mind and body. Here is a good example of what I am talking about:
List of things I don’t give a crap about:
• Wins and Losses
• Records
• Past results of myself or my opponents
• Newspapers, Forums, Predictions, Rankings
• Past accomplishments of mine or my opponents
• Common opponents or past times competing against each other
• What other people think about me
• What other people will say to me if I win or lose
• What will happen if I win or lose
• Coaches, parents, friends, etc opinion about me
• Other people’s expectations
I am not saying that other people don’t matter and not to listen to coaches or parents. I am saying that being preoccupied with these thoughts has been long recognized to blow performances. So it is crucial that you train yourself to think this way, and only care about things you can control. You control outcomes indirectly, by preparing yourself with mental and physical training and not getting in your own way mentally by worrying about things outside of your control.
Remember about 9 out of 10 people will spend no time on their mentality and will continue to care about uncontrollable factors. You need to be the 1 out of 10 athletes that DOES NOT CARE about these things.
Gene Zannetti
Peak Performance Specialist
One-on-One Consultation and Motivational Speaking
(908) 337-6143
genezannetti@gmail.com
Visit My Blog- http://genezannetti.blogspot.com/
Monday, October 25, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Mindset Monday 10/18/10- Unshakable Confidence Part 3
What philosophy do you live by?
The past two weeks I have written about the importance of Confidence to your success. We have also gone over concrete, research supported techniques to improve your Confidence.
Today I would like to go deeper into Confidence at its most fundamental level. It seems to me that Confident people all share something in common- they know what they believe- in the world and in themselves.
To truly improve your Confidence at its deepest level, I would recommend soul searching to find what it is you believe in.
Some people put their faith in a higher power, others put it in science, still others trust a combination of the two. Whatever it is, you must decide what you believe about the world and yourself. What philosophy do you live by? You may believe in your own blend of several different philosophies. That is fine too. The important thing is that you know what you believe- about yourself and about the world.
Many religions and philosophies have at their roots the belief that people are powerful beyond belief; created in the image of an immortal. Others believe in Chi, inner energy, or the vibration of the universe. My recommendation is to find what you believe in- read about it. Then, write it down on a piece of paper that you refer to several times a week to remind yourself what you believe in. Life will throw curve balls at you and unexpected events will occur that both have the capacity to derail you from your center (core beliefs about the world). Be open-minded and never too rigid, but it is crucial to know what you believe.
Even if you are not a believer in a higher power you can still have a belief in science and research. You can still be a believer in science if you have faith in a higher power. In both cases, you can be confident that all of the techniques and strategies I offer you every week are the best available from the latest available evidence.
One thing that always gave me Confidence to face my fears head on and go after my goals was my strong faith. I have a list of favorite Bible Quotes that I continue to read weekly. They keep things in perspective for me and remind me what I believe in. If you are interested in seeing my list of Motivational Bible Quotes from both the Old Testament (Hebrew Scripture) and New Testament, I have attached that blog for you here:
http://gzchristian.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-04-06T23%3A38%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=7
Reminder that Judaism, Islam, and Christianity all share a reverence for the Old Testament, whereas the New Testament is more Christianity specific. I included both so as to reach the broadest audience possible.
Again, if you are not religious, it is still to know what you believe in. If you know what you believe in, it will carry over to the field of play. You will have things in perspective and have a deep feeling of inner Confidence that will be very difficult to beat.
Gene Zannetti
Peak Performance Specialist
One-on-One Consultation and Motivational Speaking
(908) 337-6143
genezannetti@gmail.com
Visit My Blog- http://genezannetti.blogspot.com/
The past two weeks I have written about the importance of Confidence to your success. We have also gone over concrete, research supported techniques to improve your Confidence.
Today I would like to go deeper into Confidence at its most fundamental level. It seems to me that Confident people all share something in common- they know what they believe- in the world and in themselves.
To truly improve your Confidence at its deepest level, I would recommend soul searching to find what it is you believe in.
Some people put their faith in a higher power, others put it in science, still others trust a combination of the two. Whatever it is, you must decide what you believe about the world and yourself. What philosophy do you live by? You may believe in your own blend of several different philosophies. That is fine too. The important thing is that you know what you believe- about yourself and about the world.
Many religions and philosophies have at their roots the belief that people are powerful beyond belief; created in the image of an immortal. Others believe in Chi, inner energy, or the vibration of the universe. My recommendation is to find what you believe in- read about it. Then, write it down on a piece of paper that you refer to several times a week to remind yourself what you believe in. Life will throw curve balls at you and unexpected events will occur that both have the capacity to derail you from your center (core beliefs about the world). Be open-minded and never too rigid, but it is crucial to know what you believe.
Even if you are not a believer in a higher power you can still have a belief in science and research. You can still be a believer in science if you have faith in a higher power. In both cases, you can be confident that all of the techniques and strategies I offer you every week are the best available from the latest available evidence.
One thing that always gave me Confidence to face my fears head on and go after my goals was my strong faith. I have a list of favorite Bible Quotes that I continue to read weekly. They keep things in perspective for me and remind me what I believe in. If you are interested in seeing my list of Motivational Bible Quotes from both the Old Testament (Hebrew Scripture) and New Testament, I have attached that blog for you here:
http://gzchristian.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-04-06T23%3A38%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=7
Reminder that Judaism, Islam, and Christianity all share a reverence for the Old Testament, whereas the New Testament is more Christianity specific. I included both so as to reach the broadest audience possible.
Again, if you are not religious, it is still to know what you believe in. If you know what you believe in, it will carry over to the field of play. You will have things in perspective and have a deep feeling of inner Confidence that will be very difficult to beat.
Gene Zannetti
Peak Performance Specialist
One-on-One Consultation and Motivational Speaking
(908) 337-6143
genezannetti@gmail.com
Visit My Blog- http://genezannetti.blogspot.com/
Monday, October 11, 2010
Mindset Monday 10/11/10- Build Confidence Part 2
Confidence is so important to our success I have decided to do at least a 3 part series continuing from last week.
What else can we do to build Unstoppable Confidence?
A different approach to building confidence is taken from behavioral theorists (a major branch of psychology).
It may be common sense that the body listens to the mind. If we start to have thoughts like, “I am not good enough,” the body will probably start sweating, your heart will start racing etc. But what may not be such common sense is that the mind also listens to the body. Indeed, after seeing one’s body sweat and feeling one’s own heart race, the mind will look at this and decide, “I must be nervous because my body looks nervous.” This will make a person even more nervous than they were originally!
How do we stop the cycle?
We do not need to be Confident, we must simply ACT CONFIDENT! Muhammad Ali was the master of this. He said he was scared to death before every fight. He did not appear this way though because he ACTED CONFIDENT. He moved confident, he spoke confident, etc. When he or anyone else does this, your mind sees your body’s actions and decides, you must really be confident.
Can you be happy right now? Maybe, maybe not.
Can you think happy thoughts right now? Again, maybe, maybe not.
Can you smile? YES, anyone can smile. And studies show that we smile when we are happy and also WHEN WE SMILE- WE FEEL HAPPIER.
Apply this to Confidence. ACT AS IF, even if you do not feel this way. Fake it till you make it. Better still- fake it till you feel it!
(Dr. Gilbert)
Tony Robbins gives this exercise- Get yourself upset, or mad, or in some negative mood and then make a Big Smile and Look up in the air. You cannot stay mad, because you are sending your mind mixed signals. This will at very least break the cycle we spoke of earlier.
* Know in advance what Confidence looks like. What do you look like when you are confident? How do you move? How do you speak? How do you hold your head? What gestures go with your confident feeling? When you get this feeling of confidence remember how you look so you can make yourself do these same things when you need to be confident in the future. Practice doing this a lot before competition. As always, you do not want to practice for the first time before a competition. You want to get this look down.
* If you do not know how you look when you are confident, look at other people who you perceive as confident and watch how they move, walk, talk, hold their head, gestures, etc. and DO THAT. This will remind you of Confidence and you doing this will in turn make you feel confident. Your body moving around confidently will remind your mind to feel CONFIDENT.
*Add a gesture (or cue) every time you practice ACTING CONFIDENTLY. This will strengthen the connection between you mind and body so you will feel maximally confident when you need it most.
Gene Zannetti
Peak Performance Specialist
One-on-One Consultation and Motivational Speaking
(908) 337-6143
genezannetti@gmail.com
Visit My Blog- http://genezannetti.blogspot.com/
What else can we do to build Unstoppable Confidence?
A different approach to building confidence is taken from behavioral theorists (a major branch of psychology).
It may be common sense that the body listens to the mind. If we start to have thoughts like, “I am not good enough,” the body will probably start sweating, your heart will start racing etc. But what may not be such common sense is that the mind also listens to the body. Indeed, after seeing one’s body sweat and feeling one’s own heart race, the mind will look at this and decide, “I must be nervous because my body looks nervous.” This will make a person even more nervous than they were originally!
How do we stop the cycle?
We do not need to be Confident, we must simply ACT CONFIDENT! Muhammad Ali was the master of this. He said he was scared to death before every fight. He did not appear this way though because he ACTED CONFIDENT. He moved confident, he spoke confident, etc. When he or anyone else does this, your mind sees your body’s actions and decides, you must really be confident.
Can you be happy right now? Maybe, maybe not.
Can you think happy thoughts right now? Again, maybe, maybe not.
Can you smile? YES, anyone can smile. And studies show that we smile when we are happy and also WHEN WE SMILE- WE FEEL HAPPIER.
Apply this to Confidence. ACT AS IF, even if you do not feel this way. Fake it till you make it. Better still- fake it till you feel it!
(Dr. Gilbert)
Tony Robbins gives this exercise- Get yourself upset, or mad, or in some negative mood and then make a Big Smile and Look up in the air. You cannot stay mad, because you are sending your mind mixed signals. This will at very least break the cycle we spoke of earlier.
* Know in advance what Confidence looks like. What do you look like when you are confident? How do you move? How do you speak? How do you hold your head? What gestures go with your confident feeling? When you get this feeling of confidence remember how you look so you can make yourself do these same things when you need to be confident in the future. Practice doing this a lot before competition. As always, you do not want to practice for the first time before a competition. You want to get this look down.
* If you do not know how you look when you are confident, look at other people who you perceive as confident and watch how they move, walk, talk, hold their head, gestures, etc. and DO THAT. This will remind you of Confidence and you doing this will in turn make you feel confident. Your body moving around confidently will remind your mind to feel CONFIDENT.
*Add a gesture (or cue) every time you practice ACTING CONFIDENTLY. This will strengthen the connection between you mind and body so you will feel maximally confident when you need it most.
Gene Zannetti
Peak Performance Specialist
One-on-One Consultation and Motivational Speaking
(908) 337-6143
genezannetti@gmail.com
Visit My Blog- http://genezannetti.blogspot.com/
Monday, October 4, 2010
Mindset Monday 10/4/10- Building Confidence
There is no factor more crucial to your Success than our Self-Confidence.
To be successful, you must truly believe that you are capable of achieving that which you are attempting. Technique and skills are important, but they are nothing if you perform them half heartedly. The main reason people do not perform technique and skills at 100% is because they deep down do not believe that it will work. They have some doubt that they will achieve what they are trying. When you take a shot in wrestling, expect to get the leg. When you swing a bat, expect to hit the ball. When you throw a block, expect the other guy to go down.
We have all heard these little pieces of advice. But as always, do not say to yourself, "I already know this.” Instead, ask yourself, “how well do I apply this?”
Here is how you build Unstoppable Confidence:
*Make a long list of your successes and positive attributes both on and off the field of play. On one side of the paper, write your sport and everything you have ever accomplished, great performances, and positive attributes you possess. They key here is to pick out every little thing. Do not hold back. Write even little things. On the other side of the paper write Life and make another list of accomplishments, achievements, and positive attributes. Stock pile even small successes. Read this paper once a day for a few months, then continue to revisit it once or twice a week. You want to ingrain this list in your mind, so when you step into a situation where you have doubts, you can very easily call to mind reasons why you can succeed and overcome the doubt. It will be difficult to overcome doubt in the moment without a plan. So it is important you hammer this list into your mind so you will be well equipped to handle doubt.
*Write out reasons why you will succeed in your goal. Or imagine that you already accomplished your goal. Write out reasons why you accomplished it. This type of thinking gives your mind a shift in focus. You go from looking at your goal as a dream, to now looking at your goal as a real possibility. Why are your skills good enough to win? Has anyone very successful used the same skills to win? Are their people who are similar to you who have achieved the same thing you want? These are all reasons why you can succeed.
*Forget about being realistic. Most psychologists and philosophers dispute what realism even means and how perspective is very subjective (see post-modernism). I think most people use it as a cop out- an excuse if you lose. Live in your own reality. The 90/10 rule in economics and success is that 10% of the people control 90% of the money. This is sad but true about success too. Think like the 10% of the people who succeed, not like the 90% of people who do not. Read biographies of success stories. Talk to these people when you are making decisions. Take successful people out to lunch and pick their brains. I guarantee you they do not think like the 90% of the people you hang out with. Would you rather a safety in numbers being with the 90% so you have a good excuse if you lose? Or do you want to join the company of champions? The choice is yours. Throw “realism” out the window. Make a list of what you believe or what you would need to believe to be a success and read this list everyday along with your accomplishment list. Live in your own reality.
Gene Zannetti
Peak Performance Specialist
One-on-One Consultation and Motivational Speaking
(908) 337-6143
genezannetti@gmail.com
Visit My Blog- http://genezannetti.blogspot.com/
To be successful, you must truly believe that you are capable of achieving that which you are attempting. Technique and skills are important, but they are nothing if you perform them half heartedly. The main reason people do not perform technique and skills at 100% is because they deep down do not believe that it will work. They have some doubt that they will achieve what they are trying. When you take a shot in wrestling, expect to get the leg. When you swing a bat, expect to hit the ball. When you throw a block, expect the other guy to go down.
We have all heard these little pieces of advice. But as always, do not say to yourself, "I already know this.” Instead, ask yourself, “how well do I apply this?”
Here is how you build Unstoppable Confidence:
*Make a long list of your successes and positive attributes both on and off the field of play. On one side of the paper, write your sport and everything you have ever accomplished, great performances, and positive attributes you possess. They key here is to pick out every little thing. Do not hold back. Write even little things. On the other side of the paper write Life and make another list of accomplishments, achievements, and positive attributes. Stock pile even small successes. Read this paper once a day for a few months, then continue to revisit it once or twice a week. You want to ingrain this list in your mind, so when you step into a situation where you have doubts, you can very easily call to mind reasons why you can succeed and overcome the doubt. It will be difficult to overcome doubt in the moment without a plan. So it is important you hammer this list into your mind so you will be well equipped to handle doubt.
*Write out reasons why you will succeed in your goal. Or imagine that you already accomplished your goal. Write out reasons why you accomplished it. This type of thinking gives your mind a shift in focus. You go from looking at your goal as a dream, to now looking at your goal as a real possibility. Why are your skills good enough to win? Has anyone very successful used the same skills to win? Are their people who are similar to you who have achieved the same thing you want? These are all reasons why you can succeed.
*Forget about being realistic. Most psychologists and philosophers dispute what realism even means and how perspective is very subjective (see post-modernism). I think most people use it as a cop out- an excuse if you lose. Live in your own reality. The 90/10 rule in economics and success is that 10% of the people control 90% of the money. This is sad but true about success too. Think like the 10% of the people who succeed, not like the 90% of people who do not. Read biographies of success stories. Talk to these people when you are making decisions. Take successful people out to lunch and pick their brains. I guarantee you they do not think like the 90% of the people you hang out with. Would you rather a safety in numbers being with the 90% so you have a good excuse if you lose? Or do you want to join the company of champions? The choice is yours. Throw “realism” out the window. Make a list of what you believe or what you would need to believe to be a success and read this list everyday along with your accomplishment list. Live in your own reality.
Gene Zannetti
Peak Performance Specialist
One-on-One Consultation and Motivational Speaking
(908) 337-6143
genezannetti@gmail.com
Visit My Blog- http://genezannetti.blogspot.com/
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