MESSAGE #1524 BRUCE LEE, PEAK PERFORMER
Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.
-Bruce Lee
MESSAGE #1523 PRE-COMPETITION
What do you think about before you compete?
Do you think about how good your opponent is?
Do you think about the fact that you NEED to win this game?
Do you think about who will be there watching?
If you answered yes to any of the above three questions, you will not be in your performance zone.
Before you compete, you should be thinking about your game plan and HOW you want to compete. Think about WHAT will put you in the best position to win. Think about giving a full effort, and think about what a great opportunity it is to compete.
Then, just do it.
Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077
MESSAGE #1522 WHAT ARE YOU FOCUSING ON?
Focus is not enough.
You have to focus on the right things.
The #1 singles player on my PDS Girls Tennis Team, Samantha Asch recently won the Mercer County Tournament in straight sets.
In fact, she dropped only two games in the entire tournament.
Her opponents were focusing on the wrong thing.
They weren’t focused on beating her, they were focused on not embarassing themselves.
The players that are lucky enough to get a game against her are happy just doing that.
When you are able to get your opponents to focus on the wrong thing, the match is yours.
MESSAGE #1521 HUNGRY?
I have a feeling that there is a reader out there who knows exactly what they need to do to succeed.
In fact, MOST of you know exactly what you need to do to succeed.
Practice more.
Study more.
Make sales calls more.
So what is the difference between most people and the peak performers?
ACTION.
If you know what to do, but you don’t do what you know, it’s like going to a restaurant, reading the menu and leaving.
Think about that.
MESSAGE #1520 THIS IS WHO WINS
Going into the Mercer County Tournament, my Princeton Day School girls tennis team was not the favorite. We weren’t even the second or third favorite. But we were still optimistic.
So how did we win the championship?
1. We went all-out.
2. We focused on the process, not the outcome.
3. We supported each other.
4. We never gave up.
5. We stayed positive.
We were tied with Princeton High School going into the final day and this is what I told my team:
“Day 1 was great, but it’s now in the past. Somebody’s gotta win this, why not us? It’s not the best team that wins, it’s the team that plays best. Play to win, not to ‘not lose.’ ”
And we are now the 2011 Mercer County Champions.
MESSAGE #1516 DAVID GOGGINS PART II
David Goggins is a Navy SEAL.
David Goggins is an ultramarathon runner.
David Goggins ran the Badwater 135 miler through Death Valley.
David Goggins is considered the toughest athlete on the planet.
This is where the story gets good…
“Here’s the thing. I don’t like doing this. I don’t like to run, but it’s one of the ways I can find out who I am in life. I can’t find out who David Goggins is by watching Sunday Night Football. I need to set the bar high and then try to meet it. The only way I can do that is to do ridiculous things at the most ridiculous times. When I’m really tired and want to sleep, that’s when I go out there and do it.”
-David Goggins
Wow.
MESSAGE #1514 IT’S UP TO YOU…
Man can will nothing unless he has first understood that he must count on no one but himself; that he is alone, abandoned on earth in the midst of his infinite responsibilities, without help, with no other aim than the one he sets himself, with no other destiny than the one he forges for himself on this earth.
-Jean Paul Satra
The ten most powerful two-letter words…
If it is to be, it is up to me.
MESSAGE #1513 MENTAL TOUGHNESS IN FIGURE SKATING
When I go out on the ice, I just think about my skating. I forget it is a competition.
-Katarina Witt, figure skater
Peak performance is focusing on the process, not the results.
What are YOU focusing on?
MESSAGE #1512 BE LIKE A ROOKIE
I took the above photograph of Yankee prospect, Austin Romine next to the Yankee Double-A affiliate, Trenton Thunder clubhouse last year. This week, Romine got called up to the big club, caught Mariano Rivera’s 599th career save, started his first Major League game and collected his first major league hit.
Not bad for someone who thought his season was over. Romine was walking out of a Wal-mart in Kentucky when Yankee manager, Joe Girardi called, telling him the news.
4:30am the next morning, Romine began is trip to join the Yankees in Anaheim, ten minutes from his home town.
A couple dozen family members were present and Romine’s brother, Andrew was in the opposing dugout, playing for the Angels.
After traveling from Kentucky, Romine was thrown right into the mix, looking at photos, videos, scouting reports, etc.
“I just took a deep breath and treated it like spring training. I’d caught all these guys before and I’d played (at Angel Stadium) before, so the comfort level was higher than I thought it was going to be. I just took a deep breath and didn’t think.”
Romine knows the secret, don’t think.
His deep breath, relaxed him a bit and kept him in the present moment.
Not thinking helped him avoid paralysis by analysis.
Even though Austin Romine is a rookie, he has a veteran approach.
If you missed my exclusive interview with him, you can watch it HERE.
Make sure you checkout my new FREE video on my top five peak performance secrets. Register and enjoy!
Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077
MESSAGE #1509 9-11
It’s hard to believe 9-11 happened ten years ago. I still have mixed emotions about it all, but mainly I am proud.
Proud of the way those affected bounced back.
In sports and life, we encounter adversity, but that’s not the important thing. The important thing is how we react to adversity.
You don’t drown by falling in water. You drown by staying in the water.
Accept. Learn. Move on.
I have spent time with some of the greatest athletes in the world and many of them say this: You need to have a short-term memory.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying to forget. I’m just saying not to live in the past.
Bounce back today.
Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077