MESSAGE #974 SEE IF YOU CAN SEE THIS…

 

Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Roger Ta in Orange County, California.

Count how many times the letter “F” appears in the following:

FINISHED FILES ARE THE RESULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIFIC STUDY COMBINED WITH MANY YEARS OF EXPERIENCE.

How many “F”s did you find?

Most people find between two and five. The answer is six! Go ahead, count again.

We have something called a scotoma (blind spot) and we miss the “F”s in “OF” because it sounds like “OV.”

What does this have to do with you?

You may not see your potential. Well, I’m here to tell you that you have unlimited potential. ANYTHING is possible. Do what Muhammad Ali did…

ACT like a champion before you ARE a champion.

Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #972 INTERVIEW WITH A RISING STAR…

In this video blog, Ed interviews rising baseball star, Mike DeJesus of the New Jersey Jackals.

MESSAGE #971 TIGER BACK ON TRACK…

Well, so far, my prediction is coming true – Tiger Woods is returning to the golf world and showing the world (and himself) how to learn from mistakes. If he stays clean and kicks some major butt, my prediction will have been right on the money.

In his first interviews since the incident Tiger said…

“You strip away the denial, the rationalization and you come to the truth,” he said, “and the truth is very painful at times, and to stare at yourself and look at the person you’ve become, you become disgusted.”

I said from the beginning that Tiger just needs to speak from the heart but many people told me, “That’s not Tiger.” The quote above seems pretty honest to me.

And regarding not knowing his schedule after The Masters, Woods commented…

“That to me is a little bit bothersome, too, in a sense that I don’t like not knowing what to do. But what I know I have to do is become a better person, and that begins with going to more treatment.”

Tiger knows what he needs to do, and he’s doing it. And soon he will be getting it done on the golf course too.

No mistakes are bad if you learn from them.

Go get ’em, Tiger.

MESSAGE #970 HANGING OUT WITH BOBBY VALENTINE

Yesterday, I drove up to Stamford, Connecticut to attend the Diamond Sports Career Seminar with Bobby Valentine at Bobby Valentine’s Academy. My friend, Walter Recher, and Dave Torromeo are the founding partners of Diamond Sports Group, who create amazing events and programs in affiliation with professional sports down to the grassroots.

I met some amazing people at this event, including panelists, Rod Mergardt of CBS/MaxPreps and Shane Beardsley of the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, an affiliate of the NY Islanders. Other interesting people I met were, Mary Jane Wells, business manager of the Bridgeport Bluefish, who shared with me a great George Steinbrenner story, Tom Chiappetta, executive director of the Fairfield Sports Commission, and Dave Torromeo of Diamond Sports Group.

I have some great conversations with each of them, but the person I really drove up to see was the great Bobby Valentine. During the panel discussion, there were some great quotes on the sports industry.

“When you go for it, you get it.” -BOBBY VALENTINE

“You have to learn responsibility – write down three things you want to accomplish every day. Then do them.” -BOBBY V.

“Winners will make more mistakes, but they move on immediately.” -ROD MERGARDT

“Losers can become winners.” -BOBBY V.

“Work hard.” -SHANE BEARDSLEY

Bobby Valentine managed 3,500 games and only won 1,900, but he said, in those losses he had little successes and those little successes turned into big successes.

I actually had a couple great conversations with Bobby before and after the event. I asked him what mental skills the Japanese players had that the US players didn’t. He said that the Japanese players just practice more. “Practice creates confidence and less fear. The Japanese players have less fear.”

Bobby V also said that the US players never play again without practicing first, which means, they never skip batting practice like the US teams.

My goal was to do an exclusive interview with Bobby, but unfortunately, ESPN doesn’t allow him to do that, but I did ask a question during the seminar to all three panelists, as seen in the video below.

 

MESSAGE #969 INTERVIEW WITH COMEDIAN, PATRICK DEGUIRE

In this video blog, Ed interviews comedian, Patrick DeGuire on being a legally blind comic.

Be sure to checkout Patrick on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utNp0DdgFsc

MESSAGE #968 HILARIOUS

Last night I spent some time with my new favorite comedian, Patrick DeGuire. Mr. DeGuire flew into town to perform three shows in Princeton at Catch A Rising Star comedy club. We shot a video blog together (stay tuned) and shared stories, quotes and life lessons.

Patrick DeGuire is unique because about thirteen years ago, he developed an eye disease and is now legally blind. He went to comedy as a form of self-healing. And now he is a well-known comedian who has performed on Comedy Central and with comedians such as George Lopez. DeGuire has also performed for the US Troops in Iraq.

I am amazed at his optimism and love of life. His show was pretty darn funny too.

So if Patrick DeGuire can lose his vision and still succeed at something he loves, imagine what YOU can do?

MESSAGE #963 THE WAY OF LIFE

A man is born gentle and weak.
At his death he is hard and stiff.
Green plants are tender and filled with sap.
At their death they are withered and dry.
Therefore the stiff and unbending is the disciple of death.
The gentle and yielding is the disciple of life.
Thus an army without flexibility never wins a battle.
A tree that is unbending is easily broken.
The hard and the strong will fall.
The soft and the weak will overcome.
-LAO TZU

MESSAGE #961 MEETING OF THE MINDS

We all know that sports are about 80 percent mental, so doesn’t that mean we should practice our mental game 80 percent of the time?

I met with meditation teacher, Jonathan Star yesterday and he explained his theory of “The Art of Being On” to me. It was very intriguing. An average tennis match lasts about 90 minutes and only approximately 18 of those minutes are actually playing. So Star developed a meditation to help you win “the game between points.”

Nobody can do it all on their own. Use all the brains you have and all that you can borrow. (Woodrow Wilson) I have a feeling Mr. Star and I will be collaborating on several projects in the near future. We have already begun planning a joint seminar.

Jonathan sought me out from the Princeton Peak Performance Meetup Group I started (see sidebar). The secret to success is to have a growth mindset and strive for constant improvement, but remember you don’t have to do it all on your own.

Ideas are the best currency – If you exchange dollar bills with someone, you both have one dollar bill. But if you exchange ideas, you both have TWO ideas.

Author’s note: Day 3 of my 21-Day Challenge is in full-force with being on court and hitting lessons. I will be sure to break a sweat and even do some running with my students.

I’d love to hear your comments. Leave them below.

MESSAGE #958 HOW TO PLAY THE GAME

Playing it safe in any form is a recipe for disappointment, frustration, and stagnation.
-JEFF GREENWALD

The quote above is from my friend, Jeff Greenwald, noted sports psychology consultant and author of The Best Tennis of Your Life. Greenwald believes that most people play it safe because they “fear missing and giving up a free point.”

Most people have this mindset. They want to stay in their comfort zone. The problem is that when you are scared of losing the point, you are training yourself to hold back. That is not peak performance. It doesn’t matter whether your weapon of choice is a racquet, pen, paintbrush or frying pan – you have to GO ALL OUT.

I recently had a mental coaching session with a young baseball, basketball and tennis player. He’s only in the 4th grade, but he gets it. Since working with me, he focuses on going all out every time he steps on the court or field. He’s even using my techniques and applying them to school. Not only is he getting better results, he’s also having more fun!

It’s better to go all out and lose than it is to hold back and win.

Leave your comments below.

MESSAGE #957 AND THE THOUGHT OF THE DAY IS…

Just do it.
-NIKE

I love creating blog messages every morning, but sometimes I don’t know what I want to say. So I go over to possibly the biggest motivational library on the planet, aka, my family room (thank you Dr. Gilbert) and I choose a book to get me started.

People talk about writer’s block, but I don’t believe in that. Just start writing – it doesn’t have to be great to start but it will start to be great.

So just write.
Just workout.
Just do the dishes.
Just make that call.

Just do it.

Here are some great quotes from today’s book of choice, STRIVE TO EXCEL, The Will and Wisdom of VINCE LOMBARDI compiled by JENNIFER BRIGGS…

Success is not a sometime thing – it is an all-time thing.

Making the effort to improve as a human being is what Coach Lombardi was all about. He was able to see the gap between where we were and what we could become – both as football players and as people. And he felt it was his God-given responsibility to close that gap.
-JERRY KRAMER

If you settle for nothing less than your best, you will be amazed at what you can accomplish in your life.

Second place is meaningless. You can’t always be first, but you have to believe you should have been – that you were never beaten – that time just ran out on you.

If he’d been a truck driver, he’d have given 100 percent there, too.
-LOU SPADIA, former San Francisco 49ers owner

So there you have it. I could have skipped Message #957 today, but I didn’t. I’m committed.

Exceptions shatter dreams. Besides, motivation is an action, not a feeling.

Have a great day everyone! Leave your comments or questions below.