MESSAGE #1334 BE LIKE A HALL OF FAMER

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Willie Stargell was a left fielder and first baseman for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1962-1982. He is also in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Somebody once asked Stargell what the secret of his success was. Stargell said that all he did was follow the umpire’s advice after the National Anthem.

After the National Anthem, the umpire yells, “Play ball!”

Stargell said, “I don’t work ball. I play ball. I never go to the ball park to work; I always go to play.”

Now don’t get me wrong, you have to work hard, and you have to take it seriously, but you can’t be all work and no play. And you can’t be all play and no work.

When you have fun, you loosen up and play your best.

When you put too much pressure on yourself, you set yourself up for failure.

Do people sing to get to the end of the song? Of course not, they sing because they enjoy singing.

Don’t play the game to get to the end of the game. Enjoy the process.

MESSAGE #1331 PLAY THIS GAME…

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What game are you playing?

Are you trying to beat your opponent? Do you have anger towards the other team? Do you want to crush the competition at work?

If so, stop it.

When you start with a negative intention, you are limiting yourself. Negative intentions create negative results. You may get some positive results with negative thoughts, but they are not lasting.

Instead, begin with positive intentions. Love—love the game, love the learning and constant improvement. Love everything about the game.

You see, it’s not about beating your opponent, it’s all about mastering yourself. Mastering the game.

This is a game that very few people are playing.

The ones that are playing this game, say things like, “I’d like to thank everyone for their support; I couldn’t have become world champion by myself.”

The ones that are not playing the self-mastery game say things like, “Would you like fries with that?”

MESSAGE #1330 HOW TO PERFORM UNDER PRESSURE

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Golfer, Jack Nicklaus (above) once said…

When fear starts to hit me, my best chance of overcoming it lies in facing it squarely and examining it rationally. Here’s what I tell myself. ‘OK, what are you frightened of? You’ve obviously played well or you wouldn’t be here…Well, go ahead and enjoy yourself. Play each shot one at a time and meet the challenge.’

Pressure is created in your mind. It is your choice whether you look at a situation as pressure or as a challenge. Who doesn’t love a challenge?

The next time you are in a “pressure” situation, coach yourself like Jack Nicklaus and react rationally. If your thoughts are irrational, accept them, let them go and then go out and kick some butt.

MESSAGE #1329 HOW TO BE UNSTOPPABLE

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Manny Banuelos, New York Yankees, Spring Training 2011

Have you ever been nervous before a big game?

Have you ever tightened up at a crucial point in a game?

Have you ever doubted yourself?

Of course you have, you’re human.

One thing I have unearthed by talking to some of the greatest athletes in the world is that the world champions and the weekend warriors feel the same feelings. They think the same thoughts. So what sets them apart?

Their perception of the situation.

The actions that they take.

Yankee pitcher, Manny Banuelos just turned 20 years old on Sunday. And on Monday, he was slated to pitch on ESPN versus the Boston Red Sox. The biggest game of his life.

What did he do?

He pitched 2 and 2/3 scoreless innings, giving up 2 hits, 3 walks and striking out 2.

Pretty impressive for someone who was a teenager just two days before.

What’s more impressive is how Man-Ban reacted to the pressure.

His perception was excitement, not pressure.

Banuelos admits he gets nervous, but it doesn’t last long.

In the second inning, Banuelos got into a jam, having the bases loaded and only one out. He stepped it up and forced the next two hitters to ground out.

Then, on his last pitch, the pressure was on again with a 3-2 count. He threw a change-up to Kevin Youkllis and struck him out.

Wow.

The bottom line is that you can either let pressure hurt you or you can let it help you. It’s your choice how you react, and if you are able to do your best when it means the most.

It is then that you will be unstoppable.

Speaking of being unstoppable, I shared my new mental skills workbook, “How to be Unstoppable” with some of the Yankees players when I was down at Spring Training last week. You can pick up your own copy by clicking HERE.

MESSAGE #1328 PI DAY

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Well, today is Pi Day (3.14), March 14.

It is also Albert Einstein’s birthday, so it is fitting to tell you my favorite Einstein quote…

Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.

How does this quote apply to sports and life? Leave your comments below.

 

MESSAGE #1327 KEEP YOUR EYE ON THE BALL

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In the image above, Derek Jeter is keeping his eye on the ball.

In your life, whether in sports, sales or school, you need to keep your eye on the ball. Stay focused on what you are doing, and do one thing at a time. When you are eating…eat. When you are practicing…practice. When you are studying…study.

Let me tell you a story…

A young boy traveled across Japan to the school of a famous martial arts master.

“What do you wish from me?” the master asked.

“I wish to be your student and become the finest karateka in the land,” the boy replied.

“How long must I study?”

“Ten years at least,” the master answered.

“Ten years is a long time,” said the boy.

“What if I studied twice as hard as all your other students?”

“Twenty years,” replied the master.

“Twenty years! What if I practice day and night with all my effort?”

“Thirty years,” was the master’s reply.

“How is it that each time I say I will work harder, you tell me that it will take longer?” the boy asked.

“The answer is clear. When one eye is fixed upon your destination, there is only one eye left with which to find the Way.”

MESSAGE #1325 DAY 3 IN TAMPA

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Manny Banuelos is the talk of Yankee Spring Training. Many are calling him the best Yankee pitching prospect ever. And he doesn’t even turn 20 years old until Sunday.

Banuelos has no fear. Why?

Because he doesn’t like there’s pressure. He has the confidence that his skills are as good as anyone else’s, and instead of trying to be perfect, Banuelos is aggressive and goes all-out.

It’s better to go all-out and lose than it is to hold back and win. When you hold back and win, you are training yourself to hold back.

No successful athlete ever said, I made it to the Hall of Fame by holding back.

Go all-out today!

MESSAGE #1324 DAY 2 IN TAMPA

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Today didn’t go as planned—it was BETTER.

I woke up here in Tampa to heavy rain. It threw my schedule off. I had meetings planned and wanted to go checkout the Yankees game at the Phillies’ stadium in Clearwater. Due to the weather, I needed to rearrange and cancel some meetings. Then, the weather broke and it looked like the game would be played after all. So again I had to change some plans. But I stayed flexible and figured out the best strategy, and the day went extremely well.

What does this have to do with you, and mental toughness?

In sports and life, we need to be flexible. If you go into a game thinking there is only one way to win, you may be greatly disappointed. Instead, there are many options. Obstacles will always pop up, that’s not the problem. The problem is how we react.

I always tell the following to the athletes I work with: “Every strategy works for someone—NO strategy works for everyone.”

MESSAGE #1323 GREETINGS FROM TAMPA!

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Here I am in Tampa, Florida, the spring training home of the New York Yankees. I got off the plane and headed straight to the minor league camp. It was great to see some familiar faces like Ryan Baker, Justin Snyder, Luis Nunez, Tony Franklin, and others. The player development facility is made up of four fields with different drills running on each of them. Those that are not taking live batting practice take their cuts in the batting cages.

This is an impressive facility, but the thing that impressed me most was the prospects. They hustled to and from different fields—taking their jobs seriously. Very professional, something that the Yankees instill at every level.

You may not be a Yankee, but you can certainly give a Yankee effort, and you can begin today.

MESSAGE #1321 SECRET FORMULA

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I recently sent this secret formula to a pitcher on the New York Yankees via Facebook message:

T + T + T + T + T = C

Today + Today + Today + Today + Today = Your Career

The best way to have a Hall of Fame career is to ACT like a Hall of Famer TODAY. Then do it again tomorrow. And the next day and the next day…

Focusing on the past and the future is weak.

Focusing on the present moment is powerful.