MESSAGE #1266 H2O
I only have one tip for you today:
Drink more water.
There are many benefits of drinking water, among them are:
1. It can help you lose weight.
2. It can help prevent and relieve headaches.
3. It can help you look younger and have healthier skin
4. It can help you be more productive at work.
5. It can prevent you from getting sick.
6. It can put you in a better mood.
7. It can reduce the risk of cancer.
Our bodies are made up mostly of water, therefore when we are more properly hydrated, we will run faster, hit harder and focus like never before.
Absolutely, positively, guaranteed.
MESSAGE #1259 HOW TO SUSTAIN MOTIVATION
Today’s message is especially dedicated to Nate Kunnen and Dan Beedle in Michigan.
How soon ‘not now’ becomes ‘never’.
-MARTIN LUTHER, German priest
By request, I was asked to blog about how to sustain motivation and how to persist and have inner strength. Two separate requests which are actually related.
It’s that time of year where people are looking to become more fit, get better grades, be a better romantic partner or save more money. I don’t know if I am a fan of New Year’s Resolutions, but I do know that most people don’t stick with them.
Do you want to be like most people?
Today, one of my students told me that in school they were making New Year’s Resolutions. The teacher said that most people don’t stick with their resolutions, so this year they were going to make resolutions they definitely couldn’t break, like:
1. Ice skate with the Queen of England.
2. Eat a live frog.
3. Date a Sports Illustrated model.
When I heard this assignment, I said to myself, “NO! This teacher doesn’t get it.”
It’s not about just keeping your resolution, is it?
To me, resolutions are made to better yourself, to kick-start a new you. And to lead by example so that everyone around you wants to become better as well.
It’s January 3rd…Everyone is motivated right now. But by the last week of January, most resolutions will be broken.
So how do you sustain motivation?
How do you persist and gain inner strength?
1. Understand that motivation is not a feeling, it is an ACTION. Do what you need to do, when you need to do it, whether you feel like it or not.
2. Understand that you already have inner strength, but you have to make your goals important enough. Think of it this way, if someone knew that if they smoked a cigarette today, they would get lung cancer tomorrow, would they still do it? Of course not. So we have the will-power, we just have to exercise it.
3. Use my 15-minute rule when you don’t “feel” like persisting. Whatever it is you have to do (work out, study, make calls, clean the house), just do it for 15 minutes and then you can stop. But you won’t. Once you start you get into it and you will keep going. But most people don’t even begin.
I planned on going to the gym tonight after work at 9pm, but I didn’t feel like it.
I did it anyway.
Why?
Because anyone can do something when they feel like it. I like doing things when I DON’T feel like it.
So tonight, I not only worked out my body, I worked out my mind.
You can too.
Final words:
Don’t quit, can’t fail.
MESSAGE #1126 A BREAKTHROUGH
Do yourself a favor and watch this!
MESSAGE #1094 I WAS THINKING…
Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Justin Shackil.
I thought of this blog entry while I was out running this morning. My ideal start to the day is a visualization/gratitude/meditation run, then some weights and ending with yoga.
As I was doing my interval running (walk/jog/sprint), I found myself wanting to stop when I couldn’t go any further. And in the first round, I did stop. But then I thought, I am going to just go a little longer next time. I did. It wasn’t so bad. Then I did it again. I pushed myself.
The problem with stopping when you “feel like” stopping is that you are training yourself to ease up.
The key is to do a little bit more. Whenever I’m training someone in the gym, I say, do as many repetitions as you can, then do two more.
When you push yourself through the initial uncomfortable state, you end up in a whole new world.
And you get whole new results.
Fight one more round. When your feet are so tired that you have to shuffle back to the center of the ring, fight one more round. When your arms are so tired that you can hardly lift your hands to come on guard, fight one more round. When your nose is bleeding and your eyes are black and you are so tired that you wish that your opponent would crack you one on the jaw and put you to sleep, fight one more round — remembering that the man who always fights one more round is never whipped.
-JAMES CORBETT, heavyweight boxing champion
MESSAGE #1077 I HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU…
Today’s message is especially dedicated to my grandmother, Fung Shee Pan. Happy Belated 104th Birthday!
Whenever I speak to someone trying to reach peak performance at sports, work or school, I always ask them one question.
That question will determine whether they make the big leagues, become CEO or honor student.
And that question also applies to you. Here it is…
Are you going to go all-out or are you going to hold back?
Who do you want to be like?
Are you doing what they’re doing?
Now, don’t get me wrong, if you’re a professional baseball player, it’s a long season. But the secret is, go all out when you are practicing/competing and go all-out when you are resting.
If you want to make the major leagues, you can’t have a minor league approach.
Go all-out today!
Thanks for reading.
MESSAGE #1068 TALKIN’ BASEBALL
Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Brandon Laird, 3B for the Trenton Thunder (Double-A, New York Yankees).
Brandon Laird currently leads all of professional baseball with 77 Runs Batted In in 72 games.
He was named Eastern League Player of the Week and Player of the Month.
He was only the second Thunder player to hit for the cycle on May 26, including a walk-off home run.
Two nights ago, he hit a grand slam and a three-run home run (for the second time this season).
Did I forget any impressive stats? Probably.
I have been fortunate to spend some time with Laird over the past month. His numbers are amazing and his attitude is even better. He is truly a class-act and is mentally tough beyond his years.
After last night’s game, I spoke with Laird and he was telling me how he was in a bit of a “funk” last week.
I asked him how he got out of it and he said, “At first I thought, ‘What am I doing?’ then I thought about what I was doing well before and tried to focus on that. I just trusted that it would come around because failure is part of baseball.”
Laird was persistent in his approach and stayed optimistic. As most great athletes do, he focused on his effort, not his results.
I had to ask Laird about his streak and having the most RBIs in professional baseball.
“You know, I’m just taking it one day at a time. I have a plan, I try to hit the ball hard and have a good at bat,” commented Laird.
Tonight is exactly one month since I first spoke to Laird, which was the same night he hit for the cycle with a walk-off home run.
I will be talking to #29 again before the game and we’ll see if he can continue to stay hot with his bat. I have a strange feeling he will.
Play ball!
MESSAGE #1063 I’m NOT Teaching Tennis Today
Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Nic Cecan.
Summer Tennis Camp 2010 officially begins today.
Though numbers are down, I am very excited.
I’m sure there will be some new faces, which will bring new opportunities.
I look at every session as a way to positively affect our youth. It’s life lessons through tennis. Sure, the campers will improve their tennis game, but more importantly, they will learn confidence, teamwork, how to perform under pressure, focus and much more.
Honestly, I don’t look at Tennis Camp as a way of making money, or getting a nice tan. I look at it as contribution.
Helping others become healthier, mentally and physically.
Teaching them that effort and attitude are more important than results and materialistic objects.
Making the world a better place.
What if everyone on the planet had this mentality?