MESSAGE #637 THE PEFRECT GIRL…

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“In like the fourth inning I kind of knew…then I just tried to keep doing what I was doing and not try to mess it up.”
-MACKENZIE BROWN

Recently, Mackenzie Brown became the only girl to throw a perfect game in Bayonne Little League history. Read the article below for more details.

There are any number of boys today who wish they could throw like a girl.

That is, they would like to throw like Mackenzie Brown.

Mackenzie, 12, pitched a perfect game in the Bayonne Little League. She retired all 18 boys. It’s a rare achievement for a baseball player of any age or gender in any kind of league.

“In like the fourth inning I kind of knew,” she said, sounding like her male pro counterparts in the Bronx or Queens. “Then I just tried to keep doing what I was doing and not try to mess it up.”

Her feat has drawn national attention, including TV appearances, a highlight reel of her performance on ESPN — and today she is scheduled to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Mets and Washington Nationals game at Citi Field.

Glenn Regan, commissioner of the Bayonne Little League, said Mackenzie has kept her feet on the ground as the spotlight raised her profile around the country.

It’s always nice when sometime takes success in stride. It’s also a pleasure when someone turns conventional wisdom on its head. In this case, a playground taunt has been upended.


Throwing like a girl never looked so good.

(The Star Ledger, April 25, 2009)

Congratulations Mackenzie Brown. Not only did she throw a perfect game, but she didn’t let it get to her head. I would like to make an adjustment in her quote though. She said she tried to keep doing what she was doing – I like that. But she also said she was trying not to mess up. Remember, the brain doesn’t know the word don’t. If I said, don’t think about a pink elephant, don’t you think about a pink elephant? So instead of thinking don’t mess up, think about what you do want to accomplish. Focus on your strategy, targets, attitude, effort, and energy.


Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #636 FORGEDABOUDIT…

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Today’s message is especially dedicated to Carolyn McCann and Rick Weiss of Princeton Living Well.

Yesterday I was at Communiversity in Princeton promoting my book, “Game. Set. Life.” It was a beautiful day and as a blogger on the Princeton Living Well wellness website, I was invited by Director, Carolyn McCann and founder, Rick Weiss to participate in this great event. (See photo above)

One of the keys I talk about in my book is staying in the present – focusing on the process instead of the product. This is a secret that all the greatest athletes in history have used. And guess what? It doesn’t just have to do with sports.

A friend of Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross, once reminded her of an especially cruel thing that had been done to her years before. But Miss Barton seemed not to recall it.
“Don’t you remember it?” her friend asked.
“No,” came the reply. “I distinctly remember forgetting it.”
-Think

When the match is over, whether it was a win or a loss, learn from it.

Then forget about it.


Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #635 IF YOU DO THIS…

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“Turn NOWHERE into NOW HERE.”
-GURU PITKA

Stay focused on the task at hand.

It doesn’t matter where you’ve been.

Don’t worry about the past.

Don’t worry about the future.

The power is in the present.



Ed Tseng will be at Communiversity today from 12:30pm-4:30pm in Downtown Princeton @ the Princeton Living Well Booth (in front of Olive’s Deli on Witherspoon Street) Come on by and say hi – signed copies of “Game. Set. Life.” will be available.

MESSAGE #633 WHAT’S YOUR GAMEPLAN?

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I love quotes, but there’s something I love more…and that is, making up my own quotes. Here’s one I came up with recently…

“Every gameplan works for someone. NO gameplan works for everyone.”

MESSAGE #632 I KNOW WHO YOU ARE COMPETING AGAINST NEXT…

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“It is not true that nice guys finish last; nice guys are winners before the game even starts.”
-ADDISON WALKER

Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Frank Freeburn of Nike.

Are you a tennis player? Then I know who your next match is against…

YOURSELF.

The only real competitor you will ever have is yourself. Think of your opponent as your teacher and your student. You each do your best as you test and teach one another, revealing where your opponent needs to improve, as he or she does the same for you. Once we view competition in this manner, we can strive to do our very best, without succumbing to overtones of hostility and negativity.

When we overcome the combative state of mind, when we no longer have opponents-only people like ourselves, brothers and sisters in training, all striving toward excellence-we achieve the highest potential in sport. This is equally true in everyday life, when we compare and compete with others over who is the most popular, most attractive, most successful. The key, it seems, is to maintain a balance perspective, appreciating the value as well as the pitfalls of the competitive mind-set in sport of life. It’s not that people who maintain a balanced perspective never compete; they just don’t take it too seriously. They remember that a game is just a game-and from their perspective, life, too, is a game.

The moment of truth itself, whether in performance or competition, can serve as an exciting stimulus to excellence. Yet its purpose ends when the race ends. Once we catch a fish, we no longer need the net; once we cross a stream, we no longer need the boat. And when the competition is over, we need not linger over scores, numbers, or statistics. We don’t need to preserve past scores like prize butterflies. When we let go of our preoccupation with numbers, statistics, titles, an victories, we rediscover the sheer joy in the process of training, learning, and striving toward the heights of our potential.

Once the game is over, the outcome is history. Fame is fleeting, and glory fades. The only lasting value in the competitive experience is the lessons we learn and live.

(From Body Mind Mastery by Dan Millman)

*MAKE A DIFFERENCE*

Help support the Arthritis Walk on Sunday, May 3, 2009 at 10am in Princeton Forrestal Village, Princeton, NJ. Join Team CanDo or just donate. Contact Team Captain, Alex Hunter for details: traininglight@ comcast.net or visit http://www.letsmovetogether.org (Mercer County Walk)

MESSAGE #630 CAN VERSUS WILL…

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Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Salvatore Scarlata, owner of Vidalia Restaurant in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Happy Birthday to an amazing chef.

Can you quit smoking?

Can you go on a diet?

Can you start working out?

Some people say they can’t do this or can’t do that.

Then, I ask them, “Well, if I offered you a million dollars, could you?”

The answer is always, “Oh, yeah!”

So you can do the right things, but what I want to know is…

WILL you?

MESSAGE #629 DON’T WAIT…

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“Do you love life? Then don’t squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of.”
-BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

I have a feeling that someone out there has something to do that they don’t want to do.

Something that they’ve been putting off.

I know I do.

It could be something at work, at school, or on the field.

If you have something to do, or something to take care of, do it immediately. The sooner you attack it, the sooner it gets eliminated.

When a favored team is playing an underdog, the favored team should put the other team away as soon as possible.

Why?

Because the longer the game goes on, the more hope the underdog has.

The longer you put off a problem or an issue, the worse it’s going to get.

Stop telling the world what you’re going to do and start showing it.

Do it, and do it today.


Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #628 DON’T LIVE YOUR LIFE BACKWARDS…

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“Often people attempt to live their lives backwards; they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want, so they will be happier.
The way it actually works is the reverse. You must first be who you really are, then do what you need to do, in order to have what you want.”
-MARGARET YOUNG

MESSAGE #627 DAMN YANKEES…

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“Unless you’re the lead dog, the view never changes.”
-sign outside the Yankees clubhouse at Legends Field in Tampa

So the Yankees lost their first ever game at the new stadium. It’s okay.

The Yankees are not about winning every single game; that has never been done, and never will be. But the Yankees have something called, pride, tradition, and history. The new Yankee Stadium was designed after the original and the field dimensions are the same. It is now the most amazing stadium in the world, a working museum. Everywhere you look, you will see the Yankee legacy, past, present, and future.

Derek Jeter knows this. Mr. Jeter also knows what it takes to become the winningest sports team in history – HARD WORK. Above are two photographs I took of Jeter at the old stadium.

Derek Jeter starts training in the middle of November in Tampa, regardless how far the team goes in the post-season. Most of the other major leaguers report around the middle of January.

Why does Jeter do this?

Because he knows that his career isn’t going to be that long, so he’s going all out, while he can. He says he can go on vacation after he retires. He knows the workouts he performs in November help him stay strong the following October.

It’s about constantly getting better. Jeter says, “It’s monotonous, but it’s important, too. Repetition breeds familiarity. Familiarity breeds comfort. Comfort breeds relaxation, and the best environment for achieving success is when you’re relaxed.”

“The motivation is to be the best player I can be, and if that means some people want to call me one of the best in baseball, that’s up to them. I don’t sit here every day and think about what I accomplished in the past and how I’ve got it made now. I’m always focusing on what I can do to improve in the future. What can I do to make myself better tomorrow? I know people don’t care what I did last year. Seriously, last year is over with. My teammates and my coaches want to see what I can do this year. More important, I want to see it.”
Hard work (smart work) = Success
Homework: Watch the Yankees @ 1:05pm EST today!

Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #626 THE ENEMY…

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“We have met the enemy, and they is us.”
-POGO, cartoon character