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MESSAGE #965 AGASSI-SAMPRAS: CHAMPIONS OR CHILDREN?

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Recently, at the “Hit for Haiti” charity exhibition in California, the Andre Agassi – Pete Sampras rivalry continued…verbally. There was teasing, mimicking and violent intent.

In the video below, Sampras makes fun of Agassi’s walk and then Agassi proceeds to make fun of Sampras’ reputation of being a stingy tipper. After that, Pistol Pete hit a hard, flat serve right at Andre when he was supposed to be serving to Agassi’s doubles partner, Rafael Nadal. Apologies have been made, but there is still tension between the two former champions.

I understand keeping a light air when playing an exhibition, and as much a fan I am of Andre, what he said was uncalled for (even though he talked about Sampras’ tipping in his book, “Open”). But Pete had just as poor judgement when he tried to hit Agassi with a serve. Come on guys, we’re role models here.

Watch the video below and leave your comments…Happy St. Paddy’s Day and Happy Birthday to one of my Special Olympics athletes, gold medalist, Brad Abouchedid.

MESSAGE #964 WHAT DO YOU DO AFTER YOU WIN WIMBLEDON?

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Do people sing to get to the end of the song?

Do people play sports to get to the end of the game?

Do people read to get to the end of the book?

No. No. No.

Life is not about doing as many things as you can. It’s not about getting to the end. It’s not even about making a lot of money (I know a lot of miserable rich people).

Life is to be lived. To do what matters to you. To do what you’re passionate about. To make a difference in the world.

We play sports because we enjoy the process. If winning was everything, wouldn’t we ONLY play people we knew we could beat? That would get old quick.

After Mats Wilander became number one in the tennis world (something he worked his whole life for), he said, “Is that it?” It got to a point where he would look forward to mowing his lawn more than playing tennis. So it’s not about the trophy. It’s not about the money. It’s not about materialistic objects.

1. Do what you love.

2. Stay in the present moment and savor it all.

3. Work hard but have fun.

4. Don’t let anyone tell you what you CAN’T do (how do THEY know?)

5. Make a difference and help others.

Think about what you want to have accomplished at the end of your life.

Now go and do it.

MESSAGE #963 THE WAY OF LIFE

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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 #962 A SPECIAL DAY

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Well,  today is Pi Day (3.14) and Albert Einstein’s birthday.

I spent 9am-5pm on the tennis court and worked out with some of my high school players, so Day 4 of my 21-Day Challenge is complete.

And today’s blog message is a collection of my favorite Einstein quotes…enjoy.

Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

A man should look for what is, and not for what he thinks should be.

A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.

Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking.

I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.

Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s coming attractions.

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

MESSAGE #961 MEETING OF THE MINDS

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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 #960 DAY 2 OF ED’S 21-DAY CHALLENGE

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In Day 2 of Ed’s 21-Day Challenge, he works out on the basketball court with Coach Mike Cavallo. Here’s the video blog. Enjoy!

MESSAGE #959 DAY 1 OF ED’S 21-DAY CHALLENGE

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In this video blog, Ed kicks off his 21-Day Challenge to get in shape and inspire others to do the same.

MESSAGE #958 HOW TO PLAY THE GAME

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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…

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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.

MESSAGE #956 I KNOW YOU KNOW

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Everyone knows what to do, but nobody does what they know.

Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Lewis Howes, founder of Sports Networker and author of LinkedWorking.

Lewis Howes is my friend, and he is a rock star. He is an ex-pro athlete, author, speaker and entrepreneur. Howes travels all over the world educating and connecting people in sports and social media. He has networked with some of the top minds on the planet…and he’s just getting started.

The difference between Lewis Howes and everyone else is that Lewis is taking action…MASSIVE ACTION. In fact, he’s doing a webinar tomorrow from the beach in Argentina (I’m not happy about that).

See, you know what to do, but you’re not doing it.

You know you need to:

-practice more
-quit smoking
-study more
-spend more time with your family
-do your taxes
-de-clutter your house

But ARE YOU?

K – A = O (Knowledge minus Action equals NOTHING)

Recently, I was teaching and one of my students kept hitting the ball into the net. I asked, “How can you make an adjustment?” She said, “Aim higher over the net.”

“Very good, but ARE YOU trying to aim higher over the net when you’re hitting?”

The response was “No.”

We all know what to do, but the great ones are actually doing it.

 

What are you NOT doing? Leave your comments below…