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MESSAGE #993 THE MENTAL GAME: A SNEAK PREVIEW

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There is an amazing book coming out soon and I had the pleasure of getting my hands on the first draft of the manual. The book is called Game “On”: The Flow, the Zone, & the State of “On,” in Sports and Life by Jonathan Star. Here is an excerpt…

You are not your thoughts

A major step in the mental game is coming to the understanding that you are not your thoughts (or emotions). You are not your mind or your self-image. So, the first step involves changing the relationship you have with your thoughts and emotions. (The mere fact that you have a relationship with your thoughts , and that you can change your relationship, tells us rather clearly that you are something different from your thoughts). You must make a distinction between you (the one who is aware of your thoughts) and your thoughts (which you are aware of). There is a very clear distinction between these two, yet most people are not cognizant of it; they fully identify with their thoughts and somehow believe that they are their thoughts, and that life is about reacting to every thought and emotion that comes into their awareness. This is living life like a puppet – where your thoughts and emotions pull the strings and you dance. Shouldn’t you be the one controlling the strings?

Stay tuned for more, as well as workshops with me and the great Jonathan Star.

MESSAGE #990 MENTAL TOUGHNESS: BE COMFORTABLE BEING UNCOMFORTABLE

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Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Diane Stevenson in the UK.

Life begins at the end of your comfort zone. -NEALE DONALD WALSCH

Admit it, you like to be comfortable. But if you’re comfortable, you’re not growing.

When I give mental toughness coaching sessions, I have people perform mental cross-training. For example, I had a college tennis player sing happy birthday to me at the top of his voice, in a crowded restaurant. He didn’t feel like it but did it anyway and felt great afterwards. And I do it in my own life, as well. Six hours after I solved my first Sudoku puzzle, I competed in the National Sudoku Championships (Beginner level).

The more you put yourself in uncomfortable situations, the more comfortable you will be when they arise.

Sports are mostly mental, but when was the last time you worked on that aspect of your game?

Homework: For the next week, do one thing each day that puts you out of your comfort zone.

MESSAGE #978 WIN

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Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great D.A. Abrams, Executive Director and COO of the USTA Eastern Section.

 

I may not know you, but I know this about you…

You want to win more…in sports, sales, school, relationships, music, etc.

Here’s how you do it: Don’t focus on winning!

Focus on the things that will help you win more.

1. Write down exactly what you want to accomplish

2. Write down three things you can do each day to get closer to that goal.

3. Do those three things!

4. Repeat.

And if you really want to ensure that you will reach your goals, find an accountability partner, who you will talk to at least once a week to make sure you are on track. (If you know you are going to talk to that person, you will be more likely to get the important things done.)

Remember what WIN stands for…

What’s Important Now

MESSAGE #974 SEE IF YOU CAN SEE THIS…

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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…

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

MESSAGE #971 TIGER BACK ON TRACK…

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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 #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 #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 #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.