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MESSAGE #1412 LESSONS FROM AN NCAA CHAMP

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Recently, Lauren Embree clinched the NCAA title for the University of Florida Gators women’s tennis team. She beat Mallory Burdette, 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (6) after losing a 5-1 lead in the first set and overcoming a 0-4 deficit in the final set.

I caught up with Embree after her incredible win.

“I had different thoughts racing through my mind when I was down 4-0 in the third. I kept fighting. I knew I still had a chance no matter what the score was.”

“I just told myself, ‘one point at a time,’ ”

“I kept telling myself positive thoughts.”

Embree’s goal was to fight her way back and instead of focusing on the situation, she focused on the process and just tried to get the ball back deeper.

So what did Embree do?

1. She went all-out.
2. She played in the present moment (not the past or the future).
3. She told herself affirmations to keep her performance, focus and energy levels high.

She could have easily fallen apart after losing the lead in the first set, but she didn’t—she fought back. Even when she was down 0-4 in the final set, she went all-out until the very end.

And we can all do that…it’s a choice.

You may not be an NCAA champion, but you can use Embree’s strategies to succeed in sports, sales or school. And you can begin today.

Thank you Lauren and congrats again.

MESSAGE #1401 CHOKE

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Recently, cognitive science and performance expert, Sian Beilock sent me a copy of her new book, “Choke.”

People choke all the time, in sports and life. Below are some anti-choke techniques that Beilock recommends.

1. Distract yourself—Sing a song or even thinking about your pinky toe as Jack Nicklaus was rumored to do can help prevent the prefrontal cortex from regulating too closely movement that should run outside awareness.

2. Don’t slow down—Don’t give yourself too much time to think and to control your highly practiced putt, free throw, or penalty kick. Just do it.

3. Practice under stress—Practicing under the exact conditions you will face in a do-or-die situation is exactly what is needed to perform your best when the stress is on. Get used to the pressure so competition is not something you fear. Also, by understanding when pressure happens, you can create situations that will maximize the stress in your opponents.

4. Don’t dwell—Take that past performance and change how you think about it. See your failures as a chance to learn how to perform better in the future.

5. Focus on the outcome, not the mechanics—Focusing on the goal, where the ball will land in the net, helps cue your practiced motor programs to run flawlessly.

6. Find a key word—A one-word mantra (such as smooth during a golf stroke) can keep you focused on the end result rather than the step-by-step processes of performance.

7. Focus on the positive—Don’t be helpless. If you focus on the negative this can make you feel out of control and increase the likelihood that you will not work as hard to obtain future performance goals.

8. Cure the yips by changing your grip—An alteration in your performance technique reprograms the circuits you need to execute your shot, hopefully clearing your brain and body of the motor hiccup.

Thank you, Sian.

Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077

MESSAGE #1400 SING A SONG…

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Have you ever heard someone sing a song and that song gets stuck in your head for the rest of the day?

Of course you have.

Top athletes use affirmations, and they work the same way. Instead of replaying a song in your head, replay a powerful statement, like…

“I am a strong, confident person who thrives under pressure.”

“I let the past and the future go, all I am focused on is the present moment.”

“If I give full effort, I am a champion, regardless of the result.”

Create an affirmation that will resonate with you, and get it stuck in your head.

Then you’ll REALLY be singing because you will begin getting winning results.

Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077

MESSAGE #1399 HOW DO YOU PRACTICE #2

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Recently, I had a great conversation with peak performance coach, Brian Cain. We traded books and so far, the best line I have read in his book is this…

“We want our players to play at their pace and to treat every game like practice, and every practice like a game so that nothing changes.”

I really like that.

To me, this means, take practice seriously and compete like it’s not a big deal.

MESSAGE #1398 CAN VS WILL

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Recently, I was teaching a young boy and at the end of the session, I asked him, “Did you give a full effort today?”

He responded, “Not exactly.”

“Could you have?” I asked.

“I don’t think so,” he said.

Then I asked him the million dollar question…

“What if, at the beginning of the lesson, I said, ‘I’ll give you a million dollars if you give it your full effort today.’ Would you have been able to give a full effort then?”

My student enthusiastically responded, “Oh YES!”

We both laughed.

I told him that effort is a choice. It’s not a question of CAN you, it’s a question of WILL you?

Lesson learned.

Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077

MESSAGE #1381 YOUR FUTURE

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I want to be remembered as the guy who gave his all whenever he was on the field.
-WALTER PAYTON

What do YOU want to be remembered as?

MESSAGE #1380 YOU CAN DO IT

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In 2004, Jan Mela, at age 15, became the youngest person to reach the North Pole. And then eight months later, reached the South Pole. This was a great feat by the Polish explorer, but that is not the amazing part.

Jan Mela did this as a double amputee.

At age 13, Mela was electrocuted in an accident and lost one arm and one leg.

But he did not give up on life.

William Arthur Ward once said, “Adversity causes some men to break, others to break records.”

We don’t choose what happens to us in life, but we certainly choose how we respond.

If Jan Mela can be the youngest person to reach the North and South Poles as a double amputee…

IMAGINE WHAT YOU CAN DO.