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MESSAGE #1655 DO YOU THINK ABOUT WALKING?

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I recently read a promo by a mental performance coach…he said, “Do you think about walking or talking?…No. the mental game is the same way” (I agree).

He then went on to say that he has the best “routines and techniques” to keep your mind clear during competition…

Interesting. Then how come we don’t need “routines and techniques” while walking and talking?

Think about the last time you had a peak performance. Were you using routines and techniques, or were you “just” playing?

I already know the answer.

In my opinion, when we perform at our best, we are “just” doing it and in the moment. So why then, when we are not playing well would we use “routines and techniques” to take us out of the moment?

One of my favorite things to do is to interview gold medalists, world champions, national champions, professional athletes, and performers on their best performances. They never say they “thought” themselves to victory. They always say they were “just” doing it and as a result, they had little thought, performed with freedom and ease…and kicked butt.

Can you remember the last time you “thought” about walking? If you can, you probably stumbled…

Ed Tseng
Mental Performance Coach
Pro of the Year USTA/NJD 2005
Best-Selling Author and Keynote Speaker

For a free 10-minute consultation on peak performance in athletics, academics, business and life, email or call 609.558.1077.

MESSAGE #1654 “IT’S SOOO COLD OUTSIDE!”

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Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Ashley Fisher.

Well, it is currently 11 degrees (but feels like 3 degrees) fahrenheit here in Princeton, New Jersey. Everywhere I go, I hear people complaining about how cold it is outside. It seems to be making many people feel angry, annoyed, and depressed.

Guess what?

It is impossible for the weather to affect how you feel.

Disagree?

Then how do you account for some people hating cold weather and others loving it?

What’s the difference in why they feel one way or the other?

It’s in their thoughts. Feelings are created by thought and thought alone. In other words, nothing outside of you has the ability to affect you.

People who hate the cold have thoughts like, “I really don’t like getting in my car when it’s cold” or “I hate having to scrape off my car.” Then they feel annoyed.

People who love the cold have thoughts like, “This is great skiing weather!” or “This is a perfect hot chocolate day!” Then they feel excited.

When we have a thought, we automatically have a corresponding feeling. 100% of the time. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week…whether you know it’s happening or not.

I know what you’re thinking…”Ed, how do I change my thoughts?!?”

Answer: You can’t.

Your thoughts will change naturally if you don’t make a big deal out of them. For example, if you looked at the weather report and it said it would be 11 degrees today, you might have a thought like, “Gosh, that’s cold, it’s going to be miserable out there today.” If you take that thought seriously, your mood will begin to go down. On the other hand, if you just let that thought pass, a new thought will probably replace it like “Big deal, I’ll just bundle up…I can’t wait to get some fresh, crisp air in my lungs.”

Thoughts come and go and feelings come and go. When we don’t put much value on the content of our thinking, we naturally reset to a place (space) of happiness, clarity, wisdom, and peak performance.

It’s like when you hold a cork under water…if you just let go of the cork, it will float up to the surface all by itself. Your state of mind is the same way.

The only thing holding the cork back is your hand.

The only thing holding your state of mind back is your thinking.

Final thought: You know how people say don’t believe everything you hear? It’s also true that you shouldn’t believe everything you THINK.

Thanks for reading.

Ed Tseng
Peak Performance Coach
Author, Speaker
Pro of the Year USTA/NJD 2005

609.558.1077

For a free 10-minute consultation, email:

MESSAGE #1648 ARE YOU RUNNING AWAY?

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I have a client and friend I’ll call George. When I met George, he was depressed for many years. During our first conversation, he had an insight and understood how the human experience and mind worked. He realized that he was creating his own suffering for all those years via his own thoughts. His depression has disappeared and hasn’t shown up since. Recently, George and I were talking about how our thoughts create our experience in the moment. I said that you could be on a beautiful island sitting on the beach, but if your thoughts are stressed and filled with concerns back home, your experience will be unpleasant. I also told George that there are people in prison who feel more free than when they were not incarcerated.

George was silent for a moment and said, “That reminds me of when I was depressed…I was in Hawaii, looking out at the ocean, and all of a sudden, anxious thoughts came over me and I was miserable.” He went on to say, “Also, during that time, I moved to Florida, thinking that perhaps moving to paradise would make me feel better. It didn’t. I now know that it was my thoughts that were creating my suffering, not my situation. It was like the Bob Marley song, ‘You’re running away…but you can’t run away from yourself.’ ” I said, “Exactly! It’s like running away from your own shadow.” Thoughts and feelings are directly related.

Our experience of life comes 100% from our own thoughts. Our experience does not come from anything outside of us. It is impossible for you to have a stressful thought and feel happy. It is also impossible for you to have a happy thought and feel stressed. It’s a principle, like gravity: What goes up, must come down. What we think, we feel.

I had never heard the Bob Marley song George was referring to, but “Googled” it. It is now my new favorite song. Below are the lyrics and video on Youtube. Enjoy!

You’re running and you’re running
And you’re running away.
You’re running and you’re running
And you’re running away.
You’re running and you’re running
And you’re running away.
You’re running and you’re running,
But you can’t run away from yourself.
-“Running Away” by Bob Marley

MESSAGE #1644 THINK LIKE THE PROS

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My friend used to coach the great Pete Sampras. One day he was training with Pistol Pete, getting him ready for his clay court season…his least favorite surface. Well, my friend proceeded to beat Sampras in three groundstroke games in a row, and as they were getting some water, he thought, “I just beat Pete Sampras three games in a row. He must feel terrible losing to his coach. What could I say to him to make him feel better?”

Before he could think of something to say, Sampras walked up to him and said, “That was GREAT! I really feel like I’m ready for the clay court season!”

Shocked, my friend thought, “What?!? How could he feel great after losing to a coach? That’s not normal.”

In a way, great athletes are not normal.

To me, what set Pete Sampras apart from everyone else was what was going on between his ears…his thoughts. He didn’t lose confidence when he lost. He gained confidence because he focused on the process and looked at his training as preparation, not a blow to his ego. Did he ever have negative thoughts? Of course he did.

We all have negative thoughts.

But Pete Sampras didn’t concern himself with his thoughts. He saw the game differently. Was the game actually different? No, only in his mind.

We all have the free will to look at any situation in any way that we choose. It’s not our situation or circumstances that affect our feelings, it’s our thoughts. 100 percent of the time.

The next time you find yourself in a “negative” situation, see if you can see it differently. See if you can see it like Pete Sampras.

Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #1642 YOU CAN STILL DO YOUR BEST WHEN YOU FEEL YOUR WORST

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Recently I was chatting with a professional baseball player before his game. This player was as physically fit as an athlete could be, but he knew the most important aspect of the game was on the 6-inch field between his ears. I asked him if he ever got nervous during a game and he responded, “I sure do.” I then asked him where he thought those feelings of nervousness came from. He looked at me blankly.

Most people think that feelings of nervousness come from the opposing team, the crowd noise, letting your teammates down, the umpires, etc. Or from an unknown place.

The truth is that nervousness comes from one place and one place only…

Your thoughts.

Every athlete gets nervous.

Every human gets nervous.

The key is not to get rid of the nervousness. The key is to understand where that nervousness comes from, and when you see it as thought, it doesn’t seem so intimidating. When you see it as coming from outside of you, it could be overwhelming.

So how can you do your best when you feel your worst?

Just understand that a feeling is just a feeling and you don’t have to take them so seriously. You can feel nervous and not concern yourself with that feeling and still kick some major butt.

A baseball game (and life) is like a roller coaster–you will have highs and lows. When you realize that the roller coaster is inside your own head, and it is normal, you can enjoy the ride.

Physical skills take a while to develop, but you can be just like the greatest athletes in the world overnight by having the same mindset and attitude as them.

Thanks for reading.

Ed Tseng
Peak Performance Coach
Author of “Game. Set. Life. – Peak Performance for Sports and Life”
Keynote Speaker
609.558.1077

MESSAGE #1637 MY NEWEST FACEBOOK FRIEND

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One of the traits successful people share is their desire for constant learning. When you have a growth mindset like that, the sky is the limit and anything is possible.

Well, my newest Facebook friend is almost in the sky, she’s 6 foot 11.5 inches tall. Her name is Marvadene “Bubbles” Anderson. I first met Bubbles after her first high school basketball game back in 2009 when she was ONLY 6 foot 10.5 inches tall. A wonderful young lady who has a growth mindset. Enjoy the video of us below and take notice how her goals were to learn as much as she could.

MESSAGE #1636 LIFE IS A MARATHON…

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Today is the 116th Boston Marathon. A 26.2 mile physical, mental and spiritual test for over 26,000 runners. And today is going to be a hot one.

Tom Fleming is a marathon runner and he actually was runner-up at in the Boston Marathon two times. When he was at his peak, Fleming would run between 150 and 175 miles a week. An amazing feat in itself. Somebody once asked him, “Do you ever NOT feel like running?”

“EVERY DAY I don’t feel like running…until I start running,” responded Fleming.

Now you may not be a marathon runner, but I can guarantee that at some point today, there will be something you don’t “feel like” doing, whether it’s working out, cleaning the house, practicing or studying. You may not be able to run 175 miles a week like Tom Fleming, but you can certainly have the same attitude as him—-do it whether you feel like it or not.

It’s a choice.

Here’s another great quote by Fleming:

Somewhere in the world someone is training when you are not. When you race him, he will win.

Good luck today to all the marathoners…and good luck to YOU.

Life is not a sprint, it’s a marathon; take it one step at a time.

Thanks for reading.

Ed Tseng
Peak Performance Coach
Pro of the Year USTA 2005
Author of “Game. Set. Life.”
Keynote Speaker

609.558.1077

MESSAGE #1635 FINAL FOUR, FINAL THOUGHTS…

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Tomorrow, college basketball really heats up…the Final Four of the NCAA tournament. Louisville, Kentucky, Ohio State and Kansas will be competing to see who will get to the final round.

I have have been a consultant for some Final Four teams and if I were to give a talk to the teams right before they played tomorrow night, I would give them this bit of advice…

At some point during the game tomorrow night, you will have a negative thought in your head.

“What if we lose this game?”

“What if I miss this foul shot?”

“I can’t handle this pressure!”

Well, let me explain how your mind works…

Your feelings of nervousness, lack of confidence or anger cannot hurt your performance…unless you let them. Your feelings come from your thoughts, not from an external source like a game, the crowd or even the referees.

Feelings and thoughts are neutral (and random). It’s normal to have negative thoughts pop up in your head, but you have the choice of which ones to focus on.

If you were enjoying a movie at the theater and a random thought about what you were going to eat after the movie popped into your head, wouldn’t you just dismiss that random thought and focus back on the movie? Of course you would.

You can also dismiss any negative thoughts on the court in the same way, even if you’re on national television.

We can’t control what thoughts pop up in our heads, but we can choose which ones to focus on.

If I am in New York City waiting for the C train, but the A train, the B train and the D train keep arriving, I cannot control that. But I can control which train I get on.

Your thoughts are the same way.

In other words…

Don’t take your thoughts so seriously.

It’s not what’s happening around you. It’s not what’s happening to you. What really matters is what’s happening INSIDE you.

Good luck in the Final Four and if you’re an accountant in Boston, Massachusetts or a musician in San Francisco, this applies to you too. We can all improve our performance by mastering the mental game.

Thanks for reading.

Ed Tseng
Peak Performance Coach
Pro of the Year USTA 2005
Author of “Game. Set. Life.”
Keynote Speaker

609.558.1077