MESSAGE #1527 THE MENTAL GAME VIDEO
I’m a Yankee fan, but I have to respect this guy:
E:60 Evan Longoria from E60 on Vimeo.
Posts
MESSAGE #1525 ARE YOU A PEAK PERFORMER?
Yesterday, at 4pm, I told my PDS girls tennis team something very important just before their match. And then at 10:30 last night, I told the Lawrence Township Police Department the same thing just before their shift. And now I’m going to tell you.
The biggest decision you have to make is are you going to go all-out, or are you going to hold back?
As a peak performance coach, I don’t care about results. Okay, I’m lying. I DO care about results, but they are not the most important thing.
The most important thing is our effort.
Are you going to go all-out or are you going to hold back…in sports, in school, in your job, in your relationships?
At the end of the day, only YOU will know if you gave your full effort.
When you put your head on the pillow tonight, you are going to say one of two things to yourself about your day…
1. I’m glad I went all-out.
2. I wish I had.
Which one can you live with?
Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077
MESSAGE #1514 IT’S UP TO YOU…
Man can will nothing unless he has first understood that he must count on no one but himself; that he is alone, abandoned on earth in the midst of his infinite responsibilities, without help, with no other aim than the one he sets himself, with no other destiny than the one he forges for himself on this earth.
-Jean Paul Satra
The ten most powerful two-letter words…
If it is to be, it is up to me.
MESSAGE #1513 MENTAL TOUGHNESS IN FIGURE SKATING
When I go out on the ice, I just think about my skating. I forget it is a competition.
-Katarina Witt, figure skater
Peak performance is focusing on the process, not the results.
What are YOU focusing on?
MESSAGE #1512 BE LIKE A ROOKIE
I took the above photograph of Yankee prospect, Austin Romine next to the Yankee Double-A affiliate, Trenton Thunder clubhouse last year. This week, Romine got called up to the big club, caught Mariano Rivera’s 599th career save, started his first Major League game and collected his first major league hit.
Not bad for someone who thought his season was over. Romine was walking out of a Wal-mart in Kentucky when Yankee manager, Joe Girardi called, telling him the news.
4:30am the next morning, Romine began is trip to join the Yankees in Anaheim, ten minutes from his home town.
A couple dozen family members were present and Romine’s brother, Andrew was in the opposing dugout, playing for the Angels.
After traveling from Kentucky, Romine was thrown right into the mix, looking at photos, videos, scouting reports, etc.
“I just took a deep breath and treated it like spring training. I’d caught all these guys before and I’d played (at Angel Stadium) before, so the comfort level was higher than I thought it was going to be. I just took a deep breath and didn’t think.”
Romine knows the secret, don’t think.
His deep breath, relaxed him a bit and kept him in the present moment.
Not thinking helped him avoid paralysis by analysis.
Even though Austin Romine is a rookie, he has a veteran approach.
If you missed my exclusive interview with him, you can watch it HERE.
Make sure you checkout my new FREE video on my top five peak performance secrets. Register and enjoy!
Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077
MESSAGE #1507 BE LIKE TED PART II
Recently, I was talking with my good friend, Ted. Ted and I are former baseball teammates and current tennis hitting partners. Ted is also a writer.
Earlier this week, Ted attended a writing workshop in New York City. A key point that he learned was about writer’s block.
His instructor said that when you have writer’s block, find an accountability partner and just write for three minutes. It doesn’t matter what you write, as long as you write…even if it’s the same word over and over.
I know what you are thinking, “How does this relate to me?”
If you don’t feel like writing, just write.
If you don’t feel like working out, just workout.
If you don’t feel like making sales calls, just make the calls.
It’s the start that stops most people.
I know many marathon runners and I often ask them what the most challenging aspect of running is. Their answer is…putting on my shoes.
I don’t care about your feelings, I care about your actions.
MESSAGE #1506 BE LIKE TED
All I want out of life is that when I walk down the street folks will say, “There goes the greatest hitter who ever lived.”
-Ted Williams
Ted Williams certainly was one of the greatest hitter to ever play the game of baseball. I recently heard a great anecdote about Williams.
Ted Williams once said that when he wakes up in the morning, he thinks about his hitting.
When he goes to bed at night, he thinks about his hitting.
When he eats, he thinks about his hitting.
As a matter of fact, the only time Ted Williams didn’t think about his hitting was…when he was hitting.
Another way to put it:
You can’t think and hit at the same time. A full mind is an empty bat.
-Yogi Berra
Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077
MESSAGE #1505 CONTROL
Learn to control your emotions, or your emotions will control you.
Are you a thermometer, or a thermostat?
Do you read what’s going on outside (around you), or can you control your internal temperature?
We can’t really control our thoughts and feelings, but we can shift our focus when we are negative or angry.
How?
1. Take a deep breath.
2. Think about your ideal reaction.
3. Do what you need to do, whether you feel like it or not.
Be a thermostat today.
Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077
MESSAGE #1503 THE ROAD TO SUCCESS
Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Fred Weiland in Westchester, New York.
If you are like many of my blog readers, you are searching for the road to success. Here it is…
Take a look at the figure above. Imagine driving up the road to success and coming to a fork. It is your decision whether you take the road to Nowhere or you take the road to Success. Forget your GPS and choose to bear right and take the road to Success.
How do you do it?
When you don’t feel like practicing…do it anyway.
When you don’t feel like studying…do it anyway.
When you don’t feel like eating a healthy meal…do it anyway.
Winners do what losers don’t feel like doing.
The power is in your hands.
Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077
MESSAGE #1502 THE WINNER OF THE US OPEN WILL BE…
I am going to make a prediction.
I know who is going to win the US Open this year.
Here it is:
The winner of the 2011 US Open will be…
The player who plays best.
Let me explain.
The best player does not win the US Open, the player that plays best wins the US Open.
It’s not about rankings, it’s about how well you play. Anything can happen in sports. There have already been several upsets in both the men’s and women’s draws.
So the next time you get ready for a competition, forget about who you’re up against. Instead, focus on your strategy and giving your full effort. If you do things that will help put you in a good position to win, you will win more often.
Leave your comments below.
Ed Tseng
Director of Mental Conditioning
Monroe Sports Center
609.558.1077