Watching our sporting champions compete for gold and glory at the Olympics has been a great motivator. It has also thrown up a few lessons on how mind set can affect performance. While training is a certainly physical challenge, the first step to achieving any goal is winning the mind game. My secret weapons are being positive and being consistent.
Even if you’re a naturally energetic person (like me), everyone has low days. The trick is not to let a low day turn into a low week, then creep into a low month…
That sounds easy but how do you make that happen? I build mood boosters into my life so no matter where I am there’s always something within my reach that I know will help lift my mood.
Try these tricks….
- Have a mood board at home and at work. Fill a cork board with images that make you feel happy. I can’t look at a photo of an overwater bungalow in Tahiti or my nephew without smiling… and instantly feeling better.
- Find a “mantra” or quote that inspires you. One of my favourites to remind me that it is all worth the effort is… “Today I will do what others won’t, so tomorrow I can do what others can’t.” Facebook and Pinterest are bursting with inspiration!
- Surround yourself with positive people. Call/text/facebook a friend you know will lift your spirits without even trying. I have a friend whose energy is so infectious his positivity never fails to rub off on me. Being that person for someone else can also be very powerful.
- Don’t forget to cut yourself some slack! Sometimes you need to listen to your body when you feel a bit flat and want to sleep in… or have another Tim Tam… or ease up for the last 2 kms. Pushing yourself too hard can lead to burnout or highs and lows in your performance, when what you really want to achieve in the long-term is consistency.
Being consistent is my other secret weapon for winning the mind game .
Til Next Time.