The Champion's Mind: How Great Athletes Think, Train, and Play PDF

WORLD-CLASS ENDORSEMENTS “The Champion’s Mind reveals the mental skills and strategies Olympic champions use to perform their best when it matters most. Dr. Afremow’s matchless book is a must for athletes and coaches.” —SHANNON MILLER, Olympic gold medalist in gymnastics and president of Shannon Miller Lifestyle “I read this book with my eyes wide open, and the content continued to keep them open at all times. Jim’s advice and tips are very simple and easy to understand. Read only one chapter at a time and apply it to your approach to tennis, sports, and life.” —NICK BOLLETTIERI, founder and president of Nick Bollettieri IMG Tennis Academy “How sweet it is to breathe that rarefied air of a high-performance athlete! How refreshing it is, as well, to recognize so many of the techniques in Dr. Afremow’s book that get you to that privileged place. The Champion’s Mind is a simple, straightforward elixir for the high achiever in all of us.” —MORTEN ANDERSEN, NFL’s all-time leading scorer and a member of the NFL’s All- Decade Teams for the 1980s and 1990s “The Champion’s Mind is loaded with great lessons, advice, and perspectives on how to be successful. It is definitely not a requirement to be an athlete or a coach in order to benefit from this book. The skills and strategies that Jim provides here are essential in carving a path to success, no matter what field you are in or what your goals are. I can honestly say that I have lived by many of the strategies offered in this book, and I can also say I wish I had lived by more of them. But it’s never too late to be as good as you can be!” —DAN JANSEN, Olympic gold medalist in speed skating and former world record holder “The mind is a powerful thing. As a baseball player, the more confidence I have and the more mentally prepared I am, the better I perform when it matters the most. The Champion’s Mind will help guide you to reach your potential both on and off the field!” —TRAVIS BUCK, MLB outfielder, San Diego Padres “Athletes who want to learn the secrets of the mental game should read The Champion’s Mind.” —CARLI LLOYD, two-time Olympic gold medalist and 2008 U.S. Soccer Female Athlete of the Year “One can always learn from others. The Champion’s Mind holds a wealth of insight as to how you can become a winner in your everyday life.” —PHIL MAHRE, Olympic gold medalist in alpine skiing “It’s amazing to see how Dr. Afremow points out what athletes go through every day. He describes a lot of situations that I have experienced as well. In this book, you can find a lot of simple but very useful tips and principles that might help you improve your performance.” —BRITTA HEIDEMANN, three-time Olympian in épée fencing and gold medalist at the 2008 Beijing Olympics “The Champion’s Mind is very informative and full of great principles and guidelines for any athlete who is searching for excellence in their performance.” —MIKE CANDREA, Olympic gold medal coach of the U.S. softball team and eight-time national champion coach of the University of Arizona women’s softball team “Athletes can unlock a new level of performance by learning the power of training their mind as they train their body. From preparation to rehabilitation to competition, The Champion’s Mind gives the mental guidance necessary to allow an athlete to reach their full athletic potential. Dr. Afremow’s playbook for increasing mental strength gives clear direction to make the reader a better athlete, a better teammate, and a better person.” —CURT TOMASEVICZ, Olympic gold medalist in four-man bobsled “We all have an athlete in us; we were all born to run, jump, swim, and compete in some way or another. The gold medal at an Olympic Games has been declared as the highest honor to reward discipline, commitment, power, strength, finesse, passion, precision, patience, speed, and skill, just to name a few. You too can go for gold in all areas of your life by following Jim’s strategies. Decide what you want and go after it with all you have to give, every single day. Daily acts of excellence are the secret. Choose your success today.” —NATALIE COOK, five-time Olympian in beach volleyball and gold medalist at the 2000 Sydney Olympics “Do you want to learn how the best in the world got there? In The Champion’s Mind, Jim distills a myriad of golden Olympic stories into clear tools we all can use. I am positive that you will read insights in this book that will help you rise to the top of your discipline. If you read this book, you will be inspired. Thank you, Jim, for writing this book!” —ADAM KREEK, two-time Olympian in men’s eight rowing and gold medalist at the 2008 Beijing Olympics “When I read The Champion’s Mind, it quite frankly reminded me of many instances, mannerisms, and thoughts leading to my Olympic championship, and it has given me many other wisdoms to pass on to the athletes I now coach. Choose your path, follow your path; any path worth choosing will have its ups and downs, but The Champion’s Mind will help you with ideas to keep moving forward on that path. The focus you gain will help you reach the top of whatever you seek.” —NICK HYSONG, Olympic gold medalist in the pole vault “Dr. Afremow hits a grand slam with The Champion’s Mind. Every athlete should keep a copy of this book in their locker or gym bag.” —LEAH O’BRIEN-AMICO, three-time Olympic gold medalist for the U.S. softball team “Dr. Afremow’s training and tips have been an important part of the preparation and success of our athletes when they take the Wonderlic test at the NFL combine. In The Champion’s Mind, Dr. Afremow provides simple yet powerfully effective strategies to help athletes and coaches reach their full potential.” —MARK VERSTEGEN, founder and president of Athletes’ Performance and Core Performance To my wife, Anne, and our daughter, Maria Paz You were born to be a player. You were meant to be here. This moment is yours. —HERB BROOKS, coach of the 1980 U.S. Olympic “Miracle on Ice” team CONTENTS FOREWORD INTRODUCTION: IF YOU CAN SPOT GREATNESS, YOU’VE GOT GREATNESS CHAPTER ONE: BE YOUR OWN CHAMPION CHAPTER TWO: MASTER THE MENTAL SKILLS CHAPTER THREE: BE IN IT TO WIN IT CHAPTER FOUR: THE WISDOM OF A CHAMPION CHAPTER FIVE: EXERCISE, NUTRITION, PAIN, INJURIES, AND REGENERATION CHAPTER SIX: TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR PERSONAL DESTINY CHAPTER SEVEN: ZEN IN THE ZONE CHAPTER EIGHT: GOLDEN REFLECTIONS CHAPTER NINE: YOUR WORLD-CLASS GAME PLAN CHAPTER TEN: LONGTERM SURVIVAL OF THE MOST MENTALLY FIT EPILOGUE: THE ULTIMATE VICTORY IS YOURS APPENDIX A: BE A CHAMPION STUDENT-ATHLETE APPENDIX B: BE A CHAMPION SLEEPER REFERENCES AND RECOMMENDED READING ACKNOWLEDGMENTS INDEX FOREWORD BY JIM CRAIG Most people remember me as the goalie from the 1980 Olympic “Miracle on Ice” hockey team. Since then, I have gone on to have a successful sales career of more than 30 years and have become a sought-after motivational speaker and sales trainer. I travel the country delivering my messages on winning teamwork and how to achieve success in business. Jim got in touch with me after reading my book, Gold Medal Strategies: Business Lessons from America’s Miracle Team. It combines my years of sales experience and training with the discipline skills I used during the Olympics and my NHL career. As I am a gold medalist and experienced sales trainer, Jim wanted my thoughts on his book. I was enthusiastic about taking a look at Jim’s book because I have long recognized the importance that the mind plays in getting to the top of the podium. The Champion’s Mind is thoughtful, accessible, and engaging. The chapters are clear and straightforward, and they easily allow the athlete to put Jim’s suggestions into action right away. Jim provides expert advice and proven mental techniques for building a step-by-step improvement plan to accomplish your goals. He does a great job of teaching. He tells you how you too can become a champion in all aspects of your game and perform optimally at the most important time. His suggestions are clear and very readable and easy to remember. My wife and I have a teenage son and daughter, and they both play sports. To help them increase their enjoyment of athletics and improve their performance, I often share with them my favorite quotes and tips that I have collected on sports and living life. I keep a jar at home filled with these quotes and tips written on pieces of paper and encourage my kids to pull out and practice a lesson every day. Whether you are an athlete, a parent, or a coach, think of this book you now hold in your hands as your own personal peak-performance jar because The Champion’s Mind is filled to the brim with golden lessons you will draw on again and again to maximize your athletic potential. So keep this book handy—in your gym bag or locker—and reach for it any time you need inspiration or you want a great opportunity to practice your mental skills. Building your mental game can be as simple as reading a few pages of The Champion’s Mind before practice or when you are riding on the team bus thinking about the next performance. Start transforming your game from good to gold medal today. You’ll be glad you did. INTRODUCTION: IF YOU CAN SPOT GREATNESS, YOU’VE GOT GREATNESS Don’t envy the champion—be the champion. T he challenging plan presented in this book details how you can reach your pinnacle of athletic excellence and become a champion in your sport or fitness activity, whether you are a high school, college, recreational, professional, or an Olympic athlete. It means you will be vitally engaged in all areas of your game and life by doing your best at what you value most. You will get the job done and rise to the occasion in your championship moments. Think about the active people in your life, those you respect and hold in high regard. What specific character traits do you value most in these friends, teammates, and coaches? Who in your life has a high IQ in mental toughness? Also consider your personal athletic heroes, now and throughout history —the Olympians, professional athletes, adventurers, and extreme sports participants. Who specifically do you respect the most and what is their strongest attribute that you admire the most—their confidence, concentration, composure, commitment, or some other attribute? The same positive mental qualities you admire in others are also within you and waiting to be fully expressed. Perhaps you watched when Tony Womack hit an RBI double off of Yankees’ pitcher Mariano Rivera in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 7 of the 2001 World Series and you thought, “I would love to be that clutch.” Maybe you’ve watched Tiger Woods at the Masters striding down the fairways with total poise as the Sunday leader and you raved, “I wish I could have that level of comfort and confidence on the links.” If you can spot greatness in someone else, then you already have some of that greatness within you, because only a person with similar traits can recognize those traits in others. Think, “If I can spot it, I’ve got it!” Admiration and envy are our common psychological responses when watching extremely successful people perform at extremely difficult times. However, our responses can also make others seem superior, but they’re not. Still, most of us too quickly dismiss the idea that we could be like or even surpass the heroes we admire and respect the most. Instead, we must realize that all people are more alike than different, so we’re all capable of the mental greatness we see and appreciate in others. Rather than merely trying to mimic these qualities, why not seek your fullest expression of your positive aspects and attributes and become like the champions you admire? Living this attitude and striving for your own personal best are how you champion yourself, which is the kind of excellence outlined in this book. The main objective for you is to maximize your athletic potential by developing a champion’s mind-set. To paraphrase one of Yogi Berra’s insightful gems: Sports are 90 percent mental, and the other half is physical. If you want to play like the best athletes, then you have to think like them. Achieving this goal requires a program of psychological preparation and interconnected mental skills, mental strategies, and golden wisdom. The chapters in this book are organized in short, succinct sections for today’s busy athletes, coaches, and parents. Each chapter offers important steps for winning the mental game, so you will start thinking and acting the right way, right away. These tips are no-nonsense, to-the-point techniques for all ages and all goals. These winning attitudes and behaviors are also important life skills for corporate and academic environments, as well as for daily activities. Mental game pointers and lessons from world-class athletes are provided. You will also hear directly from several gold medalists whose winning mentality helped them triumph in the Olympic crucible. The book presents nine “golden reflections” through personal and inspirational stories from U.S. and international Olympic champions who won in summer or winter sports. Each athlete discusses his or her frame of mind when training and competing for Olympic gold. You will learn how to think, feel, and act like a champion as preparation for accomplishing your highest athletic and fitness goals. The suggestions in this book are based on classic studies and the latest research findings in performance psychology, as well as on my own extensive professional experiences in sports psychology, where I learned what really works. Read one chapter each day—or one suggestion each reading—to fully absorb the contents. Then you’ll be on your way to reaching your truest and fullest potential. You’ll be your own champion. Let the games begin! CHAPTER ONE BE YOUR OWN CHAMPION The attitude with which we approach the situation can determine our success or failure. —PEYTON MANNING W hat separates the top few from the many in a sport? Mentality. The importance of the mental side of athletics was once brilliantly summed up by basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: “Your mind is what makes everything else work.” Tennis great Novak Djokovic further explains: “[Among the] top 100 players, physically there is not much difference.... It’s a mental ability to handle the pressure, to play well at the right moments.” So your mental game matters the most. Physical ability alone rarely translates into a superior on-field performance. Even naturally gifted athletes who want to perform to their total potential need outstanding physical and mental strengths, because their secret to great performances is not their innate athleticism or technical skills—it’s their minds. Top athletes are often distinguished, especially in the media, by their unique natural gifts. For example, Michael Phelps, the greatest Olympic swimmer, has the wingspan of an albatross, tennis star Roger Federer has the timing of an exquisite Swiss watch, and Olympic sprinter and world- record holder Usain Bolt is built out of lightning-rod-like twitch fibers. Behind the scenes, their mind-set and work ethic have enhanced their natural abilities. If you aspire to be a champion, don’t be awed by the glitter of their excellence; instead, know that they also put in many thousands of hours in the pool, on the court, and at the track to build up their bodies and shape their minds. Distance runner Paavo Nurmi, dubbed the “Flying Finn” and the winner of nine Olympic gold medals (including five at the 1924 Paris Olympics), declared, “Mind is everything. Muscle—just pieces of rubber. All that I am, I am because of my mind.” You, too, can develop the mental focus and discipline needed to perform in your sport with a champion’s mind. The mental abilities of confidence, concentration, and composure are crucial for being a champion in everything you undertake, be it work or sports or both. In contrast to your physical abilities, your mental abilities may flutter moment to moment, because your mind is susceptible to performance pressures and situational demands. This being true, you cannot trust your athletic performance to chance. Just as you can build physical strength through training, you can also build mental strength through training. Mental dexterity must be practiced and developed in a planned and purposeful manner so that you can elevate yourself to a champion performance level in all endeavors. Champion yourself. We all experience similar struggles and deal with demanding challenges in our pursuit of excellence, regardless of the sport or fitness activity. To be a champion, your true best self becomes key to personal and athletic greatness. You know, as we all do, that only those performers who think gold and never settle for silver will continue to strive for and reach their highest, or gold, level. A champion makes greatness happen, despite what may seem like impossible odds. Of course most of us are not Olympians or professional athletes. But all of us can acquire a champion’s mind-set. Any athlete can learn to think like a champion. Every one of us can be peak performers in the game of life by achieving our own personal best. We can strive to be the best version of ourselves. It is possible for us to stay “professional” whenever adversity strikes. It is possible to ingrain mental fortitude that drives us forward. And it is possible to take a championship approach. Part of this process requires us to maintain our eagerness to learn and grow, and to take well-trained, disciplined action to make solid change in our lives. Sadly, only a small number of people qualify for the Olympics or become professional athletes; so few people ever champion themselves and win with the best version of themselves. This truth is hard to acknowledge, but if you do and if you want your personal championship in life badly enough, then the ball is in your hands. Now the question becomes, will you run with the ball or will you drop it? Understand that the difference between a pedestrian performance and a peak performance begins and ends with your state of mind. Importantly, all of us can learn to think like a champion, but will we? Adopting a winning mind-set will help you perform at the top of your game and enable you to succeed when you want to succeed the most. You have hidden inner potential to tap into in order to unleash your inner champion. A winning mind-set unlocks your athletic aptitude in competition. Champions develop and maintain a complete body and mind approach to their performance—the perfect blend of mentality, athleticism, and technique. They enthusiastically make the best of every situation, consistently put in the hard work, and take the extra time needed to realize their aspirations. Compile a personal scouting report. As an athlete, compile your own scouting report about yourself by taking a hard, unblinking look at all aspects of your performance. To begin, think about the mentality, athleticism, technique, and strategy that go into your performance. How would you rate yourself in these four areas? How would others rate you? Be sure to stay upbeat, because a negative attitude, poor effort, or an unwillingness to improve your conditioning, technique, and strategy will leave you in the bleachers instead of on the medal podium. Table 1 shows that champions strive endlessly to reach their best level by improving their mind-set, fitness, mechanics, and game strategy. Even if you are a great natural athlete, you still have to tap into that talent. Even if you are on a winning team, you will have to continue to push onward and believe that you can improve. “No coach or team thinks in terms of happy or comfort—those are not words that exist. You keep competing, executing, and trying to improve. It doesn’t matter if you have the best record or the worst record,” says Gregg Popovich, head coach of the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs. Which level are you committed to reaching—bronze, silver, or gold? No matter your current performance level, never rule out your capacity to become a champion in your game and in your life. You can do better. You can achieve your true potential. It is possible to make a major impact on your own life by shifting your beliefs and expectations about what you can achieve. Attitude is a decision, and it is also a learned behavior, requiring discipline and energy to sustain. TABLE 1: Excellence always requires an Olympian effort. PHYSICAL TECHNICAL TACTICAL PSYCHOLOGICA (FITNESS/ (PROPER (GAME L (MIND-SET) STRENGTH) MECHANICS) STRATEGY) BRONZE Good Good Good Good SILVER Better Better Better Better GOLD Best Best Best Best To perform at a champion’s level, think of gold as your official color of excellence. Look at your personal and athletic efforts through gold-tinted lenses. Think about personal gold as both a reward and a color of action or prompt to bring out your best qualities and performance. Olympic wrestling champion Jordan Burroughs says, “All I see is gold.” It is his mantra. Like Burroughs, look on the more positive side of events and always shoot for the most favorable outcome. Whether you are a student-athlete, a weekend warrior, a professional athlete, or a serious contender for the Olympics, going gold today will allow you to work to achieve superior performance and gain a genuine competitive advantage. Striving for the highest level will give you the best shot for personal greatness. We all deserve to shine and be successful, but we can achieve this only through intelligently applied hard work. Recognize that there will never be a better time and place than right now and right here to become a champion in your own game and life. To paraphrase Bob Dylan: You are either busy being born or busy dying. Let’s get busy achieving your athletic goals. Put on your own gold medal performance, whether you are going to the gym, running trails, or stepping on the gridiron in a championship game. Why settle for anything less? Consider: Don’t have the time? You are worth the time! Don’t have the energy? You will gain energy! Doubt yourself? Start doubting your doubt! THE CHAMPION QUESTION Champions aren’t made in the gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them—a desire, a dream, a vision. —MUHAMMAD ALI What will your life look like when you have become your own champion? This is the key champion question. Take some time right now to imagine that a major performance breakthrough in your game and life has just occurred and that you have become a champion all day, every day. In your mind’s eye, work your way through a regular weekday, a practice or training session, and a future competition. Draw together as much detail as possible about what it will look like to be at a gold level, to be the best version of yourself consistently. What specific actions or behaviors do you see yourself doing better or differently? Now that you have reshaped and redefined your game, what do you think others will perceive? What do you want them to observe? What would really surprise your teammates, coaches, or competitors? If you could step outside yourself and examine your new performance, what would you recognize in your new attitude and behaviors? Identify precisely what you do that hurts your own cause the most. Eliminate that action or viewpoint immediately. To perform at a champion’s level, you must break any bad habits, such as a tendency to arrive late to practice or just going through the motions when you get there. We are all champions until we lose to ourselves. Make your new gold story compelling, one that is active and personal. You need to see it to achieve it. Each time you do this exercise, your vision of how you perform as a champion will become clearer and stronger. Your new mental picture will get the performance ball rolling in the right direction. To go a step further, it is good to contrast the personal pride and peace of mind that results from having a champion approach to life with the future pain and regret of knowing in your heart that you settled for less than your best. Will you continue to sacrifice what you most want to achieve in your game for what is comfortable in the moment? Or will you keep putting your best foot forward, especially when you feel like doing it the least? My favorite description of what excellence in the sports world looks like comes from Anson Dorrance, the legendary University of North Carolina women’s soccer coach. He was driving to work early one morning, and as he passed a deserted field, he noticed one of his players off in the distance doing extra training by herself. He kept driving, but he later left a note in her locker: “The vision of a champion is someone who is bent over, drenched in sweat, at the point of exhaustion when no one else is watching.” The young woman, Mia Hamm, would go on to become one of the greatest players in the history of the sport. Having a big dream—and a clear vision of what you will look like while pursuing competitive excellence—always inspires greatness. What is your dream goal? What does excellence in your game look like when you are fully dialed in and passionately pursuing your dream—becoming the best you can be in your sport? Make the description vivid and powerful enough to give you that burst of adrenaline when you need it, a burst that can come only from connecting completely with your heart’s true desire. Dame Kelly Holmes, a British track star, held on tight to her athletic dreams when she was faced with personal hardships and physical hassles. Specifically, Holmes had to prevail over both depression and physical injury to shine on sport’s biggest stage—striking gold in both the 800-meter and the 1500-meter races at the 2004 Athens Olympics. In her book Just Go For It! 6 Simple Steps to Achieve Success, this double gold medalist explains the importance of always thinking in terms of possibilities: “We would accomplish many more things if we did not think of them as impossible. A dream is not impossible, so go get yours!” ACT LIKE YOU’RE A CHAMPION Be great in act, as you have been in thought. —WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE There is no golden road to excellence; excellence is the golden road. Until you start down this road, you’ll never have a chance of getting there. As such, act as if you are a total champion for set amounts of time each day by exceeding normal expectations. This time is where the rubber meets the road. You are confident, focused, energized, and in charge. How does it feel different when performing at peak levels versus just doing business as usual? Are you arriving early to practice or running late? Are you making weekly plans for training or just winging it because you’re too tired or too busy? Are you giving the extra effort needed for excellence? A nonmedalist says, “One day I will,” whereas a gold medalist does it and says, “Today I did.” Sergey Bubka of Ukraine, a record-setting pole- vaulter and gold medalist at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, always advocated others to “Do it. Then say it.” Actions really do speak louder than words, so take a moment right now to ask yourself, “Am I walking (or running) the talk with how I’m preparing myself for competition?” Some days you will not feel motivated or your nerves will have gotten the best of you. You will feel as though you have only your B- or C-game ready. This moment will be your moment of truth. Imagine, for example, that you are experiencing prepractice dread. Resolve to spend the first 30 minutes attacking your workout with enthusiasm, as if you really do love it. Most of the time you will continue in the same manner because you will be rolling along and achieving and feeling better than you did. The best and quickest solution for overcoming your inner resistance, challenging old patterns, and changing bad habits is to fake it until you either find your A-game and recover your form or finish it, and the game has ended. Slow it down and break it down. Panic is not an option for a champion. Doing the one thing you don’t want to do (going to the gym/sticking to your nutrition plan) rather than giving in to your fears/anxiety by clinging to the familiar (putting the workout off until tomorrow/eating the whole pizza) is your decision at the fork in the road that will determine whether you accomplish your sports goals. Realize that this choice is your choice— you can either act like a champion or take the path of least resistance and not feel challenged. Push right through your impasse. Stand tall and walk strong. Keep your head in the game. Maximize your mental resources. Eventually you will develop positive new ways of being and performing that will become automatic in their own right. This strategy is a game changer that will rewire you with peak behaviors and emotions. Acting like a champion really works if you work at it. So go work at it now. BRING IT EVERY DAY It’s not every four years. It’s every day. —MOTTO OF THE UNITED STATES OLYMPIC COMMITTEE Chip Kelly, head football coach of the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles, acquired a compelling team motto when he coached the University of Oregon Ducks to unprecedented success: “Win the day.” This means you should take advantage of the opportunity that each day brings to be the best athlete you can be. “If you’re not getting better, you’re getting worse” is a winning philosophy that must be embraced to reach personal excellence and competitive greatness. Peak performance is the daily strike zone we are aiming for. Excellence can be achieved only today—not yesterday or tomorrow, because they do not exist in the present moment. Today is the only day you have to flex your talents and maximize your enjoyment. Your challenge is to win in all aspects of life. To reach that goal, you need to set yourself up for success by winning one day at a time. Procrastination is no match for a champion. Setting daily goals and striving to achieve them is how you reach the status of a champion. How are you getting better today? What will you achieve today? Nonmedalists have a yesterday attitude by dwelling on things that didn’t go well in a previous performance or a tomorrow attitude by procrastinating and not getting things done now. Mark Spitz swam in two Olympic Games (1968, 1972), where he won a dazzling nine gold medals plus a silver and a bronze. He is the first athlete to win seven gold medals in a single Olympics, a staggering feat only exceeded 36 years later by Michael Phelps, who won eight gold medals at the 2008 Olympics. Spitz understood the importance of focusing on daily acts of excellence. He stated, “I’m trying to do the best I can. I’m not concerned with tomorrow, but with what goes on today.” Be like Chip Kelly and Mark Spitz by incorporating a “win the day” approach, whether that means getting in extra practice, protecting your rest and recovery time, or crushing it on the field. This is your sporting experience—be vitally engaged and take responsibility for getting the most from it. Today’s a brand-new opportunity to go for gold. Don’t get derailed. Stay focused. What do you need to do today to put yourself in a more favorable, positive athletic position? As a champion, you should never settle for less than you can be, but you must also realize that you do not need to be disciplined every second of the day. You only need to be disciplined for those few key moments during the day when you need to avoid temptation and/or start a positive action. To perform at a champion’s level, recognize when it is critical to maintain discipline and when it is time to relax—that is, to clear your mind and enjoy your downtime. What are your main temptations to avoid? What are your most positive actions to start? Recognize that there are some moments during competition that require iron self-discipline, but there are other moments where it is best to take a breather. For example, a golfer must be disciplined when it is time to follow his preshot routine (mind on golf); however, during the time between shots, he can open his focus and relax while he walks down the fairway (mind off golf). Use the phrase “Think gold and never settle for silver” as your mantra for self-discipline during the moments when discipline is absolutely required. For example, consider shouting, “Think gold!” (or “Personal best!”) to yourself—or imagine hearing these words booming from a loudspeaker— whenever you have an important choice to make, such as in the morning when you are deciding whether to hit the snooze button and keep sleeping on a cold, rainy day or to get out of bed and train for your sport. YOUR DAILY GUT CHECK QUESTIONS When I go to sleep at night I’m a better martial artist than when I woke up in the morning. —GEORGES ST-PIERRE, UFC WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPION At sunrise, ask yourself, “How will I be a champion today?” (INTENTIONS) At sunset, ask yourself, “How was I a champion today?” (ACCOUNTABILITY) THE CHAMPION’S WILL-DO-NOW LIST Organize your life around your dreams—and watch them come true. —ANONYMOUS To perform at a champion’s level, you must have a winning off-field game plan that includes specific strategies—for instance, well-placed environmental cues that you can use to achieve excellence and to remind yourself that you are working to win. Tape a note that says, “Think gold and never settle for silver” somewhere noticeable and make it the desktop background on your computer to motivate you to start and continue your day with a winning mind-set. Think gold and never settle for silver. Schedule automatic, electronic “think gold” or “personal best” reminders throughout the day; for example, set the reminder function on your cell phone to chime at certain times and display “Champion.” If at specific times during the day you feel fatigued or vulnerable to distractions—time- waster stuff on the Internet, junk food, or alcohol—then schedule your “think gold” electronic reminder for these times. Time management is priority management. Prioritizing your time, whether you are a student-athlete, professional athlete, or weekend warrior, should be a vital part of your daily and weekly game plans. For example, outline your agenda—your pursuit of a championship—each day. Make good choices regarding how you invest your time, energy, and resources. Champions are on time and on mind for every practice every day. This allows them to be consistently successful. Always remember the key word fun, and include some fun in your daily activities, as a little fun goes a long way in a satisfying and successful life. Whatever activities or hobbies you enjoy, enjoy them. In return, you’ll get renewed energy from these mental timeouts and achieve excellence. Champions know that no one is going to live their life, do their training, or compete for them. Champions are champions because they take charge of their lives and do what they deem best for themselves. Schedule the right number of daily challenges. An unrealistic plan is a self-defeating plan. Undoable plans are disheartening, so schedule a reasonable number of tasks. At sunset, savor what you’ve done, albeit done so far. Daily agendas and to-do lists are excellent tools to help you achieve maximum efficiency and productivity. But try not to have many fillers or unimportant items on your list. To perform at a champion’s level, your to-do list has to be a will-do-now list. You are stronger than the initial discomfort experienced in staying disciplined while working hard or changing habits. To achieve positive outcomes, imagine the good feeling of striking off each item on your list. Life is a series of choices, and time is treasure. That being true, own your game by making good choices and using time wisely. To enhance your daily performance, put a small gold dot on the back of your hand or wear a gold wristband. These visual triggers are positive reminders for firing up your best attitude, putting forth your full effort, and maintaining a champion’s outlook on life. The gold dot or wristband is forever linked to the “Think gold and never settle for silver” note and goes wherever you go. Organize to synchronize. Many of us also need to make a commitment to get and stay more organized for greater efficiency and peace of mind. Do you have well-thought-out meals planned for each day, including balanced snacks? Do you have a packing plan when traveling to compete? A good idea before traveling to a competition is to pack your kit a day early. Lay out your clothes, gear, an extra towel, balanced snacks (raisins, peanuts, and bananas), bottled water, and cash. Then charge your cell phone and iPod. Keep in mind that other organizational changes in your life can boost your mood and performance. For example, maintain a clean, clutter-free bedroom, office, and sports locker; use color-coded file folders to sort all paperwork; recycle whatever you can; and keep a daily planner filled only with necessary reminders. Periodically, spend 30 minutes organizing and cleaning your space to avoid major disorganization. Less clutter in your personal environment will decrease your stress level. For a boost, listen to music while you organize and clean. Don’t stick with what you always play. Be adventurous: experiment with jazz, classical, hiphop, classic rock, heavy metal, country, zydeco, and trance/techno music. You might surprise yourself by what music appeals to you in different situations. POWER WITH PEOPLE It was impossible to get a conversation going, everybody was talking too much. —YOGI BERRA Social relationships can facilitate and/or impede your pursuit of excellence. As such, people skills can be just as important as athletic ability when it comes down to your enjoyment and success at sports. People skills pertain to an understanding of ourselves and others, talking and listening effectively, and building positive and productive relationships. Team partners Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings are the most decorated beach volleyball players ever. Recognizing the value of effective communication, they worked with a sports psychologist prior to the 2012 Olympics to further improve their communication with each other both on and off the court. In London, the dynamic duo went on to capture a record third-straight gold medal. Whether you participate in an individual or team sport, good people skills are essential in helping you relate well and resolve conflict with others— coaches, teammates, media, athletic trainers, officials, opponents, family, and friends. Following are several points about developing good people skills: Know your rights and entitlements. Do not let others violate your rights and entitlements. Do not tolerate verbal, physical, or sexual abuse. When someone’s behavior violates your rights, let him or her know immediately instead of waiting to see if it happens again. Ideally, this should be stated explicitly. Likewise, you should respect the rights and entitlements of others. Be present while listening. Give the other person your complete attention rather than planning your response or daydreaming. Maintain an attentive posture, make eye contact, and nod in agreement. Summarize what the other person is saying to convey your understanding. Good listening skills encourage the other person to talk. Avoid mind reading. Ask the other person what he or she is thinking, feeling, or experiencing rather than telling them what you think he or she feels. Likewise, others shouldn’t have to guess what you are thinking, feeling, or experiencing. Always keep the lines of communication open and respectful. Discuss problems when they begin. Do not allow a problem with another person to fester. If needed, take a short break (or perhaps even a full day) to clear your head or calm down; then express how you feel and what you want corrected. This approach can resolve any misunderstanding quickly and get things back on track. Sulking about the issue does no good. Criticize the behavior, not the person. Instead of saying, “You are such a... ” which might be taken personally, a more productive approach would be to say, “When you said that about me in front of the team, I felt insulted. Was that your intent?” It is always better to be specific about the behavior you are challenging. Avoid generalizations such as “You never... ” or “You always... ” Let fairness rule the day. Stop trying to be perfect or expecting others to be perfect. Look for a way to compromise when differences arise. In relationships with others, just ask yourself, “What is fair and reasonable to both parties in this situation?” The goal is to work together to find a solution that suits everyone. Avoid thinking in right-wrong, all-or-nothing, or good-bad dichotomies. TEAMWORK: A SHARED DESTINY A single arrow is easily broken, but not ten in a bundle. —JAPANESE PROVERB The Japanese story “Ten Jugs of Wine” exemplifies the difference between just being together on a team and working together as a real team. In the tale, ten old men decide to celebrate the New Year with a big crock of hot sake. Since none of them can provide for all, they each agree to bring one jug of wine for the large heating bowl. On the way to his wine cellar, each old man thinks, “My wine is too valuable to share! No one will know. It’ll never show. It’ll still be fine. I’ll bring a jug of water instead of the wine.” And so when they gather with the jugs they brought, all ten men pour the contents of their jugs ceremoniously into the big bowl and then look sheepishly at one another as they heat and pour hot water for all. Social loafing is the psychological term used to describe the phenomenon of the withholding behaviors demonstrated by the old men in the tale. Specifically, social loafing refers to the tendency of people to try less hard at a task when part of a group than when they are by themselves because of a diffusion of personal responsibility. To be a gold medal teammate, remember the old men in “Ten Jugs of Wine.” Instead of holding back, always bring the absolute best you have to offer from start to finish. Seize opportunities to assist your teammates and to aid your coaching staff with the day-to-day responsibilities of running the program. Do not water down your effort on or off the court by thinking that no one else will notice. It is important to understand that a “rising tide lifts all boats.” In other words, the more you give, the more your team will gain. And the more the team gains, the more you will receive in return, because everyone benefits from being part of a winning team. If you put forth your best effort, there are more intrinsic rewards (fun, purpose, and personal fulfillment) and extrinsic rewards (trophies, notice from scouts, and approval from others) to be had. Good teammates help us to become the player we are meant to be. So always look for ways to bring out the best in one another and use one another for support as needed. “The teamwork is the most important thing, because when you have a group of guys who are playing for each other, playing hard and playing together, that trumps talent any day,” says Chris Paul, all-star point guard for the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers. A competitive tennis player recently shared the following with me: “One thing I have noticed is that in playing doubles tennis with higher-level players, we tend to focus on our spirit and positive state of mind when in a match. For example, saying, ‘No worries on that shot, we’re good. Stay loose.’ Rather than what I notice with novices, where the doubles team is always commenting on their form or way to hit the ball. Even though we all know the next shot is not going to be like the last one!” Championship teams often use terms like chemistry, togetherness, and one heartbeat. Trust is the foundation for the strong “we” feeling on championship teams. Everyone is pushing (or pulling) in the same direction. Keep battling, stay positive, and do it together as a team to break through poor starts or losing streaks. Always look for a way to help your team’s cause. A team has a shared destiny, and as such, all behaviors must be for the benefit of the team and the greater good. Think about these three self-reflection questions regarding your role as a teammate: 1. What am I doing that is hurting my team (e.g., complaining, gossiping)? 2. What am I not doing that is hurting my team (e.g., cheering for my teammates, accepting my role on the team)? 3. What are the specific action steps I will take to be a better teammate moving forward (e.g., hustling on every play, being more vocal on the field)? LEAD BY CREED AND DEED The strength of the group is the strength of the leaders. —VINCE LOMBARDI Leaders make a positive difference by helping others develop from good to gold medal. Every member of a team, not just the coaches or the designated captains, can and should be a leader. Everybody should look for opportunities for leadership in their own lives and think about ways they can make a positive impact on their teams. Leadership responsibilities are taken very seriously within championship- caliber teams. While any team or athlete can have a winning attitude when the scoreboard is in their favor, a championship-caliber team understands that a winning attitude is most needed during tough times. Rather than pointing fingers or complaining, a championship-caliber team faces a loss or a lackluster performance with the attitude that “we’re all going to get better and find a way to make this work.” John Wooden, the former UCLA men’s basketball coach, led the Bruins to 10 NCAA basketball championships, as well as four undefeated seasons and an 88-game winning streak. Wooden was named Greatest Coach of the 20th Century by ESPN. He demonstrated a strong, positive leadership approach and defined success for himself and for those under his leadership in his informative book Wooden on Leadership: How to Create a Winning Organization: Before you can lead others, you must be able to lead yourself. Define success for those under your leadership as total commitment and effort to the team’s welfare. Then show it yourself with your own effort and performance. Most of those you lead will do the same. Those who don’t should be encouraged to look for a new team. A strong, positive leadership style is crucial because destructive criticism and bullying does little to motivate people; in fact, it often causes people to shut down and stop trying. An affirmative approach will tend to produce relationships based on trust and mutual respect. How do you like to be treated by the powers that be? Most likely, the answer is positively and productively, rather than negatively and punitively. So make sure to treat others in the same fashion. Always be encouraging, up-front, and honest in your communication. Here are 10 suggestions for becoming a champion leader: 1. Develop a vision for success and stay enthusiastic about pursuing it. 2. Great leaders invite feedback from others as opposed to blocking criticism. Always share credit and accept blame. 3. Have a strong sense of confidence and optimism about what you are doing. Stay calm and in control during a moment of crisis. Athletes need to know there is hope, and they will look to coaches and team leaders for cues. 4. Care, really care, about others. Take an interest in the person wearing the uniform, not just in that person’s performance. 5. Respect and appreciate your own role, as well as the roles of others. 6. Realize that your impact goes beyond your performance; lead by example, on and off the field. 7. Hold everyone, including yourself, accountable for on-the-field and off-the-field behavior. Understand when providing a pat on the back or a friendly but firm reminder is most effective. 8. Learn to adapt to each situation, and use a style that suits the situation. 9. Share in all of the sacrifices and hardships of the team, never asking others to do what you are unwilling to do. 10. Do the right thing, even when the right thing is neither easy nor popular. CHANGE IS THE NAME OF THE WINNING GAME Unceasing change turns the wheel of life, and so reality is shown in all its many forms. —BUDDHIST SAYING People tend not to like change, except for maybe a bus driver, a wet baby, or someone using a vending machine. But seriously, folks, major life changes or setbacks can represent a loss of routine, comfort, and our role in the family, team, organization, or community. However, adjustments and transitions are things we can master. We can move with changes by maintaining a flexible attitude. A flexible attitude is like a free-flowing stream. Now imagine a boulder in the water, stopping the flow: This is a rigid mind-set. Flow with changes by being curious about how you can navigate around (or even profit from) each obstruction instead of being discouraged by it. Major changes encountered by athletes can include: Getting cut from tryouts Transition to college for a freshman student-athlete Losing one’s starting position on a team An unexpected coaching change Dealing with a major injury A midseason trade to another team Retirement from competitive sports Non-sports-related hardships can include: Parents’ divorce A death in the family A relationship breakup Financial difficulties Roommate issues Geographic changes or homesickness Academic challenges A change in peer relationships In the face of adversity, people are often racked with shame and guilt and stop taking care of themselves. Sometimes they direct their anger inward and become self-destructive by abusing alcohol or other drugs, procrastinating, or neglecting their personal appearance. They may fight with loved ones or friends in an attempt to drive others away when they are needed most. When you get knocked down by disruptive change, get up right away. The answer for a champion is to “play it where it lies” by proactively dealing with the situation rather than avoiding it by pretending that you are immune to disappointment. Remember, the more you avoid, the more you will continue to avoid. Instead, be proactive rather than inactive in dealing with change. Maximize positive adjustment by doing the right things, such as confiding in people close to you or a counselor when you feel emotionally stuck. Appreciate the people around you and ask for help from them when needed. Also, kick yourself back into gear when you are lying, hurting others, or being self-destructive. Finally, be brilliant with the basics—because the fundamentals don’t change. The basics include: Adhering to your regular exercise or training program Sticking to your nutrition plan Maintaining a regular sleep schedule Taking time to relax and unwind Feeling what you need to feel Spending quality time with others Looking for opportunities to help others Updating your life goals and avoiding making any rash decisions Even when you don’t have a chance to be a starting player in one area of your life because of a major life change or setback, such as an illness, injury, or loss, you can still excel in other areas of your life by tapping into your talents. As we’ve discussed in this chapter, becoming a champion requires that you go for the gold—battle against the best and your best—in all areas of your life and game, and not just for those few hours while you’re running mile repeats on the track or churning out laps at the pool. The plan is to achieve daily acts of excellence in support of your ultimate dream goal. This is a key concept. Knowing this, ask yourself, “Am I chasing my dreams or just coasting along all day; am I striving for personal gold or settling for silver?” CHAPTER TWO MASTER THE MENTAL SKILLS You have to train your mind like you train your body. —BRUCE JENNER T he science-based mental skills presented in this chapter are proven winners for helping athletes forge a champion’s mindset in order to grasp their full capability. You will recognize some of the skills; your challenge will then be to master them. You will learn several powerful new skills that you can apply with ease to your game play. Adapt each mental skill to fit your particular needs and situation. A mind-over-matter approach doesn’t develop overnight. Follow the same learning process used to develop your physical skills: repetition (deliberate and daily mental practice) and reinforcement (feeling good about your efforts by saying things like “I’m gaining mental muscle.”). To build mastery, stick to the improvement plan and try to focus on one or two mental skills multiple times each day to build a strong and fortified foundation. The mental skills are: GOAL SETTING: Think It, Then Ink It MENTAL IMAGERY: Visualize to Actualize SELF-TALK: Feed the Good Wolf CONFIDENCE: Flex Your Confidence Muscle FOCUS: A Champion Is a Now-ist BREATH CONTROL: Breathe Life into Your Performance MENTAL TOUGHNESS: Build Your Inner-Strength Bank Account ANXIETY MANAGEMENT: Go from Panicky to Pumped ENJOYMENT: Humor Is the Best Sports Medicine BODY LANGUAGE: Make a Golden Impression INTENSITY: Own Your Zone PERSONAL AFFIRMATION WORKS: Power Phrases for Becoming a Champion GOAL SETTING: THINK IT, THEN INK IT Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there. —BO JACKSON What are your minor, short-term goals? What are your major, long-term goals? What is your ultimate dream goal for your sports career? Examples include making the varsity team, earning a college athletic scholarship, running a sub-three-hour marathon, and winning an Olympic gold medal. The important thing is that you define your objectives and clarify what it will take to get there. Then you can set in motion a plan to achieve these goals, making them a reality. To perform at a champion’s level, know what your goals are and always keep them in focus. There are several potential benefits of this goal setting. Specifically, goals can increase your drive, your effort, and your will to strive and succeed. Goals can also increase your awareness of performance strengths and areas in need of improvement. They can light the path that will get you to where you want to end up. Your dream goal as an athlete, whatever it is, will serve as your guiding star. Then you can commit yourself to performing daily acts of excellence with your dream goal in mind. Speed skater Dan Jansen won an Olympic gold medal in the 1000-meter race at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics, and he set eight world records over the course of his stellar career. He explained the importance of setting your goals high: “I don’t think there’s any such thing as setting your goals too high. The higher you set your goals, the more you are going to work—if you don’t reach it, then it’s okay, just as long as you set it and then give a hundred percent of yourself.” How great do you want to be? How much do you want to win? The key is to identify which goals are most important to you and then write them down and display them in a location where you can look to them for motivation, such as on your bedroom wall. Then set your sights on strategically taking your goals one at a time. That is, focus all of your energy, effort, and enthusiasm on executing your improvement plan, step by step, day by day. The results you get are often based on the goals you set, so the goal- setting process is important. Make sure to enlist the assistance of a friend, teammate, coach, or mentor who can serve as an objective observer and provide encouragement. The following are five questions to ask yourself to evaluate each performance goal you set, whether the particular goal is for next week, this season, or your sports career: Is my goal specific? Is my goal measurable? Is my goal positive? Is my goal inspiring? Is my goal displayed? Consider using a three-level goal system to determine your achievement levels at a training session, during the next competition, or in your upcoming season: 1) bronze, 2) silver, and 3) gold. In this system, bronze symbolizes a desired result that would be a good outcome based on a reasonable assessment of past performances and current capabilities. Silver refers to a significant improvement. Finally, gold is equivalent to achieving a best time or delivering a major performance breakthrough. This system provides three levels of success rather than a narrowly defined target goal. Another advantage to this approach is that the top level has no limit, so you cannot sell yourself short by thinking small. Let’s take a look at three creative examples of the three-level goal system in action across different sports: 1. A golfer with an average player handicap of 15 devises with his or her swing instructor an improvement plan and sets handicap index goals for the upcoming season: bronze: 15–13.5; silver: 13.4–11.5; gold: 11.4 or lower. 2. A sprinter with a recent time of 10.5 seconds in the 100 meters discusses with his track coach performance expectations for the upcoming meet: bronze: 10.6–10.5 seconds; silver: 10.49–10.4 seconds; gold: 10.39 seconds or faster. 3. A basketball player who makes 80 percent of her free throws attempts 100 shots after a regular team practice to work more on this area of her game. She gauges her performance as: bronze: 75–80 shots made; silver: 81–85 made; gold: 86 or more made. Dr. Gary Hall Sr. swam for the United States on three Olympic teams (1968–1976), earning three medals. He set 10 world records during his spectacular career. At Indiana University, Hall won 13 Big Ten and 8 NCAA titles. He now operates the Race Club in the Florida Keys, a world- class training facility for swimmers of all ages and abilities. Hall shared with me his thoughts regarding goal setting: The two most important parts of setting goals are that you write them down and that you put them someplace where you can see them every day. I usually recommend the bathroom mirror or refrigerator door, two places I know you will always look. When I was 16 years old, training for my first Olympic Games, my coach wrote all of my goal times down on the top of the kickboard I was using every day in practice. I couldn’t escape them, but the result, after executing the plan, was that I made the Olympic team. MENTAL IMAGERY: VISUALIZE TO ACTUALIZE See first with your mind, then with your eyes, and finally with your body. —MASTER SWORDSMAN YAGYŪ MUNENORI (1571–1646) Mental imagery, popularly referred to as visualization, is the process of using all your senses to help with learning and developing new sports skills and strategies as well as visualizing success. Imagining optimal performance is accomplished by creating or re-creating the whole or part of a sporting event. This type of mental rehearsal can be likened to learning a physical skill: The more you deliberately practice, the better you will become at the actual task. Thus, imagery goes far beyond daydreaming. As with physical practice, mental practice requires structure and discipline for you to reap its full benefit. Scores of experimental studies have explored the effects of mental imagery on physical performance. In 1983, Drs. Deborah Feltz and Daniel Landers, prominent researchers in sports psychology, completed a thorough review of mental practice literature and confirmed the benefits of using imagery for performance enhancement. Their findings demonstrated that imagery is one of the most powerful performance weapons we have in our mental arsenal. Although imagery will not guarantee that you will always reach best times or win the game, mastery of this mental skill will increase the probability of success in sports. Specifically, imagery works to enhance one’s performance by sharpening the mental blueprint and strengthening the muscle memory for the physical purpose at hand. This is why imagery is used by virtually all Olympic athletes as a critical part of their training regimens. Imagery can be used to prepare for all athletic performances, regardless of the motor skills involved. The brain does not always differentiate between real and vividly imaged experiences because the same systems in the brain are deployed for both types of experience. For example, a common nightmare is that of being pursued. The dreamer is safely at home in bed yet awakens frightened— breathing fast, heart pounding. It’s all in the mind, yet the dreamer experiences the physical sensations that would accompany a real, waking pursuit. Dr. Henry “Hap” Davis, a neuroscience researcher and sports psychologist, has studied brain function in elite athletes, using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to monitor their neural activity. A 2008 study examined elite athletes watching videos of personal success or failure. Athletes reexperiencing a successful performance showed a greater increase in neural activity in the right premotor cortex, an area of the brain that plans actions, than those reexperiencing a failure. Visualize positive performances and picture the ideal steps for achieving the successful result. Create a crystal clear mental image and powerful physical feeling of what you want to accomplish. Include the sights, sounds, smells, tactile impressions, and powerful emotions that accompany the total performance experience while in your virtual arena. The clarity and controllability of your images will improve with practice. When visualizing, strive to experience the action in 3-D from the first- person point of view (through your own eyes), as opposed to a third-person point of view (through the eyes of spectator). The aim during imagery rehearsal is to “see it, feel it, and enjoy it” (SFE). You experience yourself having achieved your goal through your own eyes, rather than watching yourself from the outside. Here are three key ingredients for successful imagery rehearsal: 1. Vividly see yourself performing successfully. 2. Deeply feel yourself performing masterfully. 3. Thoroughly enjoy seeing and feeling yourself winning. A veteran NFL punter with whom I worked has developed a form of weight training for the mind. For 10 minutes every other day, he gets in a relaxed state through deep breathing, and then he “sees and feels” himself executing successful punts in a variety of game situations and weather conditions (using best-, average-, and worst-case scenarios). He uses imagery as a mental walk-through to preexperience flawless performances and expertly handling any adversity that might occur. He was also familiar with the stadiums on his schedule, so he was able to picture himself there playing in his next game. Canadian Duff Gibson, the gold medalist in the skeleton at the Turin Winter Olympics in 2006, described to me how he used visualization to attain peak performance: In the sport of skeleton, visualization is key. When you’re sliding down an ice run faster than a car goes down the freeway, to be successful and for your own safety, you need to be completely focused and in the moment. Visualization, like anything, gets better with practice, and ultimately I was able to use the skill to prepare for the sequence of turns on a given track as well as to gain my focus for what I was about to do. Through visualization I also trained myself to be very relaxed on the sled, which is critical to generating speed. Briton Steve Backley, the onetime world record holder for javelin throwing, won four gold medals at the European Championships, three Commonwealth Games gold medals, two silvers and a bronze at the Olympic Games, and two silvers at the World Championships. I was curious which mental skill Steve found most helpful to his performance throughout his remarkable career. He explained: I find it hard to distinguish one out of all the mental skills, as there were various that were pertinent at different times. And I guess that in itself is one of the more important ones—knowing what to do and when. Having said that, I’d have to single out the ability to visualize. To be able to preempt the future by building high- definition videos in your mind’s eye of exactly what it is you are trying to achieve. I had the unfortunate incident of injury in the later stages of a buildup to an Olympic Games which gave me the tremendous opportunity to test this principle of preparation to the maximum. I basically did all of my late prep for the ’96 Games using this kind of visualization. That is, instead of training, I saw it in my mind’s eye. Lots more detail to this, but the result was one of my best-ever performances and a silver medal that I will cherish more than any gold. Mentally practice two or three times each week for about 10 to 15 minutes per rehearsal. Select a specific sports skill to further develop, or work your way though different scenarios, incorporating various game- ending situations. Examples include meeting your marathon goal time, striking out the side in the bottom of the ninth, or making the game-winning shot as the final buzzer is sounding. Mental practice sessions that are shorter in length are also beneficial. Good times include during any downtime in your schedule, the night before a competition, as an element of your pregame routine, and especially as part of a preshot routine. For example, consider a golfer during tournament play. The player should always attempt to see and feel a successful shot before actually swinging the club. Let’s conclude our discussion with a mental practice exercise. Sit up in a chair with your back straight (rather than lying down on a bed or on the floor, as this can make you sleepy). Let your eyes close and become aware of your breathing. Take a few slow, deep breaths (in through the nose and out through the mouth) to clear your mind and relax your body. Select a specific skill in your sport, such as a free throw in basketball or a kick serve in tennis. Begin by creating a mental picture of your environment, progressively including all of the sights and sounds. Pay particular attention to the physical sensations in your body, such as the spring in your ankles and knees, whether your breathing is heavy or relaxed, the weight of the racquet or ball in your hand, and the texture of the ball as you spin or bounce it. As you mentally start to go through your preshot or pre-serve routine— for instance, bouncing the ball three times, taking a deep breath, and seeing your target—inhale deeply and let the breath move through your body. Now fully see, feel, and enjoy executing this skill throughout each moment of the movement. Maintain full attention throughout the entire activity and complete the routine by sinking the basket with a swish or serving an ace down the line. Challenge yourself to do this exercise successfully three times in a row with full focus and a positive result. If you visualize missing the basket or hitting the ball into the net or if you lose focus, keep repeating the process until you can visualize yourself doing it right straight through. This will further anchor your physical self to a gold medal performance. SELF-TALK: FEED THE GOOD WOLF What you’re thinking, what shape your mind is in, is what makes the biggest difference of all. —WILLIE MAYS There is an old Cherokee legend known as the tale of the two wolves. A grandfather explains to his warrior grandson that there are two wolves within each of us: One wolf is positive and beneficial, while the other wolf is negative and destructive. These two wolves fight for control over us. The grandson is curious and asks, “Which wolf will win?” The grandfather replies, “The one you feed.” If thoughts determine feelings, then feelings influence performance. That being the solid-gold truth, learn to think more positively about yourself and your game. That is, monitor what you tell yourself and always feed the good wolf, not the bad wolf ! This is one of the most important life lessons you can ever learn. Understanding that this choice is yours alone is very empowering and important. The first step in feeding the good wolf is learning to identify your own negative and self-defeating thoughts. Typical negative thoughts an athlete can have include “I suck at this,” “I’m not good enough,” or, “I don’t belong on the team.” We all have these thoughts at times, so take a moment right now and identify some common negative thoughts about your athletic capabilities that run through your mind while you are at practice or in a game. Now take the second step in feeding the good wolf and challenge these self-critical thoughts (such as “I’m not cut out for this”) with encouraging statements (such as “Bring it on now!”). Mentally beating on yourself does you no good. Instead, gain clear control of your thinking processes. Repeat these two winning steps to build mental muscle, improve your mood, and advance your athletic performance. When the bad wolf (or Big Bad Wolf!) rears its ugly head during competition, stop it in its tracks. Self-talk (i.e., saying words or short phrases to oneself) should be positive: “I’ve just made a penalty. I’m getting anxious, I’m dwelling on it. Stop. Breathe. I’m pressing the reset button and deleting that memory from my mind. It’s over. I’m going to take a fresh, confident look at the next play in front of me.” In quick-reaction sports like basketball and soccer, simply shout to yourself, “Next play!” In a recent meta-analysis of 32 previously published sports psychology studies, Dr. Antonis Hatzigeorgiadis and his colleagues at the University of Thessaly in Greece confirmed that self-talk can produce significant improvements in sports performance. Their article was published in the July 2011 edition of Perspectives on Psychological Science. Hatzigeorgiadis says, “The mind guides action. If we succeed in regulating our thoughts, then this will help our behavior.” Additionally, the researchers looked at various uses of self-talk for different tasks. For tasks requiring fine motor skills, such as golf, instructional self-talk (e.g., “Do a full shoulder turn”) was found to be more effective than motivational self-talk (e.g., “I’m the best”). Conversely, motivational self-talk was found to be more effective for tasks requiring strength or endurance, such as running or cycling. Self-talk can be more valuable for novel tasks than for well-learned tasks, and both beginning and experienced athletes can benefit from this technique. Although you probably cannot eliminate all of your negative thoughts, you do have the power to challenge these thoughts and replace them with more positive and useful ideas. As we will further discuss, the ultimate goal in the moment of action is to transcend conscious thinking so that you are fully experiencing your performance in the moment (i.e., you are in a flow or zone state). Seek to improve the quality of your thoughts and to quiet the mind. To perform at a champion’s level, always feed the good wolf in you! CONFIDENCE: FLEX YOUR CONFIDENCE MUSCLE Every strike brings me closer to the next home run. —BABE RUTH Sports psychology studies and anecdotal reports from winning athletes confirm that confidence is crucial for athletic success. Specifically, self- confidence is a strong belief in one’s skills, preparation, and abilities. Confidence in tough situations is the mark of a great player, according to legendary tennis player John McEnroe. In order to be successful, you must believe that you can be successful. True confidence is a hard-earned trait. Golf legend Jack Nicklaus built his confidence through proper preparation, particularly for the four major tournaments a year. He won a record 18 professional major championships, but he also had 19 runner-up finishes and 9 third-place finishes—in an astonishing 46 major tournaments he was still in the top three on Sunday. In an interview after winning a major championship, Nicklaus remarked, “As long as I’m prepared, I always expect to win.” Demonstrated performance (reflecting on previous successes and high points) and proper preparation (in terms of quality and quantity) are the two primary ways to gain confidence for competition. To paraphrase sprinter Maurice Greene, a onetime world record holder in the 100 meters, train like you are No. 2 (train your talent), but compete like you are No. 1 (trust your talent). On game day, play confidently by emphasizing your skills and strengths, drawing from past successes, and appreciating the encouragement from your coaches and teammates. Emphasize your strengths and your opponents’ weaknesses—not vice versa. Remember, then, to identify similarities between the challenge at the moment and previous situations in which you have excelled or surpassed your expectations. Tell yourself, “I’ve done this before and I can do it now.” Focus on your performance, not on unwanted outcomes. To perform at a champion’s level, you must understand the importance of a long-term memory for success and a short-term memory (selective amnesia) for failure. Every athlete fails, but champions do not dwell on their failures. Instead, they focus on the positive experiences and keep confidently moving forward. Middle-distance runner Noureddine Morceli of Algeria trusted his talent, no matter how tough his competitors appeared to be. Morceli, the 1996 Atlanta Olympic gold medalist in the 1500 meters, said in a Nike advertisement, “When I race, my mind is full of doubts—who will finish second, who will finish third?” Complacency is often the culprit when an athlete or team blows a big lead or loses to an “inferior” opponent (who obviously did not see themselves as inferior). Extremely high confidence is never the problem, provided that you are continuously working hard and intelligently in training to become the best athlete you can be and you have an undying will to win during competition: You can hate to lose, but don’t be afraid to lose. Confidence without complacency keeps you on target when you are playing well and winning. Several self-reflection questions are included here, based on the pioneering work on the topic of self-efficacy (a specific strength of belief) by Stanford psychologist Dr. Albert Bandura beginning in the mid-1970s. These questions are designed to raise your confidence as you review accomplishments, recall positive feedback, resolve to mirror and model your athletic heroes, and listen to reminders of your capabilities. 1. What has been the biggest challenge to date that you have overcome in your sport, and how did you overcome it? Examples include bouncing back from a major injury, busting out of a slump, or completing your first marathon or triathlon. 2. Describe your greatest sports performance to date. Spend a few minutes reliving the glory and magic moments from this performance in vivid color. What helped you make it over the top? What were your thoughts and feelings during the game, match, or race? 3. What are three of your signature strengths or attributes as an athlete? Be honest, but don’t be modest in answering this question. Examples include work ethic, mental toughness, and focus. 4. What are three compliments you have received from others that made you feel really good about yourself? Examples include a coach describing you as the hardest worker on the team, opponents saying you were their toughest competition, or a teammate calling you a warrior on the field. 5. Who in your life wouldn’t be surprised to see you overcome the challenge before you now and/or accomplish your biggest goal? Examples include your mother, father, sibling, grandparent, coach, teammate, or friend. 6. What are three awards or accomplishments that you have earned? Examples include an individual or team trophy, an athletic scholarship, or a personal best in your performance. 7. Identify three athletic heroes or role models (currently or from childhood) that you can mirror or mimic when you need a confidence boost during a challenging situation. Perhaps your favorite player battled through on-the-field adversity by showing tremendous resolve when he or she played. Remember, if you can spot the greatness in others, then you already have some of that greatness in yourself. FOCUS: A CHAMPION IS A NOW-IST The time is now, the place is here. —DAN MILLMAN Focus, or selective attention, is your dedication to the task at hand to the exclusion of all else. In sports, focus requires screening out useless information (fog) to concentrate on the target, such as the bull’s-eye in archery or the flag in golf. The preferred sequence is to lock on the immediate target, disregard distractions, and prevail. Michael Phelps, history’s most decorated Olympian with 22 total medals (including 18 golds!), put his headphones on when he went to the pool to get into his own little world. The only thing that mattered to him was swimming his best. Phelps was able to reach a level of focus and drive never seen before in his sport. He discussed the significance of focus in his book No Limits: The Will to Succeed: When I’m focused, there is not one single thing, person, anything that can stand in my way of my doing something. There is not. If I want something bad enough, I feel I’m gonna get there. Let’s say for each moment an athlete has $100 worth of focus, and he or she can spend it in any manner. A dollar spent on an internal and/or external distraction during performance is a dollar wasted because you are not getting the full value from your abilities. Where is your focus when you compete? Are you caught up with distractions or do you stay on target? Spend all of your focus dollars efficiently—on the process of performance instead of on any potential distractions. For instance, a goalie in soccer should fully focus on playing moment to moment by tracking the ball with her eyes instead of dwelling on having just allowed a goal and glancing at the bleachers or at the other team’s bench to gauge reactions. Focus keeps distractions at bay. Distractions come in two forms: external and internal. COMMON EXTERNAL DISTRACTIONS Crowd noise Photo flashes Public announcements Scoreboard Shadows Trash talk by opponents Inclement weather (hot/cold, wind/rain) COMMON INTERNAL DISTRACTIONS Hunger Thirst Fatigue Soreness Subversive thoughts Negative emotions Boredom An important realization to accept is that something is a distraction only if you consider it a distraction. Simply look away. Ignore noises (even from your Big Bad Wolf). Focus on your breathing and your body. Be aware of your easing grip on the golf club, hockey stick, baseball/softball bat, or tennis racquet. In sum, trust your five senses to “feel the now” and stay in the moment. That is, always strive to be a now-ist. Your thought process must be simplified and concerned only with what is happening now to win or reach your peak performance in sports. Always stay fully focused in the moment on the field of play. Thoughts about the past and future are fog, and thoughts about the present—the here and now —are clear skies. Being present in the moment empowers you to respond with alertness, curiosity, and skill to whatever comes your way. Nothing else matters; your focus is on putting your purpose in the cross hairs and taking your best shot. When you are clearly focused on the present task, then you free yourself to thoroughly enjoy the experience. Full presence produces seamless fusion—you become your performance. Otherwise, you are always one step behind what you are doing because you are judging what is happening and are not fully in the moment. A mind in the moment is not self-conscious or concerned about what opponents or spectators are thinking or doing. Chris Sharma, one of the world’s best rock climbers, says he gets so focused when he climbs hard routes that he completely loses himself. He channels all his energy directly into what he is doing in the moment of the climb. In the same way, get out of yourself and get into your performance no matter what that performance may be. Your mind will continually drift off or zone out as you decide to focus on the moment’s challenges. Keep reminding yourself to “Be all here!” or shout, “Now!” when you discover that your mind has wandered back to the past or forward to the future. Extraneous thoughts should not be given a lot of airtime. Through increased self-awareness and mental discipline, you can train your mind to remain squarely in the present. The present is always the present, and it’s all that ever is; the past and future exist only in your imagination. BREATH CONTROL: BREATHE LIFE INTO YOUR PERFORMANCE Your breathing determines whether you are at your best or whether you are at a disadvantage. —CAROLA SPEADS, AUTHOR AND TEACHER OF BREATHING PRACTICES To perform at a champion’s level, breathe deeply and rhythmically to maintain peak energy levels. Proper breathing works in tandem with being a Now-ist (i.e., living fully in the moment). Expand the belly during inhalation and relax the belly during exhalation. Let your shoulders drop and jaw relax as you exhale. Give it a try right now. Draw in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Your breathing can become shallow when you feel angry or anxious. When this occurs, oxygen intake diminishes and muscle tension increases. So make sure to take a deep breath in tough situations. Simply prolonging exhalation, regardless of inhalation length, promotes the relaxation response. Proper breathing helps expel the stress and tension from your system and brings you back into the present. Many top coaches and elite athletes practice deep breathing for mental training. For example, consider Phil Jackson, who won a record 11 NBA titles as the head coach of the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers. He also played on two NBA champion New York Knicks teams. As a coach, he emphasized to his players the significance of deep and mindful breathing, especially before games and between quarters. Check in with your breathing throughout the day. Are you breathing from the belly or from the chest? Is the breath deep or shallow? There are three simple steps to taking a deep, centering breath: 1. Breathe in through the nose for a count of one, two, three, four, and five. 2. Hold for one and two. 3. Breathe out through the mouth for a count of one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, and eight. Mentally count to five for the in-breath, count to two as you hold the breath, and count to eight for the out-breath. Take your time with this 15- second breathing intervention and repeat the steps for four cycles (your 1- minute breath workout) or as many times as desired. Do this exercise when you observe that you are getting tense, feeling down or stuck in a repetitive negative-thinking cycle. Breathing in this manner will help you to slow your heart rate, calm your thoughts, and find inner stillness in the moment. Learn how to sit quietly without doing anything other than following the breath. Listening to the breath is helpful because it feels more active. Listening to the breath works well for those who are often distracted or feel the need to be doing something. Extraneous thoughts fog up your focus. Your mind becomes more powerful as it becomes quieter and clearer. So breathe deeply and mindfully throughout your day. Also, when you are not thinking about the future, it’s difficult to fear it. Fear is the enemy of effective action! MENTAL TOUGHNESS: BUILD YOUR INNER- STRENGTH BANK ACCOUNT The most important attribute a player must have is mental toughness. —MIA HAMM Mental toughness does not entail clenching your teeth, trying harder, thinking more, straining your eyes to focus, or having someone scream “Be tough!” at you. Mental toughness is the ability to remain positive and proactive in the most adverse of circumstances. Mental toughness is built on doing the thing that is hard over and over again, especially when you don’t feel like doing it. Push through on your down days when you are not feeling your best. Distraction, discomfort, and difficulties are no match for the champion. This dogged determination requires keeping your feet moving forward through inconveniences, substantial discomfort, and insecurities to reach your top goal. When you want something really badly, don’t give up until you’ve got it. Mental toughness can be demonstrated at a particular moment in time or over the long term, as in your overall career success. Doing the thing that is hard over and over again is like depositing money in your inner-strength bank account. Distance runner Emil Zátopek is one example of an athlete who used mental toughness in his training to reach the top. He won three gold medals in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, including victory in the first marathon he ever entered. Overall, Zátopek won a total of five Olympic medals: four golds and one silver. Dubbed the “Czech Locomotive,” Zátopek said, “If one can stick to the training throughout the many long years, then willpower is no longer a problem. It’s raining? That doesn’t matter. I am tired? That’s beside the point. It’s simply that I just have to.” Around the time Zátopek was tearing up the track, Billy Mills was living in poverty in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. He was orphaned at the age of 12 and was raised on an Indian reservation rife with alcoholism. He turned to athletics for a positive outlet and eventually took up running. Mills made the U.S. Olympic track-and-field team for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. He was an afterthought in the 10,000-meter race—his qualifying time was almost a full minute slower than the favorites. However, the fiercely resilient Mills overcame a lack of international experience, a wicked shove and elbow on the last lap by the favorite Ron Clarke, and being boxed in on the final turn. Nevertheless, he blasted down the final stretch and won the gold in record time. In the 2007 NFL divisional playoff game between the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks, Packers running back Ryan Grant fumbled twice in the first 4 minutes and his team fell behind 14–0. He told himself, “It happened, that sucks, gotta move on.” A champion knows that thoughts cause feelings, and feelings affect performance. Rather than retreating into a shell, Grant gave himself a pep talk and gained 201 yards and scored three touchdowns to help lead his team to an impressive come-from-behind 42–20 victory. He was able to “fumble and forget” so he could get back to work. It is always better to acknowledge and accept whatever happens. Then let it go and focus forward with complete confidence. Grant’s attitude was that he needed to keep his head in the game because there was a lot of football left to be played. Always remember, whether in training or competition, tough times require mentally tough responses. ANXIETY MANAGEMENT: GO FROM PANICKY TO PUMPED Get your butterflies to fly in formation. —SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY ADAGE Most athletes feel anxious before and during competition. They accept performance anxiety as perfectly normal and let it sharpen their focus. This anxiety or excitement is proof that they, and you, care about performance and outcomes. Of course, too much anxiety is uncomfortable and interferes with performance. A moderate level of anxiety or excitement is necessary for optimal performance. In sports, panic is typically an extreme form of performance anxiety. A panic response is thus an exaggerated mind-body reaction—a false alarm—that can be diffused or redirected. Our instinctive responses to panic are always counterproductive, such as fleeing, isolating ourselves, trying too hard to relax, or beating ourselves up mentally. If you have a high level of performance anxiety, then you’ve learned a sequence of responses. Once you trigger the sequence, it is difficult to stop the dominoes from falling. Your priority, then, is to stop the sequence early. What you truly fear, if you are willing to admit it, is embarrassment that you will fail to perform in the moment and because of that must suffer the consequences of anxiety and panic. Panic always eventually leads to the subsiding of anxiety. The cliché of a “wolf in sheep’s clothing” in sports describes a dangerous player pretending to be inept. Remember, then, that panic is a harmless experience that exists only in your mind, and by extension, in your body. Panicking is not going crazy, but rather the manifestation of fear of a terrible outcome. Several tactics follow to help you triumph over performance anxiety so that you can fully enjoy sports and perform at your best. These tactics are not designed to eliminate intense feelings but to redirect them toward a positive outcome. Be well prepared. The more prepared you are for competition, the less you will fear it. Nothing helps build confidence more than knowing that you are ready for the challenge at hand. Proper preparation comes from paying close attention to feedback from coaches, studying the playbook or game film, and practicing conscientiously. Without this kind of preparation, performance anxiety is more likely to occur. Before the game, always remind yourself that you have honestly prepared as best as possible. Nerves are natural. It’s normal to be anxious, so don’t concern yourself with what other athletes might be thinking or how well they seem to be doing. We often don’t suspect that others are overcome with or overwhelmed by anxiety. No matter how calm your opponents may appear, they are likely experiencing the same level of anxiety—or more so—than you are. Ally with the anxiety. Do not attempt to rid yourself of the anxiety; instead, channel it into performing well, and talk to yourself about trying to use your anxiety instead of trying to avoid it. Tell yourself, “My body is preparing itself to perform,” and “I’ve done well before, and I can do it again now.” Breathe evenly and deeply. Take a series of deep breaths to calm your nerves. Good breathing reduces anxiety by clearing your mind of fog and by reducing physical tension. Simply prolonging exhalation, regardless of inhalation length, promotes the relaxation response, so regulate each breath with a deep inhalation and a full exhalation. Get creative and use your imagination. For instance, give the anxious feeling an imaginary form (such as a sparkler or firecracker) and then place it in an imaginary safe place or container that will protect you from it. Understand that you are bigger and more powerful than this anxious feeling. Stay in the here and now. Monitor negative “futurizing” and worrisome thoughts about winning or losing. The results and outcomes can wait while you remain focused on playing each play to the best of your ability, one by one, until the final whistle. Stay on a positive thought channel. Flip the switch from negative to positive self-talk when you are emotionally spiraling down. Try to talk sense to yourself (feed the good wolf) instead of letting your fear run wild (feeding the bad wolf). Remind yourself, “Even though I am feeling anxious and uncomfortable right now, I can still play well and reach my goals.” Take yourself lightly. A competition is an opportunity to test your fitness, challenge the competition, and demonstrate how hard you’ve worked. You are not your game. Take what you are doing seriously, but learn to take yourself lightly. Always remember that sport is what you do and not who you are. Smile. Laugh. Have a good time. Ask yourself, “What’s the worst thing that can really happen?” If the worst does happen, ask, “What can I do to cope?” To move forward rather than becoming overwhelmed and backing up when anxiety strikes, make use of the strategies presented so you can channel anxiety into commitment to taking the next step. Remember that FEAR means to “Face Everything and Respond.” To perform at a champion’s level, let the butterflies fly in formation! ENJOYMENT: HUMOR IS THE BEST SPORTS MEDICINE Every survival kit should include a sense of humor. —ANONYMOUS Imagine the following scenario: You are the quarterback and your team is down 16–13 in the Super Bowl. The ball is on your 8-yard line and only 3 minutes 10 seconds remain on the clock. What do you say to your team in the huddle? This is the exact same situation that Joe Montana faced when his San Francisco 49ers played the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII. He decided to alleviate stress and pressure as he pointed to the stadium crowd and said, “Hey, isn’t that John Candy?” For the remainder of the game, the 49ers proceeded to drive down the field for the winning touchdown, scoring with 34 seconds left to spare. It was clutch performances such as this that earned Montana the nickname “Joe Cool.” Another classic story about the necessity of humor in sports comes from professional tennis. Vitas Gerulaitis, one of the top male tennis players during the late 1970s and early 1980s, was ranked as high as number three in the world in 1978. Despite his ability, Gerulaitis had been beaten by Jimmy Connors a hard-to-swallow 16 times straight. After finally breaking through and defeating Connors in 1980, Gerulaitis declared, “And let that be a lesson to you all. Nobody beats Vitas Gerulaitis seventeen times in a row!” Clearly, Gerulaitis was able to maintain his confidence and laugh at the situation despite the losing streak against Connors. Steffi Graf, renowned as one of the greatest female tennis players in history, had a memorable moment during the 1996 Wimbledon semifinal against Kimiko Date. During a tense part of the match, as she readied to serve, a spectator yelled out, “Steffi, will you marry me?” As the fans in the stadium burst into laughter, she smiled and yelled back, “How much money do you have?” While her disposition was typically stoic, her playful response to the comical court proposal helped lighten the mood and release tension. Graf went on to win the match and then defeat Arantxa Sánchez Vicario for the title. There’s great truth in the popular phrase that “humor is the best medicine,” or in saying that laughter is “internal jogging.” A good sense of humor is important for peak performance, as well as health and happiness. Humor is often misinterpreted in sports as being a sign of distraction or not caring about one’s performance. However, finding humor in difficult situations is often the best way to reduce unnecessary stress and increase motivation. A touch of humor at the right time keeps things from becoming too tense. This may help to explain why military personnel, police officers, and firefighters are often described as having sufficiently developed senses of humor. Lieutenant General Chesty Puller, the most decorated marine in U.S. history, told his soldiers, “We’re surrounded. That simplifies the problem!” A good laugh can reduce stress, boost performance, and improve mood. A coach can lighten the mood and alleviate tension for his or her team by periodically incorporating fun practice games or activities. A swim coach, for instance, might surprise his or her team by having them finish practice with a game of water polo. A baseball team can play a game of kickball, while a soccer team can gather together for a little Wiffle ball. Throwing a football or a Frisbee around can also be a lot of fun. During the 2013 college basketball season, after the reigning national champion Kentucky Wildcats lost their best player for the season with a torn ACL and a subsequent 30-point blowout loss at Tennessee, Coach John Calipari organized a game of dodge ball between staff and players to have a good time and take their minds off basketball. The Wildcats returned to their winning ways by toppling Vanderbilt the very next night. What does an umpire say to begin a game of baseball? He or she shouts, “Play ball!” not “Work ball!” There is a simple and straightforward reason behind this fact. Sports are meant to be played and enjoyed, enhanced by fun and humor whenever possible. There is no doubt that

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