I was speaking with a student of mine today and something hit me... no, not literally... but it was like my head became alive. All of a sudden, I was struck with an Ah-Ha moment; An epiphany if you will. Have you ever had one of those moments? You are talking about something and you realize how clear you see and believe it? It’s magical...

We were talking about focus and learning to control the controllables, something I like to refer to as “CTC.” Meaning, if it’s not something that falls in that category, you can’t worry about it. It’s OUTSIDE your boat.

 Let’s use an example... Right now, where you sit, look around you for something green. Can you see it? If not, get up and walk until you find something green. Go ahead... I will wait.................................. Ok, so you found something. How hard was it? Not very, I imagine. All you had to do was look around. But you weren’t looking for something green until I asked you to focus on it. What about Red? See anything? We could do this all day I am sure and each time you would find the different colors when asked to look for them. Your brain is focusing on that and only that color Here is the best part... Where my Ah-Ha moment struck me....sometimes, you had to get up and change your position and your perspective to see it, didn’t you?

Sometimes you can’t see things from where you are. That includes moving, and opening yourself to new possibilities. But you will always find what you are looking for if you look hard and long enough. Amazing, isn’t it? You see what you focus on, positive or negative. And sometimes it takes changing your perspective, or “putting yourself in another’s shoes” to see it or understand at all.

One of my favorite books on my “go-to” shelf has been “That’s outside my boat” and is all about letting go of what you can’t control. One of my favorite coaches of all time, Joe Torre of the NY Yankees, was quoted in there saying: “You wake up today, you enjoy today. You have no control of tomorrow and you’ve lost control of yesterday. You go inning by inning.” That make so much sense to me... you can only control those things that are in your hands. You have no control over the umpires or the weather, or the other team, or the field conditions, or anything other than YOU!  

In fact, the book is a loud reminder that the 80 percent of your life that really doesn’t matter is outside your boat anyway. Don’t let it inside, where it can really mess up the 20 percent that actually does count... 

So don’t forget to look for the green. It’s all around you. You will find what you focus on, good or bad, positive or negative... and that part is what you can control. Leave the rest in the water and don’t pull it in.

Here’s to smooth sailing! 

--“Captain” Jen

Ok, so how many times have you looked in the mirror and no doubt saw someone or something other than what people tell you you are? How many times have you wondered about the word "CONFIDENCE"? Maybe even ignoring it or skirting the topic because it got too uncomfortable?

It's not unusual. It happens. And yes, even to the best of the best. We spend so much time worried about what others think or if they saw our error last game, or if they wonder why we are even playing a sport at all, and not enough time on our OWN view of ourselves.

Sounds like a daunting process. Sometimes looking inside is not fun. Finding our own flaws can be scary, or even embarrassing. But... since we are harder on ourselves than anyone else usually will be, we tend to pick out all of the small things, every ounce of imperfection and put it under the biggest magnifying glass we can find. WHY?? Why do we torment ourselves when the rest of the world probably isn't even watching... they are too busy in their own mirror wondering what YOU think of THEM!

Confidence is a powerful word. And it begins in ourselves. One thing I have learned in my studying is that the most important piece of being a confident athlete is to remember that even if we may not be confident in that moment or situation, we should ALWAYS be confident in ourselves as people. 

Often, the greatest obstacle on the road to confidence is FEAR! (False Evidence Appearing Real) Fear of so many things that always equate to the fear of failure. But really... what are we afraid of? What is the worst case scenario? Go ahead, picture it... will it cause bodily harm or death? I can't think of a time it would. So you will be ok, you will go on with the NEXT one, and nothing will really happen that would be all that bad.

I think Eleanor Roosevelt said it best: "No one can make us feel inferior without our own consent."

Start to learn how to channel that fear into a positive energy. Be confident in yourself as a person. You dictate how others feel about you... it's often a choice you make everyday. If you exude confidence and belief, they will follow. And if you don't quite have it yet, well... that's when we say "fake it til you make it." You can borrow mine.

Quick story: I spent some of my time years ago as the National Director of Training for a Wellness Company headed by a very well-known and respected doctor in Michigan. I was asked to speak at the very first training in Troy, Michigan for 800+ young entrepreneurs and fitness professionals that wanted to teach some of the wellness principles to their circle of influence.

I was preparing for this training, the first one I would do in front of that many people. The night before the event I sat in my hotel room scared to death. I was 25 years old. I was wondering how I could have possibly been chosen for this and how I was going to be able to do this with over 800 people staring back at me. What could I POSSIBLY give them that they didn't know already or couldn't get from someone else?

Just then, there was a knock at my door. The CEO of the company walked in to see what slides I needed made and if I needed anything from their A/V tech. He sensed I was nervous. He sat for a moment and told me that everyone has a beginning... and everyone has something to share, whether you know what it is yet or not. He believed in me enough to give me this chance. He told me that next morning to borrow his confidence. He had enough for both of us. So I did.

I went out there and spoke from the heart. I talked about accountability, team building, and most importantly, about confidence. How funny a topic for someone who was shaking in her shoes walking onto the stage. "Fake it til you make it."

Borrow someone else's if you need to. It's like getting a jump-start for your car battery, just enough juice and before you know it, you can unplug. Yours will be running on it's own in no time.

Enjoy the process!

--Coach Jen

Where do you get YOUR inspiration from? Is it a book, a child, a mentor, a parent, your spouse, a story you see or hear, or is it something internal that drives you to get up everyday and strive to succeed in whatever it is that you do. Really... think about it for a minute. Where does it come from? What's the difference between inspiration and motivation? Can you be inspired and not motivated? OR... vice versa?

Here is what I have learned. First of all, the difference between inspiration and motivation is simple. Motivation can come from many different sources. It can come from fear. It can come from emotionally charged 'motivational rallies'. It can come from within your own heart and mind. Motivation is good as long as there is something to leverage you and keep you motivated. Most people will tell you motivation comes from others.

Inspiration literally means 'in spirit'. It means to garner the brain chemistry, the emotion and the adrenaline to continue to seek or move in a certain direction. When inspiration is sustained, you will develop beliefs about yourself, your abilities and your talents It remains resident in your mind and emotions longer than what most people experience by simple motivation.
So, if motivation is usually external and inspiration is internal, what do you draw on everyday to get to where you are? What keeps you going?

Just a brief story... I was watching something about the Inronman the other day. I had some friends over, and in fact we were all glued to the TV when we saw what these people had to go through to finish the event. But the real story was a 76-year old woman who had just finished her 20th Ironman.

Just seeing her drive and determination was sheer motivation. And it inspired us all to realize that nothing is out of reach.

Enjoy the process!

--Coach Jen

The last element of the Wheel of Excellence is what brings it all together. Without this, you have no opportunity to succeed.

It's called "Ongoing Learning."

Not only is it just something you should do, it's something you must have a commitment and a passion for.

One of the things that I pride myself in is that I am a "Student always" and will never believe that I have learned all there is to learn. In fact, I LOVE to learn and attend as many clinics, seminars, workshops, classes, attain certifications, etc that I can. My ongoing learning is as important to me as is breathing. I feel if I am not growing, I am not alive.

It has been said that we only use 1% of our total brain's capacity for knowledge in our lifetime. AMAZING... but there is so much more we can learn on any given day. *What are you doing today to learn something to further your life of excellence?

Personal Excellence results from living the lessons from your experiences. Great performers attain a high level of excellence because they are committed to ongoing learning. They prepare well, do thorough post-performance evaluations, and then act on the lessons they draw from their experiences.

Ongoing learning centers on three important actions:

Reflecting on what went well and why it went well, Targeting relevant areas for continued improvement, and acting on the lessons learned.

Embrace these lessons, remember them and act upon them. Your rate of learning, the level and consistency of your performance, and the quality of your life are directly affected by the extent to which you engage in this ongoing process of thorough, constructive, personal evaluation, followed by positive action.

Simple, right? Evaluate, Improve, Repeat. Imagine if you could put everything in your life through this process... how much more effective could you be?

Take the time to commit to this. It WILL create excellence.

Play hard!