The Mind Game

Showing off

• UK - Bragging, arrogance, conceit, big-headedness, inflated self-importance

• USA - Make the most of every situation to show what you can do, practice and game

• Show off your talent at its best• If you’re not ready to show off all that you

can do, then why show up? Why practise, why play the game?

Why do it?

• You do it because it is in your own best interests• You do it to get what you want, enjoyment and the

good feeling at being good at something• To get praise from peers and adults• To be the best that you can be• It works best if you can do it so that your club, coach,

team-mates, etc. also get what they want• Find the best way to get what you want while it

allows others to get what they want ( team game )

Go for the dreamReach for the Sun

• Is there something that you would really like to do or make of yourself but others say that you’re dreaming, it will never happen?

• Don’t be put off – give it a go• Don’t fall into the trap of wanting to be sure that it will

work before trying it• If you have regrets when you finish your career, they are

more likely to be about what you didn’t do rather than what you did do

• Don’t just talk about how good you are, do it !

Let go of the baggage

• If you are not where you want to be in life or you haven’t got what you want, it’s probably because you haven’t let go of something that is in your way, something taking up space

• It could be barriers/limits that you have got used to• You moan about them but you’ve become attached to

them• You have to let go• You’re safe in the harbour but you’ll never discover the

new world if you don’t leave

Don’t disappoint

• Do what you say you’ll do, deliver the goods, every time

• Build a reputation for rock solid consistency• Amateurs work until they get it right, professionals

work until they can’t get it wrong• Think of someone who is completely dependable, if

they are given a task then it will be done• They are the Gold Standard• You want to be the Gold Standard

Could do, should do,might do

• Stop talking about what you could do, should do, might do – just do it

• Get in the damn boat and go – leave the harbour• Trust your own judgement and get on with it• Be the person who finds solutions and creates

opportunities, not the one who says it can’t be done

• If you act and fail then you will learn from your experience and improve

Mistakes

• Accept that you will make some mistakes• The important thing is how you react and deal

with them• Learn from them, adapt to the next idea• To be successful, you need to be willing to fail• Mistakes won’t kill you, complacency will• Let your Coach help you to cope with failure

He who’s not busy being born is busy dying

• No matter how good you are now, you can always get better

• Be busy at seeking relentless improvement, stay curious, want to learn

• If you don’t keep up, you’ll get left behind• If you reach a plateau in your work then

you’ll do the same today as you did yesterday and get the same result

Work close to the edge

• For relentless improvement you need to be close to the edge not stuck in the comfortable, coasting position

• If you start to think that you know it all, you’ve done it all before, you’ve nothing new to learn, then you are on the way to dinosaur state - stagnation, boring

• Be better tomorrow than you were today

There’s more thanone answer

• Be prepared to look at things differently• You will see new options• You will spot an opportunity where others won’t

and that will give you the edge• You will find solutions instead of excuses• If you view a rainy day as a bad day then you are

writing off maybe 100 days or more per year• It is not the weather that makes it a good or bad

day – it’s you

Ideas

• Keep your eyes and mind open• Every place is an ideas factory• The very best and most effective ideas are

often counter-intuitive• To excel and become the best that you can

be, you need to be able to adapt• Seek improvement through innovation

The perfect game

• You have your view of your perfect game but what if you arrive and the pitch is poor ( bumpy, muddy )

• The game that you planned doesn’t happen and you blame the pitch

• It is not about the pitch, it’s about you• Instead of thinking negatively about the pitch, think

positively about the challenge to you to adapt your game

• It is never the pitch

Attitude

• What happens to you is meaningless unless you assign some meaning to it

• Your view is your reality• Attitude is how you look at the world• If your attitude isn’t working then get another one.

Think differently. Think positively and try something else

• If you don’t like what you’re doing then change what you’re doing

Be prepared to change the way you think

• If you only think one way and it is not working then you can say that you tried your best, blame someone else because you did your bit

• If you change and look for different ways then you are still in control

• Let go of the feeling that you are a victim of circumstances, bad luck – take charge

• If you try a lot of different things, some will work and some won’t. There will be failure. That’s OK

• You are not looking at the world in that singular way any more. It is never the pitch

Past successes

• Your past success can be a hindrance to new ideas• You may need to let go of what made you successful

in the past to gain further success in the future• You need a balance to keep hold of tradition but to

move on and stay ahead of the wave• Challenge your usual, successful processes to keep

up-to-date, to keep fresh• Tomorrow’s reality will require new solutions and

will create new opportunities.

Think inside and outside the box

• As well as thinking ‘outside the box’, don’t lose sight of the basic elements which can also be improved

• Sometimes you need to get back IN the box• Cover both areas, be both the tortoise and the hare• Look to innovate while continuing to improve core

issues• As well as working on your poor areas, you can also

improve what you’re good at

Expectation

• Expect to connect, aim to improve• Work with attention and intention• Is the intention just to get through the day

or to make it count for something?• Pay attention to detail, the small things

count

Go all in

• In poker, ‘going all in’ means betting everything – a metaphor for depth of commitment

• Lower league teams can beat higher placed teams when their players ‘go all in’

• Go all in to be the best at what you do• Why would you not want to go all in?

Be yourself

• Can you be extraordinary at what you do and do it with understated class?

• Learn from other people, but don’t try to be other people, be yourself

• Always keep the end result in your sights, the bottom line is to get the job done

• If what you’re doing makes you happy then there’s more chance that you’ll be good at it

Accept the cards you’ve been dealt

• Things aren’t the way they’re supposed to be – they are the way they are

• The way you deal with it makes the difference• Accept that awkward things happen, it’s normal• Then you’ll be better equipped and prepared to

handle them, to minimise damage, to correct the problem or to create an opportunity from the problem

• John Milton – The mind is its own place and can make a heaven of hell or a hell of heaven

Communication

• Share your true feelings• Be truthful about what you want from

people – tell them• Sharing ideas, bouncing opinions off others

can be stimulating and stop you getting stale because it challenges your own thinking

Yes men

• Value friends/colleagues who make you think, who have a different perspective and who are not afraid to disagree and tell you so

• Opening your mind to someone else’s idea doesn’t mean you have to accept it

• Build from knowledge, experience and debate - not assumptions

• Only fools and dead men don’t change their minds

Uncertainty

• Uncertainty is endemic. Don’t be frozen by uncertainty, can you move forward with the limited information?

• If you cannot move forward, can you maintain stability?• To create stability you need to maintain your values while constantly

changing to meet the needs of today and tomorrow, not yesterday• Think of someone who kicks up a fuss when something unexpected

happens. In contrast, who do you know who relishes the challenge, adds the new situation to the list of things that already need doing? This type of person is so valuable to the team

• It’s not about knowing what’s going to happen next, but being okay with knowing that whatever happens next, you can handle it

From Ignorance to Expert

• Ignorant – isn’t being stupid, being inexperienced• With more and more experience we head towards expert

status• Maybe we think we know it all until things go wrong• We must stay hungry to learn, wanting to know more• Open up to new ideas by letting go of preconceived

notions, stereotypes, prejudices and supposed facts that are really just assumptions

• Things change, you change, be curious about how you’ve changed. Give change a chance

Taking responsibility

• Take responsibility for your life• Don’t leave it to someone else to make your

decisions• It’s your life, you are in charge, you make the

decisions• You take ownership• What you’ve done is who you are, what you

plan to do is who you can be

Have a clear philosophy

• Regularly check that your actions are in line with your aims

• If your actions and aims are in conflict then your performance will suffer

• Announce your principles and values and stick to them. They will be your compass to keep your plans on track

• Keep the integrity and clarity of your values• It gives your club its DNA, its culture, its way and gives

you a personal mission statement

Targetsnot too low

• Have you set yourself easily achievable limits on who you are or who you can be?

• Are you playing it safe, thinking too small and taking the path of least resistance

• You need to be challenged• If you don’t take chances, the price is boredom• Find a way to add some life and energy to your

work, it will give your work more purpose• “ It will do ”, won’t do

Targetsnot too high

• Don’t promise more than you can deliver• Broken promises are stupid promises• Get yourself a reputation as someone who

delivers• You will be viewed as someone who does

what he says he will do – an achiever• Be an achiever

Personal Targets and Action Plan

AIMS What do you want to happen for you?

ACTIONSWhat will you do to achieve this?

In the next week

In the next month

In the next year

Long term in your career