One of my favorite quotes has always been this:

"When you come to the edge of all the light you know, faith is believing one of two things will happen. You will find something solid to stand on, or you will learn to fly."

I could just say have a great day and leave you with that... it's that powerful a quote in my opinion. But of course, I can't do that...

In life, in business and relationships, sometimes a risk is worth taking...

It's amazing how much time we spend being afraid.

I spent a few hours on a saturday a few weeks ago working with the girl from MADE who wanted to be a motocross racer. We talked much about fear... and what happens to us when we let it build up and escalate. Part of my work with her was having her stand on the edge of a picnic table, with her back to me. There were three of us standing below her. I told her to fall back and we would catch her. She was petrified. To the point of shaking.

She's deathly afraid of roller coasters, it's a legitimate fear of her's. And she turned around at least 30-40 times to make sure our arms were still there. It took over an hour... we stood and waited.

She stressed out, panicked, relaxed, and then stressed out again. Her mind completely took over the process. It was amazing to watch.

I slowly kept raising my hands to her back so she could almost know I was there. She wasn't even going to fall far... it was inches until she met my hands. What amazed me was that as soon as she felt my hands behind her, she started to feel it was ok to let go.

Ahhh... there is that funny thing called faith. Kind of like trust... we never really know when we will fly and when we will find that solid ground. And then there is the falling...

I don't remember when I was learning to walk, but have certainly watched most of my 10 neices and nephews start or go through this process. Of course, they don't know any better, and fall constantly, get up and go again until they fall and start over. Sometimes they laugh, sometimes they cry, but always, they get back up.

We forget so easily what this was like, the process of learning to walk. Falling and getting up was as common as the late morning naps or the bottle to soothe the tears.

I don't think life is that different now. Really, if I wasn't afraid to fall then, why should I be now? What stops us? Is it lack of FAITH???

Stop worrying about the what ifs...Learning to walk was a while ago for most of us, and each day it's a further and further memory. What would happen if you take that chance you have been contemplating? Make that big change in your life? Take that leap? Jump... and see what happens... why are we so afraid of that?

How many times have you settled for something that isn't entirely what you want, but you are too afraid to find another road to go down?

Hmmm... Anything worth living for is a risk...  "Ships in a harbor are safe, but that's not what ships are built for."

Faith is believing that as soon as you leap, the answers will appear. You can bulid your wings on the way down...

So about that... what's holding you back? What would you change right now if you knew you couldn't fail....?

It may be just about time...  

"Come to the edge," he said.

They said, "We are afraid."

"Come to the edge," he said.

They came.

He pushed them.

And they flew.

--Guillaume Apollinaire

Enjoy the process!

--Coach Jen

I teach my students to take control of their own confidence level by being proactive and accepting responsibility  for their thoughts and beliefs. Some athletes who are talented physically gain a lot of confidence based on talent. Some athletes train hard and develop confidence from training. A strong foundation, such as a past success, will give you a strong foundation and will build your confidence. You must be able to tap into the sources of confidence that have the most meaning for you and review these confidence boosters often, even befor eyou compete.

 A confidence resume should be based on your past success, accomplishments, strong parts of your game, and any other source that supports your confidence. To develop a confidence resume, develop a long list of the reasons you should feel confident. Write your resume based on the following questions:

1. What are your strengths as an athlete?

2. What have others complimented you on in your sport?

3. What have you accomplished in your sport that makes you most proud?

4.How would you describe your skills to others if you took the most positive stance possible?

5. What can you say about your training that gives you confidence?

6. What can you say aobut your commitment or work ethic in sports?

7. How are others supportive of your sport that helps you feel confident?

Write those out and you will have your resume. And I am sure you will realize you have A LOT to be confident about. Take that with you as you step up to the plate, the free-throw line, or onto any court or field. You OWN it. Believe in that.

Another month gone... where does the time go??

From the Neck up...

"The Most important attribute a player must have is mental toughness." --Mia Hamm

As I quickly approach another birthday, it becomes really evident to me that growing old is just as much in the mind as it is in the body.

I spent some of my holiday weekend helping my sister clean out her house to prepare for re-construction and my parents' move in. The other part of my weekend was spent on the golf course, a place I love.... most days.

Sunday proved to me that sport is most certainly mental. And while I had a somewhat terrible day on the scorecard, I had fun learning to hit my brand new golf clubs that I received as an early birthday present. It wasn't all bad. It was just... not all great.

I took the time to remember that most of life is about the process, not just the outcome.

And so it is with goal-setting, playing a game, practicing, and competing at any level. The most important goals you can set are process goals, or ones which you are developing task-oriented approaches to sports, not outcome goals, or ones in which we focus on winning, or a certain score, etc. Process goals work on improving our performance, not setting a bar that we will either hit or miss (win or lose).

I remembered that as I walked up to the 14th tee. I focused on hitting THAT particular tee shot with no stress in my shoulders, focussing in on the dimples of the ball as I swung, being totally in the zone with the ball. And yes, it was my best drive of the day...

See, you can always start over. It doesn't matter what hole you are on, or what minute of the game the clock says it is, or how many innings are left to play, or most certainly...how old you are. You can CHOOSE to start NOW in creating the atmosphere you want.

This fall, my Peak Performance Training program will help show you how to do all of that... and will bring to you ideas and exercises that will completely change your game.

NO matter what YOUR game is...

See you at the top of your game,

Coach Jen

It never fails. I sit down to write this newsletter, never knowing what the most important thing is to share with you this week, and something just hits me.  

Try this on... 

"What's the definition of luck?" Or at least my definition of luck...?

It's when preparation meets opportunity.

Hmm...meaning what exactly? 

Think about it. You prepare for a long time, you practice and practice. And you take advantage of opportunities that come along. Isn’t that life? Or any game you dare to play? 

I think it’s easy to do the preparation part. We can all control that. Remember CTC? “Control the controllables?” We can prepare and do the work. But sometimes we can’t control when the opportunities will come along. I have learned to always be prepared. You will be able to recognize those chances simply because you are ready and waiting.

Have you ever felt it was just "your time" to do something? Or have you ever looked at someone and said... "Wow... they are so lucky!" Envy is something that should never even happen.

You can be lucky too. You just need to be prepared.  

That person you see that's so lucky, most likely spent the time and energy getting to where they are. The opportunity was right, and they succeeded. "Luck" in that sense, was earned and worked for. Think about some times in your life where you felt lucky. There was a reason for that.  

As always, I am going to use a real-life story:

My phone rang this afternoon and I was too busy to answer it. Nothing too unusual for me. I finally had a chance to check my voicemail. It happened to be a producer from MTV's show MADE. They are working on an episode in DE with a girl from a local HS who wants to be MADE into a motocross racer. She is working with Val Whiting, a personal friend and fellow trainer in Wilmington. Val's experience is amazing, and as a former WNBA star, she brings instant credibility and knowledge to her training studio. She is not only a great athlete and trainer, but an awesome human being, and if you ever have a chance to meet and learn from Val, (which I hope you will soon at my Grand Opening) she is really something special. I look forward to bringing you some of her expertise as well! Anyway, back from my tangent... As Val is going to be working with the student on a physical level, I was called to be her mental skills/fear coach and work with her on the mental aspect of conquering her fears. I gladly accepted and know that my preparation has met opportunity. I have been waiting to take this to a larger scale, a higher level. See, I am a firm believer in persistence and patience. The two “P’s” you can’t succeed without. 

I am excited to be putting together my PPT(Peak Performance Training) program for teams this fall and will be delivering it to you at a very HIGH level. That is why I have put so much time and energy into it. This, to me, is my baby. It's what I have been working on for the better part of two years. And when I release it to the public, you won't believe what it will do for the athletes who utilize it. 

So, there... when preparation meets opportunity. Funny, it’s kind of what the whole MTV show is about. Turning dreams into reality. Being MADE into someone you want to be, and finding people around you to help you do that.

Luck.  

It’s not a bad four letter word if you have learned how to play your hand.

Enjoy the process!

--Coach Jen