Chris, Joe, and I are at a conference in New Jersey right now. Yesterday, the keynote speaker dropped this challenging, scientific truth on us:
“It is actually impossible to stop the comparing mechanism in our brains, so it’s best to learn how to redirect those thoughts to something productive.”
Have you ever felt good about the progress you’ve been making, and then a day later walk into the office and see your co-worker had lost 10 lbs in a month, and immediately felt less proud of yourself?
Athlete, have you ever gotten jealous after hearing a friend committed to a “better” college than you, even though 5 minutes before you were actually feeling pretty good about your options?
If so, you are normal.
Since you can’t stop the comparing mechanism, and you can only redirect it, what does that look like and what should you redirect to?
Choose a New Thought, Immediately
Let’s say you jumped on Twitter (this happens with our high school athletes all the time) and saw that a girl from another team committed to play lacrosse at University of MD, which is one of the top schools in the country.
In the past, here is what would have happened in your own head and heart…
Head: “What the heck. How did she do that? I will never be able to play at a school like that. I barely have D3 offers.”
Heart: Feels sad, worthless, like all your efforts up to this point are meaningless. You’ve allowed her life to dictate how you feel. What’s up with that?
How to Redirect:
You see the same Twitter post and immediately say to yourself:
“Nice! UMD isn’t my goal, but that’s awesome for her! I love seeing this post, it’s motivating and reminds me that with dedication, hard work, and focused intensity I can and will achieve my goals. I am grateful for people like her who inspire me!”
That is the key ➡️ choose to be inspired by what others are doing, plain and simple.
Taking back control of your reactions– this concept is one of the hacks athletes (and adults) must use if they want to take back control and dominate in sports and life!
Dedicated to your success.
Coach Andrew Simpson
P.S. The release date for my new book, “ATHLETE! I’m Talking To You! Take Back Control: 7 Mindset Hacks to Dominate in Sports and Life” is February 2023. In the coming weeks you’ll be able to get a free sneak peak so that your athlete can start learning some of the principles to take their mindset and performance to another level 👊.
