Congratulations to Spain on becoming champions of Euro 2012 last night. With four goals scored they certainly had the skills and the right attitude.
Belief:
Champions eat belief for breakfast. Spain were mentally prepared to win. They didn’t just play as a team. They played as a force. They believed in their own excellence. They drove that excellence right into the net.
Physical and mental skills:
Winning has two important elements: physical and mental strategies. A few things to think about:
• How do they keep their heads together and stay cool?
• How do they stay focused like a force?
• How do the pictures they make in their head drive them to win?
• How do the words they say inside their head influence them?
Successful people play the game a hundred times inside their head visualizing how they play. They anticipate the moves of the other team. Their positive psychology is engrained in their head and in their feet. So, throw in a bit of passion, enthusiasm and dogged determination, you get a winning performance.
What can we learn from champions?
They believe they can do it. When you have skills and the right psychology, you can just about do anything. What could you do this week that would make the difference in your thinking and drive your psychology to work for you?
• Believe in yourself
• You have skills – find them – use them
• Be determined to be the best you can be in whatever you do
• Keep passion alive – it’s a driving force
• Live in the present – and not in the past
• Don’t take your eye off the ball – stay focused
You don’t have to be a footballer to be great. You can be someone on the train going to work; you can be a mother at home looking after children. You do have skills. Beliefs are what drive us, so what you believe this week will drive the outcome you get. Beliefs are so powerful they can weigh you down or have you feeling wonderful. We choose our own beliefs. So it’s up to you.
Reminds me of the story I heard a while ago about two brothers living in a very impoverished town. They came from a background of abuse and alcoholism. One brother ended up in jail. The other brother ended up being the most sought after successful lawyer in the state. Both brothers were asked the same question: “How come you ended up like this? Interestingly they both gave the exact same answer “Given the background I came from, it was the only way out for me”.
Champions eat belief for breakfast. Put some in your breakfast this week. They say it’s the most important meal of the day.
Have a good week.