A Birthday Gift to Yourself
Photo by Archana Sundar on Scopio
If you want to perform at your best you need to be consistently building confidence and belief in yourself. One way to do this is with the gratitude practice I explain below.
As I have discussed in previous Mind of a Champion monthly blogs, a consistent gratitude practice is a very powerful tool for our health, wellness and success. There are many different activities I have talked about here as well as in class including - list three things you are thankful for each night before you go to sleep, create a gratitude jar and add slips of paper of things you are grateful for in it whenever you think of them, etc., etc.
Yet most times when we make these lists, we are thinking of or writing down things outside of ourselves - people, possessions, experiences, etc. We very rarely take time to be grateful for aspects of ourselves. Doing this may be difficult for some of us, but the payoffs to our mindset and wellbeing are well worth the effort.
Try this out now. Grab a sheet of paper and a pen. On that sheet of paper write down things you are grateful for about yourself. How many should you write? How about one for every year you have been on this earth? You can write things that relate to your sport, school or just your overall personality. Perhaps things like…
• My unselfishness on the field
• The love I have for the game
• My willingness to put in extra work at the gym
• The hard work I did on the science project
• That I stopped and picked up the candy wrapper that was on the ground in the park
• My creativity
Perhaps make this an annual activity. Every year on your birthday, take out another blank sheet of paper and pen and create a new list - this time with one additional item in comparison to last year. This just may be the best birthday gift you can receive!
Pass It On
If you know of an athlete or coach who wants to improve their mental game, or that of their entire team, they can sign up here for this free Mind of a Champion monthly tip.
Want to Learn More?
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We can bring these programs directly to your teams or individual athletes can attend an open enrollment program. Contact us today to learn more.