I’m sure that we have all experienced a time when we didn’t want to follow through with a task at hand. Either we got bored, felt like the task was too difficult to complete, became burnt out, or couldn’t see the benefits that would arise upon completion. Whatever the reason may be, we’ve been there. The good news is that there are various approaches that can be taken to fix this problem, one of them being, “keeping your eyes on the prize.”

Everything that we do is done for a reason. For example, baseball players both young and old are required to go to batting practice. It has become part of their pregame routine to take dozens of extra swings in preparation for competition. The purpose, as told by the Oakland hitting coach Chili Davis, is that “batting practice is a time to create and foster good habits. The guys who do it and do it right are the ones who are more successful.” (Caple, 2014) The same thing goes for volleyball players. “A setter will come close to making one third of all the ball contacts by the team.” (USA volleyball) This means that they better be darn good at what they do, or the team won’t be successful. But how do they achieve this skill? The answer is that they make goals for themselves and lean into them. They practice footwork, hand contact, vision, etc. time and time again so that they can deliver the perfect ball to their hitters. They want success for their team, so they keep their eyes on the prize during all of those days of practice and problem solving.

Another tactic that can be used to stay motivated is to take a different approach. Sometimes the way you are doing something won’t feel right or may seem more difficult than it should. In this case, taking a step back and re-analyzing your methodology towards the task may be a good option for you. Being able to identify a couple tweaks and changes that could be made may change your outlook and experience in ways you didn’t know were possible!

Lastly, reward yourself! Nothing worth having ever comes easy, right? So instead of just looking at the big picture (which may appear a little daunting), make small goals for yourself along the way. When you reach one of those milestones, reward yourself. One way you could do this is to treat yourself to a nice breakfast the next morning, or to document your success in writing. Reading and reliving your accomplishments may give you the right drive to continue forward on your journey. It is important to be able to recognize your own progress, which will not only allow you to celebrate the successes, but will also let you know how much further you have to go in reaching your primary goals.

“The discipline you learn and character you build from setting and achieving a goal can be more valuable than the achievement of the goal itself.” -Bo Bennett

References:

Caple, J. (2014). Batting Practice: Swings and Misses

USA Volleyball (2013). Thoughts for Setters

Every third Monday of January we recognize and celebrate the lifelong impact that Martin Luther King Jr. made on our country. We celebrate this day to honor and commemorate MLK and his strong belief in combating racial discrimination. As you all know, King was the lead spokesman for non violent activism in the Civil Rights movement, and is often recognized by his “I am a dream speech”.

However, this blog isn’t to give you a history lesson on WHAT King did- stuff you already know.  This blog is to prompt some thinking about HOW he did it.   So how did he do it? How was one man able to bring about change and bring a country closer together despite significant challenges and adversity?

The answer starts with a firm belief in himself and his cause (or task).  He showed immense courage by standing firm in his belief in a nonviolent approach, even when others prosecuted him for it. He knew that violence would only make things worse for his people and so instead, he led peaceful protests. He gained followers by staying true to himself, his good character, and treated others with that same respect and conviction.

The same process, believing in oneself and the courage to act even when we are frightened or facing the most difficult of adversity, is fundamental to anyone who is attempting to do great things.

How can we use this model for ourselves and how can it help in accomplishing our goals in life or sport?

Similar to MLK, It all starts with believing in yourself and committing to a vision or dream.   With these two factors, we can manage and be okay with failure along the way, for failing means learning. The bigger we dream, the bigger chances we have to take, and nothing will ever go perfectly as planned but don’t be discouraged because we ought to measure ourselves by our progress versus perfection.  For some of the biggest growth in a person’s life happens in moments of adversity! As Neal Donald Walsch once said, “life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” Therefore, do what makes you uncomfortable.

Martin Luther King ran into many roadblocks along his journey that could have caused him to give up his dreams, but he kept going. Our encouragement to you today, is to fully embrace your hopes and dreams and go for them whole-heartedly, just as Martin Luther King Jr. did. You may just end up changing your story as well as changing the world!

References:

Time and Date AS (2016). Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the United States

Schulke, F., Fernandez, B. (2014). About Dr. King: Overview

Biography.com Editors (2017). Martin Luther King Jr. Biography

Practice makes perfect. If you’re an athlete, you’ve probably heard this a few thousand times throughout your life. Practice is necessary to improve health, build confidence, gain a better understanding of rules and regulations, and also try out new techniques. But how can practice really bring out peak performance? When athletes partake in “deliberate practice,” they are more in tune with their bodies and see results.

Deliberate practice relates to the quality of the practice time. It focuses on specific goals of improving performance by participating in highly structured activities relating to that sport (Barr, 2016). It may be easy to just “go through the motions” of practice, but if your goal is to gain skills and become an elite athlete, engaging in deliberate practice should be one of your objectives. Dr. Janet Starkes, a kinesiology professor at McMaster University, and colleagues recently concluded a study dating back almost three decades on deliberate practice, and state: “The core of our work has alluded to the important role that self-focused attention plays in helping skilled athletes to refine inefficient movement during deliberate practice.” This self-focus is one of the main factors in developing elite athletes. Her work also suggests that something called “reflective somatic awareness” plays an important role in this process. By learning to feel and understand the body, you will increase your awareness to consciously and deliberately improve the movements within your sport.

So how can we engage in deliberate practice? There are a few steps to take. First, you must be motivated to improve your performance and continuously exert an effort to be better. Second, use your pre-existing knowledge to help you understand the task at hand so you are performing movements properly. Third, ask your coach to give you immediate and informative feedback after your performance so you know what went well and what needs improvement. Lastly, you should repeatedly perform the same or similar tasks to increase your awareness (Clear, 2016). Following these steps will help you partake in deliberate practice and improve your overall performance!

References:
Barr, C. (2016). Deliberate Practice: What It Is and Why You Need It.
Clear, J. (2016). The Beginner’s Guide to Deliberate Practice | James Clear.
Starkes, J. (2016). Toward an explanation of continuous improvement in expert athletes: The role of consciousness in deliberate practice. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 46(6), 666-675. Retrieved November 15, 2016.