Championships.
That’s the outcome we all want.
And yet, championship winning athletes and coaches don’t think about that outcome until the last pitch is made.
Until then, champions’ minds must stay focused on the processes built into their day.
Process Over Outcome.
It’s one of the pillars of my Mental Performance Training System; perhaps the most important one.
A process over outcome mentality is the ability to stay focused on the journey without getting too caught up in the destination. The process is all of the little steps needed to reach their goal: meal prep, practices, strength and conditioning, winning pitches… doing it again… wins along the way down to winning that last pitch.
But, getting our athletes to do the day-to-day mundane tasks necessary to reach their goals, even when they don’t feel like it is a challenge.
Do you want to know a way to make it less of a challenge?
Be where your feet are.
Teach your athletes how to create a daily schedule and daily routine that includes all that they need to get done and then to simply be where they are.
When they are in class, be in the class.
When they are in the gym, be fully in the gym.
When they are on the field, be on the field.
This means not talking about your school or social life while you’re on the field.
Or discussing what you want to see out on the field later today while they are having lunch.
Be in the gym. Or on the field. Or with your friends and teammates. Or at the dinner table.
Teach your athletes to be where their feet are with intentional routines and empowering habits.
Bookend your days with morning and evening routines.
My daily workout.
My am success journal, meal prep and supplements.
Setting my mindset and my mental focus on how I will combat the day’s challenges.
These all get done before I do anything else.
I call it my AM routine.
In a busy world, it’s easy for our athletes to get distracted and therefore not get done what needs to be done to be the champions they want to be.
Help your athletes decide what their three most important tasks are. Then, help them schedule them into their day. The first block of time in the morning before is a great place to build a routine because you have more control over your time in the morning than you do once the day gets moving.
The last block of the day before the lights go out is another place to add in a specific routine for the same reasons, you have more control over your time.
Part of my evening routine is to run mental tapes (mental imagery & visualization) of my day and reflect on what went well and what could have gone better and how I will do it better. This sets me up for a successful day tomorrow.
Other great places for routines:
Pre-competition/workout routine
In competition/workout routine
Post competition/workout routine.
Routines preserve energy.
It takes a lot of energy to make decisions.
Routines eliminate much of the decision making.
Which, in turn, allows your athletes to save their energy to compete one pitch at a time and win.
Champions don’t waste their energy making decisions.
The biggest winners have the fewest decisions to make because they have already made those decisions ahead of time.
How do you eliminate decisions?
Plan your day and week down to the hour.
Use the 168 Method.
There are 168 hours in a week.
After your athletes learn to be where their feet are mentally and have morning and evening routines, then have them create their 168 plan.
If every hour of every day is scheduled then there are no decisions to make other than following your plan.
Now, I’m not talking about a 24/7 “motivational speaker”, stay up later, wake up earlier type of grind.
That’s ridiculous.
Sleep is a huge part of recovery and if you aren’t getting 9+ hours of sleep you are falling short of your potential (more on that in a future article).
What I’m talking about is scheduling everything – even sleep/rest/recovery/time with friends/free time.
What time are you going to go to bed?
What time are you going to sit down and do your meditation?
Where in your week will you call your parents?
What’s the best part of your day to connect with a friend who makes you laugh and keeps you grounded?
What does your commute look like? Can you listen to a podcast while you drive/walk to where you have to go?
Plan everything.
The champions I coach assign every minute a task. They have every hour of their day scheduled and decisions are made in advance when creating the plan. They understand the illusion of choice and that if you are going to be a champion, there is a path to follow that has been laid for you and the choices you have are minimal. You walk the path of the champion or you don’t. It’s really that simple.
Are you and your athletes walking that path?
Learn how mental performance training can energize you and your athletes on your path to give you the best chance for success.
COACHES: What you should do now…
Want to learn more coaching strategies to master the mental side of performance? Join my COACHES INSIDERS LIST and I’ll keep you updated on my next Mental Performance Mastery Certification.
If you found today’s video helpful, and you’re interested in more cutting-edge mental performance coaching strategies, the MPM Certification is for you.
Inside the course, I’ll show you how to:
- Get your athletes to perform their best when it means the most by using a SYSTEM to create an elite mindset.
- Compete at a higher level, more consistently—while managing distractions and adversity—by establishing the right routines.
- Create the championship culture you need to develop elite athletic leaders and cultivate a clear vision that keeps everyone motivated and juiced up.
Drop your info below to learn the systems and secrets I use to help the top coaches in the world compete at an elite level—year after year.
