Latest News: Writing for Leading Cycling Website
I’ve just been invited to write articles on the psychology of cycling for Pezcyclingnews.com, one of the leading cycling websites in the world. As an avid cyclist and someone who has worked with professional cyclists over the years, I’m excited to contribute to the sport. I’ll be sure to post my articles on my blog. […]
Read MoreSki Racing: Ten Lessons from an 8th Place Finish
Of course, I’m not talking about just any old 8th place finish in a ski race. After four previous World Cup starts in which she didn’t qualify for the second run, 16-year-old Mikaela Shiffrin broke through with an impressive top-10 finish (starting 37th) at the World Cup slalom in Aspen recently. Though Mikaela’s result was […]
Read MorePersonal Growth: Four Forces of Life Inertia
In a recent post, I introduced you to my Law of Human Inertia: The tendency of people, having once established a life trajectory, to continue on that course unless acted on by a greater force. In this post, I want to explore the forces that drive our life inertia. Many of us wonder what propels […]
Read MorePrime Business Alert!: Too Much Input and Not Enough “Innerput”
The Internet, and all of the new technology that it has spawned, has made information available at the fingertips of businesspeople instantaneously. The sheer volume of information now accessible on line is staggering. Information continues to become more available to more people in less time; from web sites to email to RSS feeds to Twitter, we have input at an unprecedented rate and volume. Ironically, as the frequency of information grows, the length of messages shrinks (e.g., Twitter’s 140-character limit. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing; think of haiku). And, amazingly, the vast majority of this information is free. All of this information has been a boon to the business world. This ready access to important information has made businesspeople more efficient than ever. “Cloud sourcing” has created never-before-possible opportunities for collaboration that has resulted in an explosion of creativity and innovation at all levels of the corporate world. This new technology has enabled the business world to increase productivity to levels never seen before. At the same time, for all its benefits, any businessperson will tell you that there are costs to this 24/7 connectivity and accessibility. I have already addressed the issue of multi-tasking and work/life balance in previous writings. Today, I want to explore another unfortunate consequence of this torrent of information, namely, that our “mental inbox” becomes overloaded.
Read MoreSports: 5 Tips for Quality Training
There is nothing more important to achieving your athletic goals than what you do in practice. It is during training that you ingrain the physical, technical, tactical, and mental habits that will come out in competitions. If you establish good habits, you'll have a good chance of having a good performance. But if you instill bad habits, those will come out and you'll have little chance of performing your best. Despite its importance, most athletes don’t give much thought to how they can get the most out of their training efforts. That’s why the training time of athletes is often both inefficient and ineffective. So, in the spirit of total appreciation for the value of quality training, here are five tips that can help you get the most out of practice: 1. Have a goal and purpose. You must have a clear goal about what area you want to improve as you head out to training. For example, it might be technical, tactical, mental, or team related. You must also have a clear purpose for training each day. A purpose identifies specifically how you're going to achieve your goal for the day. If your goal is to improve something technical, your purpose would be certain drills that would ingrain that new technique.
Read MoreParenting: Dos for Sport Parents
Youth sports participation is now a ubiquitous part of our achievement culture. Though not unheard of, it is rare to find children who are not actively involved in some sport 12 months a year. Whether team sports, such as soccer, baseball/softball, or football, or individual sports, such as tennis, swimming, or golf, it’s likely that your children are involved in youth sports for reasons ranging from fun and physical activity to dreams of Olympic or professional sports greatness. If your children aren’t playing sports, but rather are involved in the performing arts, chess, or some other extracurricular achievement activity, this Prime Family Alert! newsletter can apply equally well to you. And this newsletter's value to the involvement that parents have in their children's academic lives will easily be seen by educators and parents alike. Youth sports are a wonderful avenue for your children’s enjoyment, physical health, mastery of skills, learning essential life lessons, pursuit of goals, and hopefully adoption of a lifelong sport. Unfortunately, they can also be a source of pressure, stress, social comparison, disappointment, and harm to your children’s personal development. Which road your children get on depends largely on the attitudes you hold and the quality of your involvement in their sports participation. It’s never too early or too late to ensure that the role you play in your children’s sports will maximize the benefits they gain and minimize the damage that can come from their athletic involvement. You need to get yourself mentally and emotionally ready for the rollercoaster that is youth sports. Many past issues of Prime Family Alert! have offered you insights that can help you navigate the rough waters of your children’s achievement activities, including sports. But, knowing many sports parents, what you really want are clear guidelines of what you should and shouldn’t do with your athlete-children. In this issue of Prime Family Alert!, I will describe what I believe you should do with yourself, other parents, coaches, and your children to win the Sport Parent of the Year award (or at least make it through this sports season without driving yourself and your children crazy!).
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