Episode #26: Psych-up and Psych-down Tools of my Train Your Mind for Athletic Success podcast is the second of two episodes in which I will explore the impact of intensity on sports performance. Your awareness of your level of intensity and your ability to adjust your intensity to its ideal level is essential for performing your [...]
Episode #25: What is Intensity? of my Train Your Mind for Athletic Success podcast is the first of two episodes in which I will explore the impact of intensity on sports performance. The topic for today’s episode is: What is Intensity? What I mean by intensity is the amount of physiological activity you experience in your [...]
In Episode #10: Stress to Calm of my Crisis to Opportunity podcast, we continue our exploration of the powerful role that emotions play in how we react to crises in our lives. This episode examines how the stress that you will experience in response to a crisis leaves you unprepared psychologically, emotionally, and physiologically to [...]
The Saturday Evening Post published my most recent column, Worrying Does More Harm Than Good. Worry is a natural part of the human condition. It has historically played a vital role in our survival and it helps us cope with many of the challenges we face today. At the same time, worry that is too [...]
Obsessive man laying on grass, perfection I've written quite a bit about how unhealthy perfectionism is for both children and adults. Yes, it can drive you maniacally to become successful. But it can also create a powerful fear of failure that ultimately prevents you from being truly successful. Plus, I've never met a happy [...]
We pursue happiness in America with such passion and purpose. We devote immense amounts of time, effort, energy, and money. Yet, that pursuit seems to be wholly unsatisfying and ineffective, as evidenced by the fact that there exists a ‘happiness-industrial complex’ in which billions of dollars are spent annually on books, lectures, apps, psychotherapy, coaching, [...]
A truly tragic story of Madison Holleran, a U. of Penn student and track athlete, who committed suicide in early 2014. On the surface, she was a happy, and successful young woman. But inside there was turmoil. It reminds me of Sarah Devens, another star student-athlete, this time at Dartmouth (I wonder if the fact that [...]
Here's a great article about Rafael Nadal in which he describes struggling mentally this year on the pro tennis tour. Roger Federer also discusses his mental difficulties. For most people, it's hard to imagine that such such gifted and experienced athletes who have had so much success in their careers could, for example, lose confidence and get [...]
In my last post, I explained how the words that parents use with their children can influence how secure they become. Words are powerful to be sure, but, as the saying goes, actions speak louder than words. To foster a health sense of security in your children, your actions, and those your children, can really [...]
Words have a powerful effect on your children. What you say impacts what they think about themselves and their world, the actions they take as they explore their world, and the emotions they experience as they interact with their world. Your words can create a child who is secure and comfortable with themselves. Or, your [...]
