Focusing on The Process to Reach Your Goals
Do you get frustrated if you feel all your training isn’t paying off?
Do you get discouraged when you can’t make a correction immediately?
Do you become irritated when you can’t seem to break a habit?
You constantly train to become better at your sport.
If you aren’t seeing progress quickly enough, do you question why you’re even playing or whether or not you’re “good enough” to continue.
Some athletes want that instant gratification. They want to feel and believe their efforts are worth it.
In Lebron James’s post-game press conference on Sunday after the Cavs beat the Celtics, he wore a hat that read:
“THERE IS NO MAGIC PILL.”
This message James is sending couldn’t be truer…
There is no magic pill, or no one occurrence that can help you reach and play consistently at your most elite level.
Athletes make a change in their technique one day and expect to have it perfected when they wake up the very next morning. Or, an athlete may skip summer training workouts and expect their skill to match their teammates’, who attended every optional summer workout.
Nothing is ever awarded, only earned.
Some of you may be familiar with Leonardo da Vinci. If not, he painted the ever-famous, Mona Lisa.
A woman approached da Vinci one evening at a restaurant and asked if he would draw her.
She was more than excited, and felt she absolutely had to have a drawing by him. She handed him paper and a pencil, and he looked at her.
After a minute or two, da Vinci was done.
She was eager to thank him. He told her, “You’re welcome, but I’m going to have to charge you $10,000 for it.”
The woman was completely taken aback and said, “How could you charge me $10,000!? This literally took you a minute to do.”
Da Vinci replied and stated, “No, ma’am, this took me 10 years to do.”
As da Vinci and Lebron expressed:
There is NO magic pill.
It takes years to achieve, accomplish, and succeed.
Focus on the process instead of the outcome to help you reach your long-term goals.
Many athletes become sidetracked and discouraged because they aren’t as good “today” as they think they should be.
Performing at your peak level takes time; like da Vinci said, it took him 10 years. As for Lebron James, he’s been playing basketball for over 20 years now.
Focus on a small goal or two each day you practice or play.
Working toward and accomplishing these small goals will lead to bigger ones.
Remember:
“THERE IS NO MAGIC PILL.”
For more information on focusing on the process, check out our workbook program “The Focused Athlete:”
Related Sports Psychology Articles
- How Lebron James Gives 100% at Game Time
- Think Better-Perform Better
- Why Talent + Mental Toughness = Success
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The Focused Athlete
It’s probably no secret that you have many opportunities to become distracted in sports. Athletes are bombarded with both internal and external distractions everyday in practice and competition. Focused athletes are able to get the most from their skills because they are more efficient with practice and more concentrated in competition. Athletes who lack focus let distractions run wild through their mind and don’t know how to adjust or refocus.
The Focused Athlete was developed for any level coach, parent, or junior to professional athlete who wants to improve performance and gain a competitive edge. It does not matter if you are a fledgling junior athlete; or a seasoned professional, plagued with distractions; or you just wanting to learn how to improve concentration…
“The Focused Athlete” is a complete system to teach you how to focus like a champion and harness the power of a zone focus every time you step on the playing field, court, track, or course in practice and games!