Everyone loves a good Cinderella story. However, the Cinderella of fairy tales wasn’t an underdog. She was only counted out by those who stood to gain from holding her back. Cinderella was a victim of circumstance. Once set free she soared, stole the show, and ran off with her prize. What can your team learn about fulfilling their own Cinderella story?

Cinderella Rocked the Ball

Before March Madness tipped off most us had never heard of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County – the Retrievers. Now their story will live forever in the NCAA history books.

On Friday, March 16th, 2018, the 16-seed Retrievers took down the 1-seed Virginia Cavaliers. Until then a No. 16 had never beaten a No. 1 in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. They did what no other team had done before.

What seemed like an inevitable one-and-done situation was an opportunity UMBC took full advantage of.

How Cinderella Stole the Show and So Can You

When the fairy godmother showed up, Cinderella’s story went from mission impossible to unstoppable. How can you lead your team to embrace their own Cinderella story and pave their way to their own Big Dance?

Here are four lessons every team can learn from this year’s biggest Cinderella story. Each one translates well beyond the court.

1. Be United

In the locker room, before tip-off, head coach Ryan Odom gathered his team and preached a similar message he’d emphasized all season: effort and connection. Work hard and stay close.

When you work together as a team, anything is possible. Even making NCAA history. Author Jon Gordon says it this way, “Team beats talent, when talent isn’t a team.” I’m not saying Virginia wasn’t united, but UMBC showed considerable cohesion.

A united team is selfless, trusts one another, and outperforms those teams who aren’t united.

2. Be Hungry

Before the game against K-State, sophomore forward Nolan Gerrity got a tweet from a fan expecting UMBC to get blown out by the Wildcats. No surprise.

“My answer was no, not at all,” Gerrity said. “We weren’t here to take part. We were here to take over. We weren’t just happy to be here. We were here to compete.”

I love Gerrity’s response. To knock out Goliath, your team has to be hungry. Yes, appreciate the moment, the opportunity. But when they step on the court/field to compete, anything less than hungry will lead to apathy and complacency.

Encourage your athletes to be humble and hungry.

3. Be Confident

Confidence is a huge predictor of performance. Great coaches intentionally build their team’s confidence in each other, the coaching staff, and the game plan.

Jourdan Grant, UMBC senior guard, said of Odom, “As a coach he just instills confidence in us. I think it shows in the way we play – freed up – and when we step out on the court he has complete confidence and he trusts us.”

Learn and leverage all sources of confidence to give your team a competitive advantage.

4. Believe Anything is Possible

Belief is contagious. Clemson’s football coach Dabo Swinney has become known for being an “over-believer” based on how his belief inspires his players to believe in themselves.

That’s why we play the game. Some must win. Why not?

Similarly, the Retrievers belief has inspired others all over the country. Following the team’s loss to K-State, junior point guard K.J. Maura said he’d received a lot of messages from little kids. Maura shared, “They said I gave them strength and hope to follow their dreams.”

There is a lot more to Cinderella stories than what you see on the court.
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Never Say Can’t

After losing to No. 9 Kansas State in the round of 32, Odom reflected on what the Retrievers had achieved. “What I think about is the kids being told, ‘You can’t do this or you can’t do that,” Odom said. “Whether it’s in sports or outside sports. What our kids accomplished should be a lesson to everybody that, yeah, you can do it.”

There are Cinderella teams at every level of sport – those counted out, of whom little is expected (by others). But those who play united, play hungry, and believe in themselves can accomplish great feats.

Question: What else does it take to overcome the odds and become a Cinderella story?

I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

• Article: Being UMBC: Inside 72 hours of college basketball’s biggest upset
• Article: UMBC coach Ryan Odom’s approach – and personality – give Retrievers something to believe in
• Book: You Win in the Locker Room First: The 7 C’s to Build a Winning Team in Business, Sports, and Life by Jon Gordon and Mike Smith
• Post: Why Are Top Teams Focused on Building Social Cohesion?
• Post: Why Do Winning Programs Hide Their Legacy?

The post How to Turn Your Season into a Cinderella Story first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

Olympic athletes are supported by a team of sport psychology professionals devoted to helping them be mentally prepared for the demands of Olympic competition. At this level, every detail matters. The difference between Gold and missing the medal stand can be fractions of a second. The slightest loss of focus, moment of hesitation, or being a little too anxious can make a huge difference. Without question, Olympic athletes must be mentally tough.

How U.S. Athletes Got Mentally Prepared for PyeongChang

Unlike many other sport environments, Olympic athletes invest a disproportionate amount of time in training for the few moments they may have to compete. Olympic athletes don’t have 162 competitions per year like Major League Baseball, for example.

The anticipation, pressure, expectations, emotions, and significance of the Olympics make this a unique venue to look into how these athletes prepare to bring their best on the biggest stage in the world.

Specifically, how are Olympic athletes mentally preparing to bring their A-games? And what can your athletes learn from some of the best athletes in the world?

1. Harness the Power of Imagery

Olympic athletes use their mind’s eye to prepare for everything. They visualize and mentally rehearse:

• Performing their best
• Their routine, race, or jump
• Handling the pressure of the moment
• Celebrating their achievements

Imagery can be used in so many different ways. Athletes can use it to boost confidence, manage emotions, and prepare for what might go wrong, just to name a few outcomes. One key aspect to high-quality imagery is making it realistic.

Check out these amazing videos of Olympic athletes walking through exactly how they use imagery to foster elite performance:

New York Times

Teach your athletes to make imagery an immersive experience.

2. Resilience Is Required

Nothing worth achieving comes easy. This is certainly true of Olympic medals. Battling through injuries, crashes, setbacks, and disappointment is part of every Olympian’s story.

Athletes at every level need to know how to deal with adversity and bounce back from failures along the way.

USA’s Nick Goepper took silver in the Men’s Ski Slopestyle with a score of 93.60 (1.4 points behind the leader).

Entering his 3rd and final run, Goepper was in 9th place after failing to break 60 points in his first two runs (59 & 69 respectively). He had to dig deep, trust his preparation, and execute.

In an interview with The Today Show, Nick said, “My Olympics came down to that one run, that final run. I put immense pressure on myself. I just focused on visualizing and the practice I had put in and it worked out for me.”

3. Win the Battle Between the Ears

Athletes at all levels face anxiety, doubts, and fears. If left unchecked, these counterproductive thoughts can cause serious problems for athletes. This is often how athletes “get in their own way.”

In an interview with NBC, USA two-time Gold Medalist Mikaela Shiffrin talks about how she fights back against the thoughts that swirl around in her heard before a race.

Teach your athletes to master their thinking like Shiffrin.

4. Create a Routine to Get Locked-In

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

An article in U.S. News highlights specific examples of routines used by Olympic athletes:

• Nathan Chen has a specific way he laces up his skates to help simply his thoughts and minimize anxiety.
• Mikaela Shiffrin has a mantra that shapes her mindset before a race.
• Breezy Johnson stops, jumps, and shouts to amp her up at the start gate.
• Maddie Bowman has a playlist that gets her dialed in.

Teach your athletes the 4 core components of a pre-performance routine.

Elevate Your Team’s Mental Toughness

The Olympics provide a great opportunity to showcase the importance of mental preparation. The U.S. athletes mentioned above can help your athletes understand how they can improve their mental toughness and compete at their best. I also invite you to download the free guides and posters as training resources for you and your teams.

Question: What other examples of mental toughness did you see in PyeongChang, South Korea?

I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

• Post: How Do Your Athletes Handle All That Pressure?
• Post: How to Use Imagery to Increase the Quality of Practice
• Post: Do Your Athletes Know How to Make Visualization More Powerful?
• Post: Are Your Athletes Prepared to be Punched in the Mouth?
• Post: How to Help Athletes Bounce Back From Failure
• Post: How to Improve an Athlete’s Performance: A Proven Model
• Post: How to Master Your Thinking: Think on Purpose
• Post: 3 Ways Routines Help Athletes Get Consistent Results

The post How to be Mentally Tough Like Olympic Athletes first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

In our microwave society athletes want to see immediate results. When they look at the rankings, draft boards, and young superstars, they think success came overnight. Coaches might be preaching, “focus on the process,” but athletes are judged by results.

A Major League Process

David Ortiz, the Red Sox former first baseman known as “Big Papi,” will certainly become a Hall of Famer.

When looking at Hall of Fame numbers and powerful home runs, it is easy to think Ortiz is a “natural” and ignore his road to greatness.

While helping Ortiz with his rehab in 2013, Darren Fenster, a Minor League Manager for the Boston Red Sox, expected to see him swinging for the fences in batting practice. However, what he witnessed from behind the L-Screen surprised him.

Big Papi, it turned out, was a grinder who worked hard and focused on the process.

His philosophy (which fueled his every swing), was “stay on top and inside of the ball.” Every swing had a purpose.

• Round 1: 12- 15 solid contact & high percentage base hits
• Round 2: 12- 15 well-hit gap to gap
• Round 3: 20 balls of situational hitting
• Round 4: 15 deep drives (maybe HRs)

Day after day, week after week, year after year…through each purposeful swing David Ortiz became the Hall of Famer we know today.

Allow Big Papi to teach your athletes about trusting the process.
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Unrealistic Expectations

Technology has sped up everything, especially our expectations. Your athletes expect websites to load in 2 seconds or less. They expect online purchases to arrive in 48 hours.

Similarly, athletes today expect a new technique to work immediately. They expect it to be automatic. They expect it to get results. Most importantly, athletes expect to win – now.

Why Focusing on the Process is Hard

While coaches preach “focus on the process,” everyone else praises results. Sports talk radio, SportsCenter, and social media celebrate accomplishments, talent, and the overnight superstar.

Even coaches will talk about how a player is a “natural talent” or “born to run.” These kind of comments bypass the process that led the player to the results we see today.

Athletes are getting mixed signals, which makes it difficult for them to focus on the process.

Your players need to learn that those idolized results come through hard work, sweat equity, and determination. As the phrase goes, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

3 Strategies to Help Athletes Focus on the Process

How can you get athletes to embrace the daily grind of trusting the process?

Coaches need to set clear expectations and hold players accountable to the process moreso than the outcomes. Or, as Tim Elmore puts it, “value the process not the product.”

Allow me to share with you 3 powerful strategies coaches can use to help athletes focus on the process:

1. Praise the process.

When you provide players with kudos or praise, praise the process. Coaches (and parents) can do this by calling out the effort, strategy, or persistence that led to the success or improvement.

This focuses a mindset of continued learning and development – the process. This strategy also directs an athlete’s focus and energy toward the aspects of their sport they can control.

2. Point out examples.

Nearly all athletes look up to someone else. These role models might be professional or Olympic athletes. They could be Hall of Fame athletes from decades ago.

Use case studies, like David Ortiz, to teach your athletes the behind the scenes work (process) that molded that player into the peak performer you see on television.

3. Provide coaching, not criticism. 

Criticism points out what an athlete is doing wrong, a mistake he made…the negatives. Criticism is outcome focused.

Instead, coach the player by providing specific feedback that teaches her how to adjust and improve. The point should be learning and development.

Athletes will trust the process when coaches praise, illustrate, & teach the process.
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Athletes Follow the Coach’s Lead

Coaches will get more of what they focus on. If your words and actions demonstrate that you value the outcomes most, your athletes will follow suit. On the contrary, if you praise, illustrate, and teach the process, your athletes will learn to focus on the process. When athletes buy in to trusting the process, they’ll close the gap on their potential and the results will take care of themselves.

Question: What do you think is the biggest reason athletes struggle to focus on the process?

I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

• Post: Good Job Isn’t Good Enough: What It Means to Praise the Process

The post 3 Strategies to Help Athletes Focus on the Process first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

Sports fans witnessed history in this year’s October Classic. The Chicago Cubs broke their 108 year World Series Championship drought. They did so in dramatic fashion and displayed all that we love about sports on the biggest stage in baseball. While there was certainly exceptional play on the diamond, I am most interested in what the Cubs have done behind the scenes to build a championship organization. I believe every team can learn something from how the Chicago Cubs select, train, build, and field their team.

An October Classic for the Ages

I couldn’t have asked for anything more from the 2016 World Series. There was history, young superstars, tradition, and high caliber competition from the front offices all the way down to the diamond. Both teams were battling to end their championship drought. The Chicago Cubs hadn’t won the World Series since 1908. The last World Series title for the Indians came in 1948. Needless to say, there was a lot at stake (not to mention the curses).

Allow me to refresh your memory with a few highlights. In the series, Cleveland jumped out to a commanding 3-1 series lead. They headed back to Cleveland looking to clinch the title in game five. The Indians pitching staff was dominant and the bats which had been hot for Chicago throughout the season had been silenced.

Before we knew it, the Cubs had fought back to even the series and were headed to a decisive game seven in Cleveland.

The final game started with a bang when the Indian’s ace, Kyle Kluber, gave up a solo home run to Dexter Fowler on the fourth pitch of the first inning. In the fourth inning, the Cubs manager, Joe Maddon, suddenly pulled his starter, Hendricks, who was on cruise control to a 4-1 lead.

Maddon brought in his closer with a 6-3 lead in the eighth with a man on. Brandon Guyer doubled making it 6-4. Then Indian’s Rajai Davis crushed a two-run homer to tie the game at 6-6. Indians fans cheered. Cubs loyalists feared the curse of the billy goat would strike again.

Ultimately, the game went to the tenth, punctuated by a 17 minute rain delay to build suspense. The Cubs scored two runs in the top of the tenth and Cleveland couldn’t tie it up. Cubs win!

Every team can learn from the Cubs’ championship victory. #learnfromthebest
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10 Lessons Every Team Can Learn from the Chicago Cubs

How did the Chicago Cubs win their first World Series in 108 years? While the list is long, I’ve found 10 lessons every team can learn from the Cubs about what it takes to be a championship team.

1. You Must Believe You Can Win. The Rickets family bought the Chicago Cubs in 2009. At the time the team was an embarrassment. Their clubhouse felt like a high school locker room. The club lost 101 games in 2012. It was a long uphill climb before the Cubs were contenders again. But from top to bottom, everyone in the organization believed they could do it, that they could build a championship team.

2. Be Optimistic. Remember the Cubs were shut out twice in the NLCS series. Then they struggled at the plate again in the World Series and were down 3-1. But they never gave up. They kept fighting, trusting in themselves, and remaining hopeful that they could pick things up.

Optimistic teams outperform pessimistic teams and perform better under pressure. They bounce back after losses, focus on what they can control, and work harder than pessimistic teams.

3. Select for Resilience. In 2011, the Chicago Cubs hired Theo Epstein, who helped the Boston Redsox end their drought. To bring an edge to Chicago he focused on intangibles, such as how a player responds to adversity. Epstein requires scouts to provide detailed accounts of how prospects respond to adversity on and off the field. The Cubs seek players who demonstrate resilience, optimism, a growth mindset, and grit.

4. Learn to Manage Emotions. Looking at the stats you might think Cubs young stars struggled. Through the first four games, Russell, Baez, Contreras, and Bryant combined for 6 of 59 at the plate. That’s a batting average of .102. Not the slugging that carried the Cubs the best record in baseball.

Speaking about the club’s young stars after game four, veteran Miguel Montero said, “I feel like they’re trying to do too much. There are a lot of emotions going on. They’re all trying to be the hero. We’ve got to be able to control our emotions a little bit.”

However, the wisdom and experience of Cubs veterans finally rubbed off. In one example, Ross, the retiring catcher, encouraged Rizzo, the young first baseman, to breathe during the early innings of game seven.

The youngsters seemed to regain control of their emotions as the series went on. There are a number of strategies to keep emotions from sabotaging performance. The same four players went 14 of 43 with a .326 batting average in the final three games to seal the win.

5. Remain Adaptable. While it is important to stay true to who you are as a team, to play your game, it is also important to be adaptable. The Cubs were successful throughout the season in part because they could adapt and find ways to get wins.

As the series progressed, Chicago made adjustments at the plate. Some hitters moved in on the plate, others choked up more on their bats. When struggling earlier in the playoffs, Anthony Rizzo even changed to a shorter, lighter bat so he could get to more fastballs. Remember, champions find a way to win.

6. Embrace Pressure. In Spring Training, Joe Maddon introduced a mantra for the team to carry throughout the season, “Embrace the target.” After a successful season in 2015, the Cubs had a target on their backs. He wanted them to embrace being the hunted. Plus, their goal was more of an expectation this season – to win the World Series. Again, Maddon’s message was to admit it, accept it, and embrace it, rather than trying to pretend the pressure wasn’t there at all.

To further drive home this message, the Cubs have a sign hanging in their home locker rooms which says “Don’t Let the Pressure Exceed the Pleasure.” Athletes need to learn to have courage under pressure, deal with nervousness, and use diaphragmatic breathing in order to embrace the pressure and perform at their best.

7. Know What You Stand For. Everyone in the Cubs organization is committed to the same things. When someone demonstrates that commitment, they say, “That’s C.U.B.” Josh Lifrak, Director of the Cubs’ Mental Skills Program said it’s just “what we believe in. The Courage to do things the right way, the Urgency to do it right now, and the Belief that we’re going to get it done.” That’s unity, when everyone on the team is on the same page, committed to the same goals, and pursuing one vision.

8. Ask Why Not? Often athletes and teams get caught up asking the wrong question, “Why?” However, champions ask questions like, “Why not us?” “Why not now?” “Why not break the curse of the billy goat?” The Chicago Cubs might have even asked themselves, “Why not be the fifth team to come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the World Series?”

Or, there is the “Legend of Kyle Schwarber,” as David Ross puts it. It’s the comeback story of the year. Schwarber blew out his knee in April, rehabbed like crazy and convinced the Cubs to let him take some swings in the Arizona Fall League as soon as doctors cleared him to hit. After one hit in eight at-bats, the Cubs put him in the starting lineup as a designated hitter for the World Series. Careless or brilliant? It turned out to be brilliant as Schwarber hit .429, responsible for two RBIs. Left fielder Ben Zobrist (winning his second consecutive World Series) said, “No one’s ever seen anything like it.” But hey, why not? It’s part of the power of optimism.

9. Have Leaders in the Locker Room. No championship team relies solely on coaches to lead the team. Team leaders can share strategy, experience, and wisdom. They can inspire and motivate teammates. They hold others accountable.

Montero talked about encouraging his teammates. He said, “Sometimes I tell the players, ‘Just chill.’ It doesn’t matter if you’re 0-for3 or 0-for4…If you keep carrying one at-bat over to the other one, when the big at-bats show up, you’re not going to be ready. You’re still thinking about the past. You’ve got to move on.” Leaders can help others focus on the present moment.

Another locker room leader rallied the troops during the rain delay, right after Rajai Davis’s game-tying home run. Jason Heyward called a team meeting to “remember how good [his teammates] were, how good we are.” David Ross said, “He just said, ‘We’re the best team in baseball for a reason. Continue to play our game, support one another. These are your brothers here, fight for your brothers, lift them up, continue to stay positive.”

Would the streak be over without Heyward’s rally cries? Maybe. But leaders in the locker room made a huge difference in the Cub’s clubhouse all season long.

10. Celebrate Successes. There are many reasons championship teams celebrate successes. Celebrating successes builds momentum, fuels motivation, and fills our bodies with restorative positive emotions.

Whether or not the Cubs know the science behind celebrating success, they know how to celebrate. Joe Maddon set up a strobe light in a designated party room at Wrigley Field for the team to celebrate home wins. Celebrating success drove Chicago to a league-best 103 wins on the season and perhaps a World Series championship.

10 lessons every team can learn from the World Series Champions.
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Free Download

To help you keep these 10 lessons visible, I created this free poster you can print out and hang on the wall in your office or locker room.

To Become a Champion Do What Champions Do

Champions have a growth mindset, meaning that they are always looking for ways to get better (not simply win more, but actually improve their abilities). Have a growth mindset as you look to learn from the Chicago Cubs. Improve your process, your coaching, or the mindset of your team. Choose to be a championship quality team.

In order to be the best you have to do the things that will make you the best. That’s true of teams just as it is of individual athletes. Every team in sports can learn something from this year’s World Series Champions. What will your team learn? Which of the 10 lessons will make the biggest difference in your team?

Question: Which of the 10 lessons will make the biggest difference in your team? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

• Book: Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth
• Post: How to Help Athletes Manage Emotions and Avoid a Meltdown
• Post: Celebrating Success Grants Us Strength
• Post: Optimism: Your Secret Weapon
• Post: How to Help Athletes Bounce Back From Failure
• Post: Why Is A Growth Mindset Required To Reach Your Potential?
• Post: How To Help Your Athletes Have Courage Under Pressure 
• Post: How to Empower Athletes to Embrace Their Nerves
• Post: Why Should Every Athlete Practice Diaphragmatic Breathing?
• Post: Ask This 1 Question to Open Doors to the Life You’ve Dreamed Of
• Post: How to Help Your Team Keep Their Heads in the Game
• Post: Why Do The Best Athletes Never Stop Getting Better?
• Post: Why Should Every Athlete Practice Diaphragmatic Breathing?
• Video: MTM, Episode 2 – How To Help Athletes Embrace Nervousness

The post 10 Powerful Lessons Every Team Can Learn from the Chicago Cubs first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

In today’s athletic environment there are more opportunities to compete than ever before. Who should athletes be competing against? What kind of competition will further their growth and development best? These are the questions parents, coaches, and athletes are facing.

My Crushing First Tournament

I picked up tennis as a young teenager. That summer my family took a vacation to Orlando. I wanted to find a tournament to play in in order to gain some experience. I couldn’t find my age or level in the age group bracket so I signed up for the “open” category. I didn’t realize this category is reserved for the really good players (think top college players).

As a beginner, my first match was against a player from the University of Central Florida. I was fourteen. I didn’t win a single point. He was a good sport about it, but it was embarrassing, to say the least.

Even though I didn’t realize it when I registered for the tournament, I clearly made the wrong decision about who to compete against. I got schooled, and I wouldn’t say I learned a lot.

The Wrong Competition

When athletes get too caught up in their opposition they often lose sight of the ultimate goal – improving their game.

Facing weaker opponents can encourage an athlete to feel arrogant.

Facing far superior opponents can drive an athlete to feel defeated.

Who Should Athletes Compete Against Most?

Themselves. For most of us we are our toughest competition and our most worthy adversary. When athletes compete against themselves they focus more on seeing personal improvement, hitting new personal records, and improving their levels of performance. In terms of fulfilling an athlete’s potential, this mentality will carry them farther than simply trying to look better than or beat their opponent.

Here are 5 reasons why athletes should compete against themselves. Doing so fosters:

1. A Growth Mindset
2. Continuous Improvement
3. Focus on Controllables 
4. Sustained Motivation
5. Personal Responsibility

Competing against ourselves fosters greater #mentaltoughness than counting wins & loses.
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Help Your Athletes Compete Internally

Help your athletes set performance goals that are measurable and observable. Stats, percentages, measurements, and ratings are great for this. When athletes are focused on the controllable factors of their performance that can lead to success, they become less anxious and performance improves.

Encourage your athletes to direct their competitive juices toward beating their yesterday by getting better today. Focusing on the process (the little things) will help your players execute at a higher level more consistently, both in practice and competition.

Question: What is one measurable goal you can encourage your athletes to focus on? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

• Post: Why Is A Growth Mindset Required To Reach Your Potential?
• Post: Why Do The Best Athletes Never Stop Getting Better?
• Post: How To Help Athletes Focus On What They Can Control
• Post: How to Boost Sustainable Motivation In Your Athletes
• Post: What is the Value of Accountability in Sports?
• Post: How to Help Athletes Get More Out of Practice: 3 Simple Steps

The post 5 Reasons Athletes Should Focus On Improving Not Winning first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

You’ve probably heard that we get better at what we focus on. This is why we practice. This is one reason we keep team and player stats. However, showing up to practice everyday doesn’t guarantee improvement. Even working hard is not enough if the focus and intensity of practice is off target. 

How Do You Know Your Players Improved Today?

Early in my sport psychology career, I worked with a talented volleyball team in Arizona. Their coaches were well versed in the technical and strategic elements of the game. The young women on the team were skilled in their positions and generally worked well together.

During the preseason training, I asked the coaches about goals and evaluation. I asked them how they knew if individual players were getting better. Their response was one I’ve come to find pretty typical. The coaches shared how they design drills to develop and address player’s skill levels throughout the season. They discussed their plan and training philosophy. Yet, they couldn’t nail down exactly how they would know whether a player got better that week or not.

We decided to implement a three step system to make every practice count for every player on the team. The idea was to challenge each player to challenge herself, focus on one thing each practice, and develop a habit of evaluating the quality of her practice and competition.

There was no going through the motions or phoning it in. As I told players when I was coaching, “You’re either getting better or you’re getting worse.”

In practice, you’re either getting better or getting worse. There is no staying the same.
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After Action Review

In Talented Is Overrated, author Geoff Colvin writes, “Practice activities are worthless without useful feedback about the results.”

A standard practice used by military units to evaluate the results of training or a mission is the After Action Review (AAR). This is when the unit reflects on what went well and what didn’t. They identify factors to repeat and others to improve. The idea is for the unit to capitalize on these lessons learned and refine their performance over time.

Businesses similarly review their wins and losses at a quarterly review or board meeting. In sports, teams rely on their stat sheets to highlight where they are succeeding and what they need to work on.

Daily Practice Analysis

In today’s data-driven sports environment, it has become even more important for each player to take responsibility for his or her own improvement. Remember, the best athletes never stop getting better.

For players to get better everyday they must evaluate their practice every bit as critically as they do their performance. As Pete Carroll, author of Win Forever and Head Coach of the Seattle Seahawks, professes, “Practice is everything.”

To help that volleyball team in Arizona foster daily improvement, I encouraged their coaches and players to adopt a new habit – a daily self-analysis.

To help coaches guarantee their athletes are getting better everyday, players need to evaluate themselves in 3 categories:

1. Mental Game

Each organization puts a premium on different facets of the mental game. However, I’ve found that almost every coach demands a few tenets of mental toughness.

• Focus
• Positive Attitude
• Effort
• Determination
• Emotional Control

Regardless, athletes need to reflect on their abilities to demonstrate the mental game tenets of their organization.

2. Confidence Builders

Confidence comes from at least six different sources. Have players identify the themes of their inner monologue. What are they saying to themselves? Thoughts drive performance. Therefore, an athlete’s self-talk is critical for them to be aware of.

Secondly, confidence is built by previous successes. Ask players to jot down a few things they performed well at in practice. Over time, this builds each player’s databank of successes, points they can leverage to foster and sustain confidence.

3. Goal Achievement 

Just as setting practice goals is necessary for improvement, reflecting on whether or not those goals were achieved is equally important.

Just like the After Action Review, assessing what worked and what didn’t closes the feedback loop necessary for daily improvement. Reflection and documentation solidify the learning process.

We get better at what we focus on. Athletes should focus on mindset, confidence, & progress.
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Free Download

To help you make sure your athletes are getting better everyday, I’ve made my Daily Practice Analysis free for you to download.

Help Your Athletes Get Better Everyday

Together, these three components make up an athlete’s Daily Practice Analysis. Most players can complete it in 2-3 minutes. Those precious minutes help both the athlete and his or her coaches to know that he or she is getting better every single day.

Question: Why do you think it is important for athletes to evaluate their quality of practice? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

• Book: Talented Is Overrated by Geoff Colvin
• Book: Win Forever by Pete Carroll
• Post: How to Help Athletes Get More Out of Practice: 3 Simple Steps
• Post: Why Do The Best Athletes Never Stop Getting Better?
• Video: How to Improve an Athlete’s Performance: A Proven Model

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Oklahoma Sooner’s senior guard Buddy Hield was awarded the Naismith trophy, given to the NCAA men’s top player of the year. However, Buddy’s talent on the basketball court has been work in progress. As a freshman you wouldn’t have guessed his trajectory, but his insatiable desire for mastery has served him well. This mastery mentality is shared by the best athletes in the world. It is a mentality that starts early and is never satisfied. 

The Best Athletes Keep Getting Better

Recently I’ve been talking with friends about today’s elite athletes. One characteristic that I continue to see is their determination to always get better.

Athletes at the top of their sport could easily be satisfied with their abilities, dominating opponents. But they aren’t. The best athletes keep getting better. It isn’t that they demand perfection, but excellence. They have a tremendous drive to master every aspect of their sport. I call this a mastery mentality.

Player of the Year

As an incoming freshman in 2012, Buddy Hield literally shot from his hip, according to USA Today. As a college basketball player, shots like that would be stuffed in his face again and again. He had to entirely overhaul his jump shot and rebuild his shooting technique.

Oklahoma assistant coach Chris Crutchfield fondly recalls Hield’s dedication to improving his jumper with the help of “the gun,” a ball machine which catches a player’s shots in a net and returns the ball to them. Crutchfield remembered, “We’d get done with practice and he would go pull out that shooting machine and set it up.”

Buddy would finish practice with the team and then spend another two hours working on his technique and shooting three pointers with the the gun.

Coach Crutchfield said, “There’s a drive in him that started a long time ago back in the Bahamas, when people told him he wasn’t going to be anything…I think that created this drive we’re seeing today.”

Did his hard work pay off? As a freshman, Buddy shot 23.8% from behind the arc. As a senior he shot 45.6% from three-point range.

Athletes who have a mastery mentality get better everyday.
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Components of a Mastery Mentality

What does a mastery mentality entail? How do you coach your athletes to have a mastery mentality?

A mastery mentality includes 3 coachable components.

1. Growth Mindset

Psychologist Carol Dweck, author of Mindsets: The New Psychology of Success, identifies mindset as the difference maker in those who achieve and succeed and those who don’t. Dweck identifies people as having either a fixed mindset or a growth mindset. People in a growth mindset believe their intelligence, talent, and abilities can be developed through persistence and hard work. Their genetics and talents are only the foundation. This cultivates a insatiable desire to learn, improve, and grow.

To learn more about the the benefits of a growth mindset, click here.

After winning the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award last season, as well as a national championship, Golden State’s Steph Curry (aka. the human cheat code), has gotten even better. He believes that he has room to improve and that hard work pays off.

In a recent article in Sports Illustrated, Rick Reilly shared a story from the Warriors equipment manager Eric Housen. According to Housen, he found Steph Curry and his trainers at the gym after a late team dinner, on the road, after the Dubs were off to a 10-0 start early in the season. Housen told Reilly, “We were undefeated. [Curry] was playing a ton of minutes, and yet here he was, still trying to get better when, essentially, he’s the best player in the league.”

Coaching a Growth Mindset: Praise the process (strategy, skill, and effort) that led an athlete to a successful outcome.

If Steph Curry spends his nights getting better, shouldn’t you?
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2. Attention to Detail

Great athletes don’t leave anything to chance. They have a plan, a routine, for everything. They are keenly aware of themselves, their teammates, and their opponents.

Two-time Super Bowl Champion quarterback Payton Manning is a prime example of this. Dating from his time at the University of Tennessee, Payton has been known for his relentless preparation. He knew his offensive playbook like the back of his hand. He watched so much film that he could read the opponent’s defensive set in seconds – and audible to the best play. Omaha!

Coaching Attention to Detail: Quiz players about rules, opponent tendencies, and what to do in different scenarios.

3. Always Get Better Attitude

In a documentary about Dirk Nowitzki, I learned the scientific method and genius behind his game. I also learned about his offseason rigor. Between each NBA season, Dirk and his private coach Holger Geschwindner added another tool to Dirk’s toolbox.

This pursuit of endless improvement paid off. Dirk Nowitzki is only the second player since 2004 to lead his team to a NBA championship without the help of another All-Star. Pretty impressive.

Coaching an Always Get Better Attitude: Ask players to identify two successes and one area for improvement after every practice and competition. This exercise solidifies how players are improving and what they can do to get better next time out.

How To Act Like a Champion

The greatest athletes in sports have a mastery mentality. Steph, Payton, Dirk, and many more demonstrate the work ethic of champions. Champions don’t sit on their laurels. They aren’t complacent. They don’t settle.

Great athletes pursue excellence at every opportunity. They act like hard work pays off. They act like success is in the details. Great athletes act like they can always get better. That’s what it means to act like a champion.

Question: What is one thing you can do to encourage a mastery mentality in your athletes? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

• Book: Mindsets: The New Psychology of Success by Dr. Carol Dweck
• Post: Why Is A Growth Mindset Required To Reach Your Potential?
• Post: How Can You Get Into The Zone More Consistently?
• Post: “Good Job” Isn’t Good Enough: What It Means to Praise the Process

The post Why Do The Best Athletes Never Stop Getting Better? first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

Nearly half of Americans will embark on a new set of goals this week (i.e. New Year’s Resolutions). According to the stats, the vast majority of people who make resolutions will fail to reach their goals – 92%. Furthermore, 24% fall short year after year. That reminds me of the definition of insanity (doing the same thing and expecting different results). Are you one of these people? If so, you likely have a flaw in your achievement strategy. If you’ve struggled to achieve your goals, allow me to show you how to overcome the most common stumbling blocks. 

Failed Attempts

I’ve had the great pleasure of helping thousands of people create effective goal plans. Over the years, I continue to hear some of the same struggles from people who have tried and failed. Can you relate to any of these experiences?

• Life got too busy.
• I lost motivation.
• I’m not sure if I met my goal or not.
• I’ve attempted this goal before and just don’t think I can do it.
• I started off strong but I lost momentum.

Just like you, I face these challenges too. I’ve found the goals I struggle to achieve lack key elements in my plan. When those gaps are filled are when I have a far greater chance of reaching my goals.

So, what are the common challenges people face when developing an effective goal plan? How can you overcome these challenges? Read on.

8 Common Mistakes to Goal Achievement 

Whether you are setting goals for a new year, a new season, or simply to chart a new course, you’ll greatly increase your odds of attaining your goal by having a plan. It doesn’t have to be overly complex. You don’t need sophisticated software. However, you do need a plan.

When it comes to achieving goals – a failure to plan is a plan to fail.
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When developing your goal plan, set yourself up for success by avoiding these 8 common mistakes.

1.Lack of Clarity

You have to be crystal clear on what you’re setting out to achieve. Otherwise, how do you know when you truly cross the finish line? When you don’t know where the line in the sand is, it can be hard to stay motivated and continue making progress.

Let me give you an example. The number one New Year’s Resolution for 2015 was, “lose weight.” What does that mean? How much weight do you want to lose? If you gain muscle along the way, you’ll actually gain a little weight because muscle weighs more than fat. Are you sure it’s weight you want to lose or is it fat?

A clearer version of this goal is, “Reduce body fat percentage from 26% to 16%.”

This clearer goal accounts for muscle gains and provides a more measurable and precise finish line than “lose weight.” Can you see the difference?

2. Lack of Purpose

This is often the reason behind a strong start that rapidly dwindles to a halt. Think of the goals you’ve attempted that turned out this way. Why did you pursue the goal in the first place? People set out to lose weight because they know they need to. However, if the realization itself was enough motivation, you would be making progress.

To greatly increase your success rate, you have to dig deep to identify the reasons why your goals really matter. You have to identify your why. Why is this goal important to you? What impact will it have on your life, your family, and your career? What is on the line if you don’t achieve it?

Make a list of all the reasons your goal matters. Keep it close at hand for when the going gets tough.

To achieve a goal, you must have a powerful why to drive your effort when the going gets tough.
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3. Lack of Honesty

I can’t promise that an effective goal plan will turn you into a millionaire, an astronaut, or a professional athlete. That isn’t how goals work. I’m all for optimism, but that optimism has to be grounded in reality.

Often I tell people that when I was younger I wanted to become a superstar in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Despite all my hours in the driveway, I remained a 5’9” high schooler who couldn’t dunk. As the NCAA is quick to highlight, most college athletes “go pro in something other than sports.”

You need honest self-awareness. How much time can you devote to your goal? What resources, materials, knowledge, connections, or credentials are you lacking? Make a list and determine how you will overcome the realities that stand between you and your goal.

4. Lack of Focus

Focus is a struggle for many of when it comes to goal setting. We get lost along the way. We get distracted. We get overcome by someone else’s agenda.

1. They set too many goals.
2. They don’t have a plan for reaching their goals.

The strategies of honesty, identifying your purpose, and clarifying your finish line all help to provide focus. So, if you’ve overcome the above challenges, you’re well on your way.

One additional strategy to enhance your focus on achieving your goal is to refrain from setting too many goals. I recommend that people limit the number of goals they pursue to around five. Any more than that and your attention gets spread too thin and you become ineffective. You can always add goals once one had been achieved.

5. Lack of Visibility

Another stumbling block that lends itself to a lack of focus and motivation is a lack of visibility. We get more of what we focus on. Therefore, we need to keep our focus on our goals.

The best way to do that is to create visual reminders. These can range from a simple goal list you review each morning to more creative vision boards. I’ve outlined my top five ways to create personalized visuals here.

Visual reminders helps us take action & make consistent progress toward our goals everyday.
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6. Lack of Support

You know the saying, “Two heads are better than one.” We can accomplish more with the help of others. By recruiting support, we gain accountability, encouragement, wisdom, and coaching.

However, we shouldn’t share our goals with just anyone. In a popular TedTalk, Derek Sivers, warns us against sharing our goals before we accomplish them. While I don’t fully agree, I do believe that we need to be strategic in whom we choose to share our goals with.

• believe you can accomplish your goal.
• are supportive and encouraging.
• will hold you accountable but also extend you grace.
• are further along toward a similar goal than you are.
• won’t put you down or berate you along the way.

I’m very fortunate that I can share my goals with my wife. Some goals I share with friends. Perhaps you’ll share different goals with different supporters in your life. That’s okay too. Just avoid the stumbling block of going it alone.

7. Lack of Urgency

Just like any other project or task you intend to accomplish, your goal needs a deadline. Without a deadline your goal will fall by the wayside. You’ll put more effort in tomorrow. Without a deadline there will always be time on the clock.

However, this stumbling block will rob you of progress and sabotage your focus and motivation.

To make your goal most effective from the outset, simply give yourself a deadline. Turn “Reduce body fat percentage from 26% to 16%” into “Reduce body fat percentage from 26% to 16% by July 1st.”

As you review your goals regularly, the deadline will loom large the closer it gets. Your desire to make progress and not miss the mark will help keep you moving forward.

8. Lack of Tracking

This stumbling block can make or break your successful goal attainment. Without some way to track your progress you:

• don’t know how far you’ve come,
• can’t see how far you have to go,
• and aren’t able to celebrate the checkpoints you hit along the way.

You can track your progress in many ways. Some people cross off days on the calendar. Others use a simple check list. Still others use a smartphone app to monitor progress. The point is to find a way that works for you.

If you want to see how I set, plan, and track my goals check out my free guide, click here.

Free Download

To help you set yourself up for success and achieve your goals, I developed this free goal setting worksheet.

Set Yourself Up for Success

Setting, planning, and pursuing goals adds some spice to life. Goals keep us growing, living, and cultivating excellence in our lives. To set yourself up for success and increase your odds of achieving your goals this year avoid these 8 common stumbling blocks.

Question: Which stumbling block has caused you the most trouble when pursuing your goals? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook  or Twitter.

• Post: Take Your Goal Setting to the Next Level with Personalized Visuals
• Post: Size Matters. Set Your Sights on BIG, Scary Goals for 2015.
• Post: Should You Keep Your Goals A Secret?
• App Guide: The Only 3 Apps I Use to Set, Plan & Track Goals

The post How to Accomplish Your Goals: Avoid 8 Common Mistakes first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

For 800 years have I trained Jedi,” Yoda explained to an impatient Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back. In honor of this week’s release of Stars Wars: The Force Awakens, I thought it best that we all sharpen our mental edges through the wisdom of Grand Master Yoda. Much can we learn to toughen our minds if listen we will to Yoda’s instruction.

Jedi Training

Luke was sent by the ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi to seek Grand Master Yoda in order to complete his training to become a Jedi. Found Yoda he did in a swamp on the planet Dagobah.

3 Jedi Lessons

Regardless of which arena of life you battle in, Yoda has wisdom that we can all benefit from. When it comes to mental toughness, I’ve identified 3 lessons we can learn from Yoda.

Lesson 1: Commit

Luke first discovered that his host was the great Jedi master he was seeking at dinner in Yoda’s hut. During this encounter, Yoda explained to Luke what it takes to become a Jedi. He told Luke, “The Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most serious mind.”

Without commitment we can achieve little of significance in life. Success doesn’t come easy, nor quickly. To achieve our goals will require dogged determination, relentless persistence and a deep commitment to stay the course. We must be committed to our causes, our purposes, ourselves, our families, and our teams.

This is but one essential component of cultivating mental toughness.

The next two lessons come from this famous scene depicting advanced Jedi training.

Lesson 2: Believe

As you can see in the scene, the mighty Luke Skywalker struggled with confidence – believing in his growing abilities. Does that sound like anyone you know?

When Luke gave up on getting his ship out of the swamp, Yoda replied sharply, “So certain are you? Always with you it cannot be done. Hear you nothing that I say?” Luke was stifled by his self-imposed limitations. He relied on past experience to tell him what was and wasn’t possible. Fortunately, trailblazers Thomas Edison and Roger Bannister didn’t think this way.  They both did the “impossible” by creating the lightbulb (Edison) and breaking a four minute mile (Bannister).

Back to the video clip. Luke continued to focus on limitations, “Master, moving stones around is one thing. This is totally different.” Yoda then left no room for discussion, “No! No different! Only different in your mind. You must unlearn what you have learned.”

Like young Skywalker, we stumble over what we believe to be our limitations. We give too much power to doubts and fears. As a kid, I believed anything was possible. I believed I could be an astronaut, dunk a basketball, or fly off of a mountain. Why not, I thought? We must reclaim limitless thinking and dream big once again. We must unlearn what we have learned and avoid self-imposed limitations.

Lesson 3: Do

In exasperation, Luke caved to Yoda’s insistence. “Alright. I’ll give it a try.”

Don’t we do this? I’ll try to get up earlier tomorrow. I’ll try to exercise three times per week. I’ll try harder. I’ll try to work on my marriage. I’ll try to communicate better with my team…

According to the Jedi Master, we should throw in the towel on trying. “No! Try not. Do. Or do not. There is no try.”

Infamous. Powerful. What’s wrong with trying? Should we give hard things the “‘ole college try” as the saying goes? No! There is no try. As someone once said, trying is like failure with honor.

We think if we try, no one can fault us for failing. “Well at least I tried.” In reality, what we are saying is that we aren’t willing to fully commit (see Lesson 1) to following through and getting results. We aren’t willing to put ourselves out there because we might fail. “I’ll try” is really just a precursor to an excuse. Saying we’ll try is a good way to ensure we come up short whatever the task, habit, or goal may be.

People who say they’ll try aren’t truly committed to the outcome. Don’t expect results.
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Now, Practice Your Training

Whether you are seeking excellence in sports, work, or life, much can you learn from Master Yoda. Wise he is at 900 years old. Heed his coaching to commit to your goals, believe in yourself to achieve the impossible, and do or do not because there is no try. May the Force be with you.

Question: What is your favorite piece of advice from Master Yoda? Share your thoughts in the comments section.

• Post: Ask This 1 Question to Open Doors to the Life You’ve Dreamed Of
• Video: Luke Skywalker’s Jedi Training by Yoda
• Link: Star Wars Trilogy Episodes IV-VI

The post Train Like a Jedi: Yoda’s Top 3 Secrets to a Mental Edge first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act but a habit.”

This quote from Aristotle is one of my favorites. Habits form the foundations for how we live, work and play. Whether or not we’re intentional about them, our habits shape who we are becoming. Where are your habits leading you?

Where are your habits taking you?

We all have habits and daily routines. Many we aren’t even aware of. However, due to the power of habits in our lives, we would be wise choose our habits deliberately.

John Maxwell said, “I can predict the long-term outcome of your success if you show me your daily habits.” Ten years ago, my habits were clearly not setting me up for long-term success. Thankfully, I’ve employed more intentionality in recent years and have been cultivating habits that will pay off for years to come.

Your daily habits shape the trajectory of your life.
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To get you thinking about your own habits, I’ll share with you 11 habits that are helping me cultivate a life of excellence.

Consider how many of them you may already be doing or which ones you’d like to put into action more consistently.

1. Be An Early Riser. This is one of the toughest habits I’ve ever developed. Yet, it pays off every single day. Starting my day at 5:00 AM provides me with some guaranteed quiet time (more on that next). It also makes me feel like I get a head start on the day, pursuing excellence before other people even drag themselves out of bed. Here’s a how-to guide to help you.

2. Start Every Day with a Power-Packed Morning Ritual. My morning ritual is one of my favorite parts of the day. This is really when I invest in myself, feeding my mind and body. My morning ritual is 2 1/2 hours long. Regardless, use the time you have to start your day with high impact activities like prayer, reading, journaling, exercise, meditation, eating breakfast, etc. The point is to be intentional with how you start your day!

3. Live Each Day with Purpose. We were made for a life of excellence [link]. When we pursue that excellence daily, we live with passion and we operate from our sweet spots. My purpose and passions have become clearer to me over the last few years. It takes effort, but it is so worth it.

Now, I look forward to welcoming each morning and feel more continuity and fulfillment in my life. If you’re still figuring it out, you are in good company. The links above will help you out.

4. Exercise. Where do I start? If we want to be our best selves, we have to cultivate a habit of exercise. Exercise strengthens us physically, but also mentally. People who exercise regularly  feel better, are healthier, cope better with stress and adversity and are more successful than those who don’t. Some studies have found exercise to be just as good, if not better, than medications for forms of anxiety and depression.

All it takes is a minimum of 3 – 4 days of 30 min. of sweat producing activity. In his book, The Power of Habit, Charles Duhigg says that exercise is a keystone habit, one that spurs the development of other positive habits.

5. Sleep Well. If you’re not regularly getting enough sleep, you’re probably experiencing a number of consequences. When we get 7 to 8 hours of sleep we are more creative, make better decisions, have more energy, experience better health and perform better than people who don’t.

Need some tips to help you sleep better and develop this habit? Check out my 5 Powerful Tips To Help You Sleep Better Tonight.

6. Eat Well. As the saying goes, “Garbage in, garbage out.” Fortunately, people in America are becoming a bit more nutritionally aware. Healthy food options are more widely available than they have been in the last 50 years. Most grocery stores have entire sections devoted to healthy eating. My wife and I continue to find ways to eat healthier and since we’ve begun this pursuit I’ve lost weight, gained muscle, and had more energy throughout the day.

7. Keep a Journal. It doesn’t have to be lengthly and can include anything you’d like to track, summarize, reflect on, etc. There are even apps to make it easy. If you are a leader, journaling is doubly important as you grow and process through change and decisions. I find that journaling helps keep me balanced and thinking more clearly. Keep a record of your pursuit of excellence. Be flexible, be consistent.

8. Connect with Others. Family, friends and colleagues are crucial to a life of excellence. They help us to flourish. The people around me speak wisdom into my life, share ideas and serve as a sounding board. They support and encourage me. They show me love. Feeling accepted and having at least one or two people that you can go to with anything will carry you through the good and turbulent times.

9. Rest. Do you look forward to the weekends? What about vacation? Mentally and physically we need rest. Our bodies know this and give us reminders when we’ve been pushing too hard. As a Christian, taking time for rest is a biblical mandate that, admittedly, I struggle to follow sometimes. I like results as much as you do, but my faith comes from God and not my own abilities. If he can rest after creating the universe, I can rest too.

10. Play. As we grow up, we can easily forget that this is essential to a life of excellence. Play inspires our creativity. It rejuvenates us. It enables mental agility and problem solving. These are all essential for pursuing excellence. Play games or sports. Explore and go on an adventure to somewhere new. Do something artistic. Most importantly, smile, laugh and have fun.

11. Learn Something New Everyday. If you want to live a life of excellence, you have to keep learning and growing. Today, there are so many ways to learn. I’m a naturally curious person, so this one comes easy to me. But, the point is to better yourself daily. Knowledge is power. Here’s a few ideas for how to do this during your morning commute.

Worth the work

You are probably already utilizing some of these habits. You may just do them once in a while. The key to habits is consistency. However, as Benjamin Franklin found out, we can really only create one or two new habits at a time. Pick a new habit to develop, one that you think will really make a difference for you. Work at it; solidify it.

I use Coach.me to help get my habits off the ground. You can track whether or not you accomplished your habit each day. It will even remind you if you’d like. Regardless, keep track and build momentum as you go. If you miss a day or two, just get back on the horse again.

Remember, our daily habits are shaping the trajectories of our lives. Where do you want your habits to lead? If yours aren’t taking you there, it’s time to adjust your route.

Question: What is one habit that is helping you live with excellence? I’d love for you to share your ideas in the comments to this post. 

• App: Coach.me
• Book: The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
• Post: You Were Created for a Life of Excellence
• Post: Ignite Your Fire: Where to Look to Find Your Passion
• Post: 5:00 AM: Up And At ‘Em (How Incremental Change Made It Happen)
• Post: 5 Questions to Reinvent Your Morning Routine
• Post: Discover Your Sweet Spot – Find It and Live It 
• Post: 8 Advantages Leaders Gain By Journaling
• Post: The 5 Ingredients of a Fulfilling Life
• Post: Think Smarter, Play Harder, Be Better: Sleep
• Post: Why Should Leaders Encourage Employees to Get More Sleep? 
• Post: 5 Powerful Tips To Help You Sleep Better Tonight 
• Post: Why You Should Step Away from Your To-Do List…and Play! 
• Post: Are You Getting The Most Out Of Your Commute?

The post Cultivate Excellence Daily first appeared on The Excelling Edge.