Rule your own state.
Yesterday in my wife’s Telegraph I was lucky enough to be able to read a short piece about Haile Gebrselassie, the world’s greatest ever distance runner and holder of the Marathon world record. I show extracts of it below.
What he had to say about mind control and self control was fascinating. It echoes exactly the approach that I have been advocating for the past ten years or more to my own skiing pupils. To have it said by someone of such incredible talent and success is extra reinforcement though. (So, I’m sure he will be grateful! J )
Years ago at a Neuro Linguistic Programming conference I was particularly struck by something one of the keynote speakers said – she said: “I’ve come to believe that ‘state’ is everything.
The ‘state’ she was referring to was mental state, and the important point she was making and with which I totally concur, is that your mental state is a matter of choice; it is not forced on you from outside of your self. There are forceful techniques which you can learn and with which you can become skilful, which facilitate your creating your best mental state before and in readiness for whatever it is you plan to do.
Here’ what Gebrselassie said:
Successful athletes need to display "a strong set of values".
First win the internal battle: then don't let anything stand in your way.
First they must win themselves. How do they do that? First, do enough training.Then believe in yourself and say:"I can do it.This is my day.The one over there, he is the same as me; he has two legs same as me, that is all.
Like some high official you have to tell your brain:Do it. Come on. I have to do it. Always, if you win mentally, you can win physically as well.
This sense of separation of mind and body, the idea that orders are given almost remotely by a dominant internal spirit to a flagging set of muscles and tendons, lies at the heart of Gebrselassie's preparation.
The single greatest factor determining his own success, he insists, is discipline - a sharply self-improving attitude.
If you have a fear of failure, says Gebrselassie, "when you start, don't be nervous. Why be nervous? It's not the end of the world. (the mountain) will be there tomorrow and tomorrow: it will be there year after year, after that.
Run (ski) in the present, but remember you have a future too.
Much of what Gebrselassie is saying lies at the core of coaching; as much as anything the ability to master something, such as skiing, depends on how you handle the setbacks and the hold ups.
It takes mental strength and determination to succeed, at anything. That can be built, but it won’t build itself.
I have a number of “white papers” which many of my pupils already have copies of, and which are available on request – you can find my email on www.bobski.com and you are welcome to copies.
Let’s face it, if it’s good enough for world record holders, we could all do a piece of it, and to find that it’s not some arcane secret available only to the chosen few, but that it’s there for you and me, is good news isn’t it?
Bob
