7 Lessons For Your Life and Business From Wimbledon
There are immense similarities between peak performance
in sport, and what it takes to perform well in your
life and business. The sports arena offers great
opportunities to learn more about playing successfully
in life and business. As I watched the recent tennis
at Wimbledon it struck me that there were strengths and
characteristics in the players that are necessary for
us all in order to perform at our absolute best. If
you want the best performance, either in your personal
life, your career or your business, here are the 7 key
things you need and which I observed in the tennis
players.
1. Focus.
Tennis players focus intensely and specifically on what
they're doing at the moment. Their mind isn't drifting
off to other things. They know that being focused is
essential to success and you can't take your eye off
the ball. Although their focus is more intense than
you usually need in an average day, when you take your
eye off the ball too often, you could easily find
yourself slipping behind and not staying ahead of the
game.
2. They respond fully rather than react.
Responding means that you're ready, you're prepared and
not likely to be caught out unexpectedly. Responding
comes from being grounded and allows you to choose what
to do next, whereas reacting is a knee jerk response.
Reacting means you fight fires, you're constantly
running behind and battling with the unexpected, rather
than making choices that fully contribute to what you
truly want.
3. They know what they're aiming for; where they're
heading.
You need to be clear about your aims or you could end
up all over the place. Tennis players make a conscious
choice to place a shot. They don't just hit the ball
and hope. You need to make conscious choices about
where you want to be and ensure that every action moves
you forward in the direction you want to go.
4. They see the connection between the bigger picture
and the next step.
You need to know what the bigger picture is like for
you and at the same time be willing to focus on the
moment and take the next step forward. Tennis players
know that every shot and every point counts, even if
it's early on in the game. You need to make every
action you take count and continue to build on it.
5. They're mentally and emotionally strong.
They don't allow doubt, lack of self-belief,
frustration, upsets or negative self-talk to get in
their way. They're willing to do what it takes to be
strong mentally and emotionally. When you allow your
emotions and mental chit-chat to affect you, you're not
so likely to perform at your best. As human beings,
emotions play a big part in our lives. I'm not
suggesting you deny or suppress your emotions, but just
discover for yourself what it takes for you to handle
your emotions and stay balanced.
6. Flexibility.
Tennis players need to be flexible in their approach to
each game. Each opponent is different, has different
strengths and weaknesses, so they need to be flexible
to change. If they lacked flexibility they wouldn't be
able to adapt to different situations and come out
winning. When you're flexible, you're willing to
consider the best approach for each particular
situation.
7. Clarity.
They are clear about all the components that go
together to make their game successful. Lack of
clarity holds you back, keeps you in fear and doubt and
can result in you taking lots of actions but which are
all over the place.
Life is a game and your mission, if you choose to
accept it, is to play fully.
If you want more focus, clarity and clear sense of direction . . .
Then we can help you. You'll benefit from our skills and experience of coaching people to successfully grow their business.
Take Action and find out more about business coaching
Wendy Hearn
winner of Small Business Consolidator - sponsored by Barclays Bank plc
and The Millennium Woman Awards
Wendy Hearn