Train Your Mind, Transform Your Game

Get to work with a new kind of coach and watch the results begin to take shape.

Welcome to the new year, a new phase of your life – and a new kind of workout, with a new kind of coach.

If you stop and think about it, the difference between your best performance and your worst performance is your mindset. Once you unlock your mind, everything else follows. So I propose a new training regimen: This is the year when you can take that next step, with your MC – your mental coach.

You see, mental training is just like physical training. In order to get stronger and improve fitness, you need to push yourself outside your comfort zone. When you work out, getting uncomfortable means you are getting stronger. From years of coaching youth and pro athletes, I know that the same is true with mental training. If you can get mentally and emotionally uncomfortable, you can grow and unlock your full potential.

If you have never worked out or lifted weights before, you can stay safe by working with a trainer or coach. He or she can help you get uncomfortable while staying safe. You know you will be OK. The same holds true for mental training. As your MC, your mental trainer, I can show you that you are OK when you get uncomfortable and push yourself.

Over the next year, we are going to work through the Lucid Mental Training Program to get mentally stronger. No question, it’s going to be work. It also can be fun and rewarding. It can be a journey that leads to major breakthroughs. If you are ready, let’s get started with the things that will help you get the most out of this training.

Rules of Mental Training

  1. Keep an open mind: In order to get the most out of mental training, you need to have an open mind. You have to be OK with the idea that you might learn something you didn’t know before. You have to be OK with new ideas and ways of thinking. What you know has gotten you to where you are, but if you want to go farther, you need to open your mind to new things that can get you to the next step. Open your mind up to the training and you will give yourself a chance to grow and expand your mind.
  2. Be comfortable being uncomfortable: Growth comes with discomfort. Every time we grow, it is uncomfortable. To embrace mental training, to embrace unlocking your full potential even in the face of pressure, you have to embrace getting uncomfortable. You have to seek it out and begin to enjoy it. Avoiding uncomfortable situations is what is keeping you from unlocking that next level of success. Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you have tools to get you through every uncomfortable situation.
  3. Act your way into the feeling: The last rule of mental training is that you have to act your way into the feeling. Most people feel their way into actions. Mental strength and mental toughness are earned just like physical strength and toughness, by doing things even when we might not feel like it. If I had a camera and I told you to perform a scene, you could probably act out confidence or an aggressive, assertive action. That’s what this training will require you to do throughout your day and throughout your training. You’ll need to take actions even when you might not feel like it.

You have all the tools you need inside you. We’ll uncover them and sharpen them over the next year. Here is your training for January:

  1. Practice: Mental training works best when you do it daily. It only takes five minutes each day to get your mind right for the rest of the day. The goal is not to escape or find happiness; it’s to build awareness and get reps in each day to unlock your full potential. (It’s all built into the Lucid app, or you can explore other tools that help you get focused on the present and practice mindfulness.)
  2. Look for opportunities to open your mind: Find chances to think differently about health and wellness. Find chances to think differently about work, life and relationships. Begin to think differently and you will begin to do differently.
  3. Seek out uncomfortable situations: Each day, try to do something uncomfortable. It doesn’t have to be a big thing. When you try it, think about what makes it uncomfortable. If it is something really uncomfortable, see if you can get someone to join you. When you start running, you don’t start with a marathon. You might ask a friend to train with you. The same is true with mental training. Start out in the sandbox and build your skills.
  4. Start acting: If you want to build confidence, start acting confidently. You know what it looks like when someone is confident. Start acting like that and you might find yourself feeling more confident. If you want more focus, start acting focused.

Awareness activates your ability. Now that you are aware, what are you going to do with it? Mental training takes reps, so keep showing up and keep training. Great work taking the first step on your journey!

Photo credit: Thinkstock, iStock, AlbertoChagas.