Mental Toughness Mastery Podcast with Sheryl Kline, M.A. CHPC

In 1976, Steve Wozniak suggested to Hewlett Packard (his employer at the time) the idea of creating a personal computer. He was rejected, so he and his friend Steve Jobs got to work themselves on their dream of individual creativity for each user. Martin Luther King had a dream that someday we would all be equal. When Michael Phelps was 7 years old, he had a dream that there were no limits on what he could achieve. Did these world-class performers meet all of the criteria of S.M.A.R.T. goals (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, timely)? No. They dreamt big and worked every day like that dream was possible, even through massive setbacks and failures. Here are a couple of reasons why YOU should dream big too: 1.) Broad to Narrow: When you dream big, are more optimistic, and shoot for the stars, you are more aware of opportunities that present themselves. This broad awareness may lead you to be more confident and throw your hat into the arena for opportunities that arise. In contrast, a narrow focus, being conservative or unconfident makes it less likely you will try and more likely you will give up if you do try. 2.) The Two Things That Will Happen: ... if you dream big and proceed every day like it is possible. Your dream will come true or you will reach a level of success that would have otherwise never been available to you. It’s been proven over and over that world-class performers achieve their status based on a belief they can do something and consistent and deliberate hard work. What’s important to you? 3.) Role Model the Way: Ever since I was in elementary school (a VERY long time ago!) my dad would tell me that I was smart enough to do whatever I wanted. I just needed to learn how to be resilient. I heard that so often, I believed him, and I’ve found it to be true over and over with myself, my kids and with my clients.! Consider that we believe what we hear repeatedly from those who have influence over us. Especially from a young age. If you can model the way to dream big, others who look up to you will do the same. Is there anything big or small that you dream of doing? Maybe a trip, learning a new language, running a half marathon or even reversing global warming:). Remember the books Peak and Talent is Overrated I recommended from last week? You are only limited by what you think is possible, so start dreaming big! :) Mental Toughness is the tool belt or catalyst which helps you to make consistent progress and to be happy along the way. Please check out the library of (free) resources on my website (www.SherylKline.com) or schedule an appointment with me if you’d like to learn more! Please do share if you found this helpful, and keep your eyes open for "Mental Toughness Mastery" which is my new monthly livecast coming out in the next couple of weeks! I am SO excited to share this with you, and you will be the first to know once it is launched!

It is a common misconception that ‘either you have it or you don’t’. In other words, either you are good at math or you are not. You are talented at one sport but not at another. You are a follower and not a leader etc. Here’s something that most people do not know! There is no scientific proof that, even if one excels as a young person, that ‘talent’ is an indicator of whether or not you can become an expert. Sure, if you are 5’2” male, it may be difficult to play basketball at a high level (but not impossible!). All things considered, YOU are capable of much more than you think regardless if you have ‘talent’ or not. There’s one thing you can start doing now that will help you to be world-class in what’s important to you: Deliberate Practice. Anders Ericsson has spent decades researching this very topic and has written an entire book on deliberate practice, Peak. Here are the most important take aways that you can implement now: 1.) Find an Expert: Choose a mentor, a coach, or even YouTube! Find a way to understand the best way to do what you want to do. Ideally, this would be a someone who could watch you, and then make suggestions on how to improve. This can get expensive, so YouTube or some other online (free) learning platform is an alternate option. 2.) Create Mental Representations: Mental what? These are just ‘pictures’ that we hold in our mind. For example, if I say the word ‘cat’, you will likely think of a small, furry, four-legged animal. You have an image in your mind or a mental representation of a cat! Whether you are a swimmer looking to drop time or an engineer trying to develop a code, you will need to know how an expert does what you want to do. Then you will need to create a mental representation of how to do it. 3.) Practice: Practice the mental representations, get input from an expert (or self monitor if need be), make adjustments, repeat. Here’s an example. You swim the 100 free-style, and the most important thing you can do to drop time is to pull more water. Go back to step 1 (grab an expert), create a mental representation of how this expert would pull water, practice, get corrected/make the correction yourself, practice again, repeat. You get the idea. Whether you want to improve in a sport, at work or any other endeavor, deliberate practice is a tool that can help you to take a big step towards that big dream! Here’s to you being amazing! Please do share if you found this helpful, and keep your eyes open for "Mental Toughness Mastery" which is my new monthly livecast coming out in the next couple of weeks! I am SO excited to share this with you, and you will be the first to know once it is launched!

World-class athletes are very deliberate in the way they practice and compete. There are a couple things that we can do too to help boost confidence and encourage our best. Here's how: 1). Start with Clearing the Mind: Sounds simple, but not always easy! One way to begin the process is to do a couple ‘box breaths’ before high pressure or competitive events. It’s simply inhaling for 5 seconds through their nose into their diaphragm, extending their stomach, holding for 5 seconds, exhaling for 5 seconds through their mouth, and holding for 5 seconds. So, in for 5, hold 5, out for 5, hold 5. They should be sitting or standing up straight, be comfortable and in alignment. Here's why it works. Research has proven that breathing exercises can change the pH of our blood, change blood pressure, and stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system which is the one that calms us down. This type of breathing also activates the Vagus nerve, which helps to deactivate the stress response, and helps calm us down. You have now cleared the slate for what’s important. 2). Let Go of the Outcome: One thing you can do is to focus less on outcomes and more on preparation and mastery. You have control over preparation and mastery and usually don’t have control of outcomes. In order to have our best shot at doing our best, it’s the process that deserves your attention, not the outcome. Are you what is expected or what you need to do? Are rested for the big day (hopefully most days!)? Do you have a strategy? You need to own whatever important event you are preparing for, not the other way around. Master what you have control over, that’s it. Here's why it’s important. World-class athletes do not worry about what happens if they fail or don’t measure up. If they do, it’s managed effectively and efficiently. The reason being, it’s distracting. In order to do your best, just prepare, clear their mind, assume their desired result will happen, and dismiss any worry of the outcome. HINT: If this is difficult, you should go back to those box breaths. 3). Set Intentions: If you can increase self-efficacy (the belief that you can accomplish something), your confidence should follow. Intentions, things you know you can or will do. For example, “I am fast, and I will run my hardest.” The outcome may not be in your control, but you will start to believe what you tell yourself over and over again which boosts confidence. That gives you your best shot at being as amazing as possible. Here's why it works. Simply, setting Intentions gets you focused on what’s important for you to your best. It’s also an internal accountability system. World-class athletes typically perform their best when they are calm, carefree (of the outcome) and focused. Clearing your mind, letting go of the outcome and then setting an intention will help you have a world-class mindset and champion results. Please do share if you found this helpful, and keep your eyes open for "Mental Toughness Mastery" which is my new monthly livecast coming out in the next couple of weeks! I am SO excited to share this with you, and you will be the first to know once it is launched!

Sheryl Kline, M.A. CHPC discusses One Secret About Errors Your Competition Doesn't Know

Sheryl Kline M.A. CHPC discusses 3 Secrets to Increase Willpower

Unfortunately it’s only about 2% of us that can successfully multitask, typically not doing either task well (David Strayer, Director of the Applied Cognition Lab, University of Utah). Part of becoming Mentally Tough involves focus. Focus requires doing one thing at a time, unless we’d like to accomplish less while taking more time. Working hard isn’t always working smart, so let’s make get efficient with our most important task at hand. Here are a few tips on how getting used to doing "The One Thing" can help us go from good to great in less time. I also encourage you to read the book The One Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan. For more information on Mental Toughness, visit www.sherylkline.com to find FREE videos, articles, tools, interviews, testimonials and more. To reach Sheryl Kline for 1:1 coaching, group coaching or speaking/workshop engagements, please email info@sherylkline.com or call (925) 257-4257.

Certified High Performance Coach Sheryl Kline discusses her story and passion for Mental Toughness Coaching. For more information on Mental Toughness, visit www.sherylkline.com to find FREE videos, articles, tools, interviews, testimonials and more. To reach Sheryl Kline for 1:1 coaching, group coaching or speaking/workshop engagements, please email info@sherylkline.com or call (925) 257-4257.