1) Trying to control your thinking.
2) Trying to change, manipulate, or replace “bad” thoughts with “good” thoughts.
3) Consistently judging, criticizing, or labeling your thinking.
4) Seeking a clear mind and high mind-set.
5) Looking for an explanation and/or blaming outside circumstances for how you internally feel.
6) Seeking strategies, tips, and techniques to fix any uncomfortable feelings that naturally arise.
7) Trying to control your effort and attitude.
Every athlete I have ever spoken with, ranging from professionals to middle school athletes, describe his/her high performance as “effortless,” “free,” “easy,” “don’t know how it happened.” I then ask them if they are thinking a lot or a little in these top-performing moments, and their response is always: “I wasn’t thinking” or “I wasn’t aware of any thoughts.”
Exactly.
The seven common strategies above engage the ego and intellect and add thought, which clutters your mind, lowers your mind-set, and narrows your perspective. High achievement and performance are a by-product of a clear mind—not a cluttered mind.
Stop employing these strategies.
Clarity is simpler than you have been led to believe.
Understand that you have a psychological immune system and your head will naturally clear of excess thinking (if you let it and stop employing the above strategies). Nothing will lead you to clarity of mind faster than doing nothing.
Trust your design.
Stay in the game.
Proceed.
Your head will clear.
Please reach out with your questions.
Best,
Bruce