Are You Going for the Gold in Your Life?

“Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe. ~Gail Devers *

Ever since I was a little kid, I have loved watching the Olympics. What appeals to me most is athletes from all over the world coming together to fulfill their dreams. I’m awed by the commitment it takes to reach that level of excellence. I also find myself imagining what it would be like to compete against the best of the best, win, and stand atop the podium to receive a medal.

The 2008 Beijing Games featured one thrill after another: Michael Phelps capturing 8 gold medals, Usain Bolt proving why he deserves the title “World’s Fastest Man”, the “Redeem Team” reclaiming basketball dominance and my personal favorite, Jason Lezak’s heroic, come-from-behind swim in the 400 Meter Relay, clinching the gold for his team. Jason recalled his thoughts during his amazing feat: “This guy is far ahead, almost a body length. I am not going to give up. This is doable.” Wow, talk about determination!

Although most of us will never compete in the Olympics, we all want our lives to be “gold medal worthy”. So if you want to go for the gold, it’s time to refine, here’s how…

First, let’s look at a few key attributes that Olympians have in common:

They start with a VISION inspired by passion and imagination. And they aren’t afraid to dream big. As Michael Phelps said, “You can’t put a limit on anything. The more you dream, the farther you get.” Olympians continually visualize their dream as if it’s already a reality. Lisa Leslie had a concrete goal and a “visual” to go along with it. She said, “My dream was to have four gold medals around my neck by the time we finished our last game in Beijing.” She achieved it and became the first female basketball player to win gold at four consecutive Olympics.

Once the vision is clear, it takes DEDICATION to bring it to life. For Olympians, that means practicing even when they don’t feel up to it. They press on because they realize the peak can only be reached by laying a strong foundation. Endless laps in the pool and repeating the same routine over and over are the building blocks to becoming a champion.

As viewers, we tend to focus on the glory of Olympians winning medals. But you can bet each of them suffered setbacks along the way. Olympians differ from most in that even when the odds are stacked against them or they’ve experienced defeat, they don’t quit. They display incredible RESILIENCE and keep coming back again and again, as was the case with Nastia Liukin. Many in her sport believed she was “washed up” and should “throw in the towel.” She didn’t listen and took home 5 medals, including the gold in the gymnastics All-Around competition. As Nastia said, “This makes it a little bit sweeter just knowing I’ve been through some pretty big injuries and had some doubters. It just made me so much stronger, and it made me the person I am today.”

If you ask any of the athletes, chances are they will tell you it wasn’t a smooth ride to get to the top. There were injuries, pain, competitions they lost and people who doubted them. The difference is rather than letting this stop them, they used it as fuel to make them even stronger.

And now for the most important attribute of all, in my opinion: BELIEF in oneself.

In interview after interview what Olympians pointed to the most wasn’t their amazing physical prowess or their years of training, it was a deep-seated belief in oneself. Time and again I heard them say, “I believed I could do it.” Several athletes singled this out as what motivated them and propelled them to such great heights. As double gold medal winning sprinter LaShawn Merritt noted, “People said I was the underdog…But I believed I could do it, and that is the first step in winning.” An unshakable belief in self is what distinguishes Olympians from the pack.

What about you? Have you ever had a goal in mind but thought to yourself, “I don’t think I can do it”? Stopping yourself before you even start. Or you attempted it half-heartedly with an underlying belief of, “I know I can’t really do it.”

If you have a tendency to doubt yourself, concentrate on refining your current belief system. You can do this by using one of my favorite techniques: “positive brainwashing”. Each time you find that voice of self-doubt cropping up in your mind telling you “I can’t” or whatever the old tape playing in your head says when it comes to achieving your goals, notice the thought and then make a conscious choice to replace it with a new thought such as, “I believe I can do it” or “I believe in myself” or simply “I believe”. Keep saying it every time you feel doubt and over time you will create a new belief, one that uplifts you instead of shackles you.

And finally, for me, one of the highlights of the Olympics is seeing the athletes’ elation after a hard fought win. Did you catch gold medal winning volleyball duo Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh jubilantly dancing in the sand? Their joy was contagious! Olympians know how to CELEBRATE their victories.

I’ve noticed lots of people who reach goals and simply shrug it off as if it was nothing. Even if it was something they truly wanted and took a long time to attain. Many people do not celebrate their accomplishments. Often, they spend more time thinking about what they didn’t do or what they think they could have done better. If that’s you, it’s time to do a 180: instead of expending all that energy focusing on what you didn’t do, put the spotlight on what you DID do. And since you probably won’t get to stand on a podium with a gold medal around your neck, it’s up to you to create your own celebration. So whether you run around your home jumping up and down shouting “I did it!” or sit quietly and reflect on your achievement, you owe it to yourself to savor your minor and major victories. It’s just like building a muscle, the more you do it, the stronger and more natural it becomes. Make a habit of praising yourself when you accomplish a goal. It’s an essential component of being an Olympian and you want to go for the gold in your life, right?

Until next time, keep refining!

Love,

Melissa

Time to Refine Tips

1) Vision: See it!
Start with a vision inspired by passion and imagination. Dream big! The more it terrifies you the more you’re pushing the envelope and that’s where you want to be. Once your dream is clear, continually picture it as if it’s already a reality.

2) Dedication: Do it!
It takes commitment to bring your vision to life. For an Olympian, it means endless laps in the pool and practicing the same routine over and over. Determine what the equivalent is for you and keep plugging away.


3) Resilience: Stick to it!
Olympians differ from most in that even when the odds are stacked against them or they’ve experienced defeat, they don’t succumb to negativity. So take a page from their playbook and instead of letting setbacks or naysayers stop you, use them as fuel to catapult you to the top.


4) Belief: Own it!
The most important attribute of all is a deep-seated belief in oneself. If you have a tendency to doubt yourself, focus on refining your current belief system with “positive brainwashing”. Each time you think “I can’t do it” notice the thought and then make a conscious choice to replace it with: “I believe that I can do it” or “I believe in myself” or simply “I believe”. Keep saying it every time you feel doubt and over time you will create a new belief, one that uplifts you instead of shackles you.

5) Celebrate: Acknowledge it!
Since you probably won’t get to stand on a podium with a gold medal around your neck, its up to you to create your own form of celebration. So whether you run around your home jumping up and down shouting “I did it!” or sit down and quietly reflect on your accomplishment, take time to savor your minor and major victories.

* Gail Devers is a 3-time gold medal winner. She suffered many setbacks, including serious illness. She said, “the word ‘quit’ has never been part of my vocabulary” and proved it by winning a gold medal in the 100 Meter Dash at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, less than 17 months after doctors almost amputated her feet due to Graves’ disease.

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