I have always loved this time of year…
The New Year for me represents a clean slate, great expectations and limitless possibilities.
I have been taking time to reflect on 2017 and working to get clarity going into 2018. As I was reflecting on my 2017 I realized how different it was compared to previous years.
For 5 years, leading up to 2017, my main goal was to be the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association Tie Down Calf Roping World Champion. This goal took me 38 years to accomplish and in October of 2016 it happened! (With a whole bunch of help from my Elite Inner Circle!)
In 2017, I did not compete.
As I was reflecting, I initially began thinking 2017 was a year I did not get too much accomplished. I did not have those visible wins and gains that I had grown accustom to seeing and gauging myself by each day.
However, I stayed in the moment, reflecting, and in time it all began to get clearer to me.
2017 was a huge year of growth and accomplishments. I was sitting in my barn when it all came rushing to me. I took a piece of paper and began writing each accomplishment down as they came to me. In a short time, I had over 20 very different accomplishments, many of which were firsts for me.
In 2017 I set goals I have never set before. I decided I wanted to write a book, become a coach and speaker. I’m going to be honest with you, starting out in 2017 I did not have clarity of how I was going to accomplish these new goals.
However, I took off and hit the ground running. About 2 weeks into 2017 I realized I did not have the clarity, the plan, the skill set I needed to achieve these new goals with the excellence I wanted to.
So, I asked myself a question: What do I need to do to close the gap to get from where I’m at to where I want to be?
My answer: Get a coach!
In 2017 I worked with some amazing coaches. I love the phrase: When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.
As I began navigating through 2017, I gained clarity of my goals, developed a success plan and began gaining the skill set I needed to work towards my new goals As I pursued these new goals, I realized I was implementing the same Mental Toughness strategies and principles that helped me win my World Championship. The Elite Mindset I was using in the rodeo arena naturally crossed over into my life outside of the rodeo arena. You know we are not Mentally Tough when things are easy. We are Mentally Tough when things are not easy.
I believe it’s possible you and I experienced a similar situation in 2017.
I will venture to say we have each experienced adversity sometime during 2017. I know I did. Here is my short list: Surgery, sickness, financial dips, confrontations/conflicts, making mistakes, failing, period of sadness. However, when I experienced adversity this year I was not surprised by it. I knew adversity was coming. Adversity is always coming. No one is excluded from it. I’ve found it is important not to let adversity be something that happens to me or define me. Instead I’ve learned to take action, applying mental toughness strategies that help me learn from adversity and grow through it.
Practicing our mental toughness consistently is how we become a Master of the Mental Game.
In working my mental game strategies, I was able to get focused and keep focused on my goals. I achieved some of my goals in 2017. I will continue to keep focused on the goals I haven’t achieve yet.
Accomplishing goals is a process.
I like to think of process as a huge staircase. Each step of the staircase is the daily work we do; hard work and smart work. It’s each skill that is improved upon and mastered. It is the everyday hustle, the grind and showing up whether we feel like it or not. We are working to get to the very top of that staircase no matter what because at the very top is our goal.
The following are 3 basic strategies I practice consistently:
(You can consistently practice these strategies too.)
- Get Addicted to Positivity: I made sure what I am reading, listening too, what I’m telling myself and the people I am surrounding myself with are positive and align with my goals. I write in a gratitude journal daily.
- Stay in Contact with my Elite Inner Circle: My Inner Circle holds me accountable to stay disciplined as I pursue my goals. They also provide support and they genuinely care about my well-being and will not hesitate to Call Me Up to be my best when I need it.
- Set Big Goals: I love having big goals and I make sure I attach my why to my big goals. My Why is My Reason I Do What I Do!
These 3 strategies are easy to do.
However, when I began implementing them, a few years ago, I struggled.
In the beginning, I found that it took work on my part to take the positive route versus the more familiar negative route.
In the beginning, it was easier to find people who would tell me what I wanted to hear not what I needed to hear. In the beginning, it was easier to set goals and purse them for selfish reasons instead of enriching others.
I realized I needed to consistently remind myself to implement these life changing strategies.
So, I had an idea. I decide I’m going to put reminders in front of me all day long, so I remember to stay positive, engage with an elite inner circle and pursue my goals for reasons bigger than myself.
I began hanging motivational and inspirational signs in my barn (check out my Facebook and Instagram posts). The wallpaper on my phone and computer were great reminders of what I must stay focused on.
I set daily notifications and affirmations on my phone as reminders of who I wanted to become. I even went old school and wrote on my mirrors with dry erase markers and carried notecards in my pocket with messages, reminders and my goals.
I was on a mission to stop this negativity in my life.
I continue practicing all these strategies. I call these Signs of Success. The return on my investment I received by consistently practicing these strategies was success. I identify success as becoming the best version of myself. I began a journey of pursing my own excellence. Excellence is a lifestyle not an event.
Eventually, it became much easier to respond positively, to think about what I want to have happen, not what I want to avoid… to see possibilities, not road blocks.
I began gravitating to people who were working towards their best version of themselves; their excellence. I began seeing the bigger picture of serving and adding value to others. For me, this mind shift occurred in small steps. I am grateful I stayed committed to these practices because it was the beginning of a beautiful transformation for me.
What are your Big Goals for 2018?
What are your Biggest Challenges as you work towards accomplishing those goals?
Do you have a success plan to attack 2018?
Let me know by commenting below…
If not, I’d love to help you identify the awareness you need to begin, help you develop strategies that work and hold you accountable to take the action needed to begin your journey of becoming the best version of yourself.
Also, if you’re interested in:
- goal setting,
- developing a success plan,
- confidence,
- being a savage of your time,
- keeping process over outcome,
- practicing present-moment focus,
- growing through adversity,
- developing personal routines to help you practice and compete with consistency,
- releasing bad performances and quickly refocusing,
- competing your best when it means the most,
I have an amazing mental toughness conditioning program that might be a good fit for you!
Throughout this program, you will gain clarity and design your custom success plan to ensure you stay on track and make 2018 one of your best years yet!
I would Love to connect with you! I can be reached by email or DM me on Facebook. I will follow up with you within 24 hours.
I know how beneficial it was for me to work with a Peak Performance Coach One on One. Prior to getting a coach, I invested years reading mental game books and articles, watching videos on the mental game and listening to interviews of athletes, coaches, sports psychologists. I was determined to figure this mental game stuff out because I knew improving my mental game would make a huge impact on how I competed. I was very consistent and motivated in my efforts to learn all I could so that I would accomplish my goal to be a World Champion.
However, it wasn’t until I began working with my Peak Performance Coach that I closed the gap from where I was at to where I wanted to be. I was learning how to apply mental game principles to my very own situations. My coach was guiding me step by step, teaching me how to apply Mental Game Principles. Finally, it all started to make sense to me. My coach was a great accountability partner and provided me with support and guidance; during the good, the bad and when the “stuff hit the fan.”
I want to do this for You!
Working with a Peak Performance Coach One on One was transformational for me. My life will never be the same. I can’t see myself competing or living my life any other way.
Make Today Count!!!
With Love,
Donene