A Trick of the Mind

Baseball players use a very effective trick of the mind when they are preparing to bat.

In stead of using one bat to warm up with, they sometimes use seven or eight bats.

The reason for this is simply that when it actually comes to batting for real in the near future, their mind causes their body to swing as if it is holding seven or eight bats and therefore leads to a greater hit.

In this lies a very important lesson.

We often prepare for things with the expectation that when the real time comes we will be naturally motivated to excel.

We take our preparation casually with the expectation that the excitement and adrenalin will cause us to perform at our best.

The truth is that it is in our preparation that we need to be at our peak, in order to train our minds to consistently perform at that level.

Many people believe that natural talent is what separates an average musician and an average sportsmen. Although natural talent plays a role, the key differential is hard work. The excellent sportsmen, for example, is separated from the average sportsmen by the fact that in his preparations, he creates a higher standard by which he has to perform. The average sportsmen prepares half-heartedly at times, expecting the adrenalin and the excitement of the day to cause him to perform excellently. The excellent athlete knows that his form and performance in his preparations will carry through to the real thing. Learn to adjust your standard by consistently demanding the best from yourself. This is the key to maintained success.