Pressure Pop Your Cork?/Live It!

So what of Tulowitzki? The Rockies pulled out one more run to win the game and sweep the Phillies to move into the National League Championship Series. Tulowitzki's strike out wasn't fatal to the team, nor I suspect to the Rookie of the Year candidate's career.

So, the first lesson of keeping your cool under pressure: Realize that the stakes aren't your life! Mistakes happen, we don't always win. But life doesn't end because of it. How you respond is what counts. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off and try again. Use the experience to grow into someone better and stronger. Try again until you succeed.

Other thoughts:

• Think ahead about what it will take to do an excellent job. It's not the win. It's doing your best that represents success.


• Concentrate on the basics of what you're doing. Don't concern yourself about the results. If you take care of the basics, the results will take care of themselves.


• Focus on the moment. Don't drift. Don't think about either failure or success. What matters is what you're doing in the moment.


• Understand that people in the audience are on your side. Most of them would never be in your shoes and they don't want to witness a crash and burn. They are secretly rooting for you. Smile at them and they'll smile back.


• Plan ways to get some wins. Whatever plagues you (like a fear of speaking), find some ways to practice in a less threatening environment and get some wins. Practice and small successes breed confidence that will pay off later.
  

One of the first motivational films I saw was done by a psychologist who had a fear of heights. This was a lady who threw up at the thought of high places. To conquer this fear, she parachuted out of a plane. But not until after many hours of practicing jumping out of the plane while it was still on the runway.

She also took courage from her instructor who told her why he wasn't afraid of jumping out of a plane: "I pack my own chute." Prepare, practice, and focus. You'll do fine.

See you next week.

Use 'em While You Got 'em/Live It!

So you've got legs and want to use 'em? Welcome to the race!

In my initial vision-casting blog, I referred to "the more noble pursuits that represent the true calling of men." Among those are taking responsibility for your life, exercising foresight, and making plans. Three things you won't see men doing in a beer commercial.

Taking Responsibility. You've heard it before, your life is what you make it. If those stakes aren't high enough, add the fact that, when a family is involved, there are other lives tied to your own. Determine to make your life a success and, by doing so, you'll bring others with you.

Start with your priorities. Whatever they are--relationships, career, God--define what success looks like for you in that arena. Visualize where you want to go. When you can see it, the target becomes easier to aim for and to hit. Then decide that you're going for it. Hold nothing back. As a life insurance agent once told me, "People always have money for something they want." The principle he was preaching: If you really want it, you'll decide to do it and it will get done.

Foresight is problem solving in advance. Analyze your current position as compared to your destination. What are the best routes to your goal? What assets do you have that will help you get there? What are your liabilities and what can you do to minimize or eliminate them? Be realistic when analyzing the costs--in time and resources. Is what you want worth what you will give up?

Be sure to balance your priorities. You're not pleasing God if you're neglecting family responsibilities to accomplish a spiritual goal. You're not helping yourself if you turn in a poor performance on your current job while pursuing a career change. Some of this falls under the category of risk, which should be considered as well.

Making plans. Now, pull it all together. A plan can be formal or informal. It can be for today, for next week or for well into the future. It helps me to break down long-term plans into shorter, more easily attainable goals. It's encouraging to reach interim objectives as you move forward on a big plan. (Completing a college degree may be a two-year job, but the first two courses may only involve the next four months.)

Set some milestones so you can check your progress from time-to-time. Include others in your plan for both accountability and encouragement. (Choose wisely who you involve. Someone you can count on. Maybe someone who is making the same journey.) And be ready to adjust your plan. Life changes and new assets and liabilities emerge as you move down the road.

I've given you a lot to digest. What's most important is that you do take responsibility for your life and that you're proactive about moving towards the goals you want. Making the decision to engage--to use those legs--may be the hardest thing you do.

(Next topic on Monday.)

Man Word Blog Begins/Live It

"Don't tell me what you're going to do, show me," my dad used to say. He was always one for action. It's a value I've come to appreciate more and more in this life. All too often, I see men who think about it, dwell on it, dream about it, and even talk it up. But IT never happens.

All too often, I'm that man.

My final post of each week will be focused on application. Because the best lesson is no lesson at all if it's not applied to living.

My desire is to see an intentional generation of men rise up to take responsibility. Men who face life's challenges with confidence, do the right thing even when it hurts, respect themselves and others and act accordingly. Men who make it happen.

That involves putting into action the principles that you learn.

I hope you'll join me in this life quest. Let me know you're following the trail. Send me your questions on issues that are important to you and I'll speak to them out of my experience and out of resources that have been helpful to me.

I'll be here each week, with provocative topics that will make you think, with challenges to take you deeper, and applications that will help you live it!

The first installment begins Monday. See you then.