Anthony J. Klarica - The Performance Mindset

In one of his six books, Athletics: how to become a champion , from 1960, Cerutty spoke about the power of the human spirit. ‘I do admit freely, frankly and fully that we are not all born equal in graces, brains or ability, but I do affirm that no power exists, human or superhuman, that opposes the genuine aspirations and sincere attempts of any personality to advance itself … I affirm that our destiny is in our own hands [although] no one but a fool would deny that we do find difficulties, set‐back, frustrations, even inevitabilities at times, and by the dozens — hundreds.’ 20

When I met and interviewed Herb in 1992, he spoke about his belief in the importance of mindset. ‘The basic ingredients for success haven't changed in 50 000 years,’ he told me. ‘They are the spirit, soul, body and mind.’ And, he added, ‘If I could pick one thing that is vital to be successful internationally, it's mental toughness. The wonderful thing about it is that you're not born with it. You can train it into yourself.’ 21

The first step towards embracing and deliberately working on mindset skills is appreciating that talent and hard work are important, but are realised and maximised only with a performance mindset. Here is a model I advocate when thinking about achieving anything.

Talent is not the foundation, or even the middle layer. A performance mindset is the foundation. Without a performance mindset there can be no progress because there is no beginning or continuing. The following chapters explore some methods of building your performance mindset.

Embrace developing your mindset. Talent is required, but is not as paramount as one might think. Mindset is more important and contributes to work rate.

Respect balanced development in the early years of sport. Recognise individual development journeys.

Embrace the idea that becoming an elite athlete takes a long time — years of time‐on‐task — so be patient.

Begin to focus on mindset skills early — both general and specific to the sport or pastime you are involved in.

Once an initial foundation of time is given to a sport, view it as only the beginning to enable ongoing growth.

Emphasise enjoyment when developing mindset skills to ensure motivation is embedded.

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