We can all agree that to make it to the Olympics as an athlete, you must be dedicated.
I wonder if we would agree, that the same disciplines are the very ones that you need to not only survive, but to thrive in business.
Did you know that we are also related? No. I haven’t gone mad and I know we have only just met. And 
yet here I am talking to you about Olympic athletes plus suggesting that we are related. Keep reading. I promise it will all make sense.
So back to the dedicated Olympian. They already know what to do…How to swim, how to javelin, how to shot put…Basically they fully understand their ‘business’ but it is the mindset that determines their success. The specific habits and rituals that help define their path. Many authors write about this. So there must be something in it huh?
Too right!
Here is the thing….We ALL have the same family when we decide to aim for the Olympics or start and grow our business (except there are no medals…damn!) Let me introduce to you to… The Overwhelm Family.
Great Aunt Fear
She often lies on my pillow with me at night. Often takes my breath away in the morning when I think about finances.
My sister Sarah Sabotage
She is a sneaky %$@! She disguises herself often as rational fact, old stories and programming…And when I focus on these stories, I get more evidence. I often believe her. I find myself believing I am still not good enough.
Then there is my cousin Paul
He procrastinates A LOT. Often when we have been with my sister Sarah, we just hang out with our heads in the sand. It is fun at the time.
And I know you know my Dad
He doubts so much it drives me crazy. Every time I have an idea he plays devils’ advocate…He says he is trying to help. And often will enrol me into programmes, yet another online course because I am not quite good enough yet.
I really hope you know that this isn’t my real family! But they exist in ALL of us. No one is exempt from the Overwhelm Family. Not even that annoyingly successful business friend of yours. Look, this new family who comes with business really does have our best interest at heart, but their main role is to keep us safe & playing small. They teach us to not follow our intuition or our hearts – only our heads. Which of course is essential in business. But that marketing plan you paid $1000’s for, the strategy plan you dedicated yourself to at a 3 day workshop…Well, they are nothing if you let the Overwhelm Family drive this business of yours.
Now back to the Olympian…Shall we name them? So let’s go old school and because the Olympics originated in Greece. Our Olympian is called Zeus and he is a swimmer…Hey I didn’t make the rules!
Zeus for sure doesn’t walk up to his swim lane each practice and have negative self talk. He has a coach, a squad (a team), supportive family and tools to help his mindset. God help the poor guy if he hadn’t tackled this first… Imagine standing at the start of your race and you look to your left and you see Michael Phelps…To us the first thing that would pop into our minds would be…”Great, he is here. I may as well just take it easy” Hell no. His daily rituals of connecting to why he does what he does, his warming up of his success mindset would probably say something like this (remember I don’t actually know Zeus so I am paraphrasing!)
“ Oh awesome Phelps is here. He is a great sign that if he can do it so can I!”
Do you see what I did there….I changed the paradigm.
The whole reason I wanted to talk about having an Olympic mindset in business was so that you could gauge just how dedicated you really are. I mean really… Are you all in 100% or are you pushing snooze on your alarm instead of getting up to train?
No coach in their right mind would allow a team member on the field or court if that player was in a crappy space. In a losers paradigm. No way. They would be benched, they would have to warm up, train and have a pep talk. And yet we don’t do this as business owners.
How do you start each day?
I used to start each day, pushing. Looking at all the areas that I wasn’t being effective in. I think I forgot to breathe half the time. I would start my day exhausted because I was a loser as soon as I woke up. Yes. I looked for the evidence I wasn’t good enough. I spent way too long with the Overwhelm Family at breakfast. And then six weeks into running my own business and I had burnt out.
Talk about embarrassment. I had been in a high level job and that never happened. I had run other peoples businesses for years…What the hell was going on?
My mindset.
It was in dire straits…Ok let’s be honest. I was broken. I thought my strategy and plan was going to save me. Little did I know that self doubt, fear and worry basically eliminate all the hard work. You could smell me a mile off…I reeked of desperation “Buy my stuff PLEASE!!!”
It wasn’t until I found someone to help me. A coach who was able to explain to me that my expectations from the online world had painted an unrealistic fantasy of how easy it would be. Facing down the barrel that I had left my corporate job to chase this pipe dream… I knew I had to dig into my core belief system. From a belief so unwavering it could withstand four seasons, withstand the ravages of real business life and the roller coaster of cash flow.
Then the real hard work started. Facing the stories, the limiting beliefs, the reacting instead of responding (That is code for throwing the toys out of my cot!)
So how did I do this?
Firstly understand that it is a DAILY ritual. You choose everyday how you want to respond. Who you want to be? It is a choice to look at all the things that are working, what clues had success left me this week? It was understanding that business was both a long term and short term strategy.
How to start ditching the blocks?
- Become aware of the Overwhelm Family- spend less time with them.
- Stop the negative thoughts- acknowledge them, don’t fuel them, then choose the positive. It just feels BETTER! (Disclosure…You will have bad days..Totally normal!)
- Warm up like an athlete & think like a champion- Grab a journal and start affirming every morning. Write your reality as if it has happened already.
- Align with your big vision everyday. Write this down in your journal too. This will help you see how it is possible. Keep going.
- Stop reacting and start responding- Choosing your thoughts will help you take the right actions that vibrationally feel better. Like attracts like…Hey it’s a physics thing!
- Money. LOVE it. Get comfortable with your bank accounts everyday. Support your money, give it a plan. Money loves order, attention…It wants a relationship. Marry your money! Many of your blocks lie within your money beliefs.
I want to leave you with one other thing…There is nothing else to learn. Action what you already know. You wouldn’t have started your business if somewhere deep down your soul , you didn’t believe in you.
You’ve got this!
So if you are ready to take it up a notch & be a business Olympian – book a time with me now!
