A Time for Change is NOW! By Lanny Bassham

If you are like most competitors you have been enjoying a well-needed rest from competition issues during the holidays. But, as the new season approaches some decisions might be in order. First, do you need to change anything; equipment, training schedule or mental game and when is the best time to do it? I submit that the best time is now. If you want to maximize your competition results for the coming year, now is the time to make that change. Here are a few tips to aid you in doing just that.

Begin by a careful evaluation of last year. You must first determine if you have anything that needs changing. This can be accomplished in multiple areas of concern such as equipment, skill, competitions or mental game so let's look at a couple of those.

Equipment is very sport-specific and since we have readers in a wide variety of sports and performance arenas I will hold off on recommendations for equipment change.

Let's look at skill a minute. Does your technical ability grow during the off-season or does it deteriorate? Well, again that depends on your level of experience and on your habits during this period. There is a training principle that says that we tend to forget what we do wrong faster than we forget what we do right. So, taking a short break might just help your skill. However this may be discounted if you are taking a long break and your competition is getting better during this period. How do you get better? Take a lesson from an instructor and practice, practice, practice. You should know what works for you and be honest about it.

How about evaluating the benefit of the competitions you attended last year? This is a relatively easy task if you have been keeping a performance journal during the year. Simply look at the entries you have recorded in your journal and the answers to this question will be answered. But, if you do not keep a journal you must rely on your memory and the longer you take to make decisions the greater the probability that you will benefit little from the attempt. It is not uncommon for competitors to mentally go on vacation after the final competition of the year and not to think too much about the next year until a few weeks prior to the first season's competition. That is way too late! Journal or not here are several questions you need to answer about last year. What competitions were a benefit to me and why and what competitions might I do well to avoid this year and why? Once this is done you can plan for the up-coming year with confidence.

Finally, let's look at your mental game as you prepare for the new season. Is your mental game a variable or a constant? There are a lot of variables in all sports and performance ranging from weather, to judging, to equipment, to other competitors but, your mental game should be a constant. When you change your mental game based on circumstances you are not controlling your mental game the circumstances are controlling you. If you do not have a defined mental thinking system for competition now is the time to develop one.

My suggestion is to try to remember what you were thinking about when you were performing well last year. Normally, performers find that they were not thinking too much at all. Some on the other hand find that they compete best when concentrating at a higher level of focus. You need to determine what works best for you. You cannot duplicate a thing until you have defined it. Once your mental game is defined your job is to run these thoughts every time, in every competition and in practice. When you run a defined mental system you can achieve mental consistency in competitions in spite of your environment. This part of the program is not so easy to implement. The environment is constantly pulling you to pay attention to it and to alter your thoughts based on it.

So, how is your preparation for the new season coming along? Do you need new equipment, a skill upgrade or a defined mental game? If you need to change some things now is definitely the time to do it.

By Lanny Bassham

Training Coaches Program - 2010 date

Training Coaches Program Details

If you are a coach or instructor and would like to partner with us in the area of applying our information to your clients then we have some great news for you.

At some point in the near future it is our plan to certify coaches to apply the mental training that we teach to students. Our first step toward this effort is to offer the seminar Mental Management Coaches Training. Our next session will be held near our offices in the Dallas area on Jan 29 & 30, 2010. The fee is $695 per person and is limited to only 25 coaches.
(Register by Jan. 8, 2010 and SAVE $145.00)

This 2 day training program is the first step toward an official and recognized alignment with our company. The graduates of this seminar will be the pool from which we will select for our Certified Coaches Program. We will officially recognize these coaches on our website and hope to have a long on-going association with them in the future.

If you are interested in joining us I encourage you to give us a call (972-899-9640) and register for this training Today - we only have a few seats open.

Who will benefit from this Program:
Coaches
Instructors
Managers
Parents

Any coach who wants training on how to build the client or student at the same time as they teach technique.

Our Goal is to help to make your job easier and help to make you a better coach or instructor

What will you learn:

How to structure training to help build self image in your students
4 Stages of Learning
4 Participation Level
4 Readiness Factors
4 Coaching Styles
Guidelines of Coaching
Importance of Edification
Benefits of learning from mistakes
Triad State Analysis
Mastery Curve
How people learn
Teaching Moment
How to conduct Performance Coaching Session
Understanding of how the mental game syncs with technique and form
How to make your coaching program more profitable
Develop an understanding of Mental Management as it pertains to instruction
And More

Very little training is available for coaches and we are excited to offer this session!

When & Where:

Jan. 29 & 30, 2010 - Lewisville, TX at the Marriott Courtyard Hotel

Cost - $695 per person limited to 25 coaches

EARLY REGISTRATION PRICE OF $550 for those who register by January 8, 2010.

Register ONLINE HERE


Call 972-899-9640 or 800-879-5079 to register or reply to this email with questions.


The Instructor for this session is Lanny Bassham who will be assisted by Troy Bassham.

Lanny is a Silver and Gold Medalist in the Olympics, Two-Time World Champion, Official Olympic Coach for 2 Olympic Games, owner of the International Shooting School where he coached for 11 years and Mental Management Founder, Business Owner and Mental Coach for the last 31 years. Lanny also owned and operated a Multi-Million Dollar Networking Business for 20 years with extensive training in sales & leadership. Lanny has created this New Coaches Program based on what he has learned through his experiences as a coach and business owner. You won't want to miss it!

Kenda Lenseigne flys past the competitions and takes the WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP title away from the men!

We received this email recently from a customer and wanted to share it!

Hi Heather,

I was given your contact information from a friend who recently purchased With Winning in Mind on CD. I cannot stress how much this book has helped me achieve all of my goals in the sport of Cowboy Mounted Shooting – and most recently at the World Championship.

I teach riding/shooting clinics all over the US and recommend this book to all of my clients and students to help them rethink their approach to our sport. I tell them it is a must have and always say that the book pertains so perfectly to mounted shooting because it was written by a shooter, so the perspective is right on and easy to understand.

I would love to thank Mr. Bassham for this great system and for his insight, I know I have an edge in competition now because I am more focused, less worried and confident even when the pressure is high and the adrenaline starts to take over. I have been a mounted shooting competitor for almost 12 years now and felt that I plateaued until about 2 years ago when I bought the book. Since then, my horse and I have captured 6 world records and I became the first and only woman to win the overall at the world championship, beating all of the boys to claim this title!

Sincerely,
Kenda Lenseigne

www.kendalenseigne.com

Mental Management is being used by competitors in a variety of sports. We enjoy receiving emails and photos from our customers who have used our system to achieve their dreams. Congrats to Kenda from the entire Mental Management Team!