Archive for the ‘competition’ Category

Do The Unexpected!

Monday, August 2nd, 2010

Thanks for stopping back by my blog.  I know I was a day late in getting this up; thanks for your patience.  On that note, I’m going to take a break from my weekly blogging.  I’ll still be writing an occasional post, but at least for the time being it won’t be on a weekly basis.  Please, sign up to follow me on twitter so you can receive a tweet any time a new post is available, or check back periodically to see the most current posts. 

Now, without further ado….. this weeks post.

Try This At Home………………….. 

Play rock, paper, scissors with your child.  For ten games in a row choose to be the same thing.  After a few games your child will figure out that you are playing in a predictable fashion.  Then on the 11th game switch your item of choice.  Afterward, explain to your child that having a wide variety of tools and skills will make him more unpredictable and versatile, allowing him to gain the upper hand on his opponent or make an extra good impression at school or work.

There are times in life when being predictable is important, but when you child is trying to out whit his opponent, the last thing he wants is for his opponent to know exactly what he is going to do.  The concept transfers to other areas of his life as well.  Your child’s teachers and future bosses will value your child’s consistency, but it is when your child goes above and beyond their expectations that he will really get noticed. 

I specialized in track cycling, and while the match sprint event wasn’t the race I specialized in, I did race it occasionally and I always enjoyed watching it.  The sprints are probably the most well known track event.  Based on the rider’s 200 meter time trial time, a bracket is made and riders compete in several rounds of racing.  Each race is three laps and is generally raced between two or three riders.  The first rider across the finish line wins.  Riders generally do not go all out for the entire race; riders most often employ cat and mouse tactics to gain the upper hand.  The race is very short, fast and explosive.  Because it generally is a race between two people,  it is very important to know your opponent’s strength and weaknesses.   The best way to win the race is to force your opponent to race in a manner that doesn’t allow him to use his strenths, allowing you to gain the upper hand and win the race. 

I heard many of the United States sprinters talk about the tactics they planned to emply against their opponent. Many of them had to resisit the temepation to be predictible themselves; it was very tempting for them to revert to their own “bread and butter” tactics, because it was what they were most comfortable with.  By having a wide variaty of tools and strengths the sprinters made themselves more versitle, less predictable and thereby tougher competition.

As I said before, it is good for your child to have a standard that they hold themselves to and in that sense be predictable.  In some situations though your child will gain the upper hand by doing the unexpected.  Talk with your child about times in his life when being unexpected would be benefiicail.  He should be able to come up with several examples on the sports field, but encourage him to think outside the box as well.  For example, if he suddenly does a big, unexpected , extra chore at home, maybe he’ll gain your favor and trust and have the opportunity to earn extra allowance.

Thank you again for being a loyal visitor to my site.  Please check back occasionally for new posts.

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Posted in Opportunities, Strengths and Weaknesses, Uncategorized, competition | 1 Comment »

Maintaining Focus in a multi-competition event

Monday, July 5th, 2010

While all the fans were out partying during the FIFA Soccer World Cup, the teams had to stay focused for their next game .  One of the hardest parts of a multi-competition event is the challenge of staying mentally and physically sharp and focused.  Here are five tips to help your child stay focused the next time he has multiple games or races on his schedule.

Five Tips To Help Your Child Stay Focused.

Keep The Celebrating Brief 

You and your child can be thrilled with each win of the event, but the ultimate goal isn’t accomplished until the final match has been played.  It’s important to acknowledge the success and use it as positive momentum for the next game, but don’t dwell on it and become lackadaisical.  In the midst of celebrating it is easy to cut a cool down short or forget to re-hydrate; these mistakes could be costly during the next competition.

Get Healthy

If your child has a nagging injury or soreness from his previous competition he needs to address it immediately after the competition.  Whether it be taping his ankle, seeing his chiropractor, getting a massage, stretching or icing down his sore muscles, he needs to address his physical condition promptly. 

  • He won’t always feel one hundred percent for his next game; he’ll likely feel some fatigue from his previous competitions, but staying on top of his physical condition will help him feel as  close to it as possible.

 Asses His Next Opponent

  • The first thing your child needs to do after a victory in a tournament is get mentally ready for what comes next. He needs to know when his next competition is and who he is competing against. 

This is the time for him, his team and coach to asses the new opponent and learn his or her strengths and weaknesses.  Not every opponent is the same and your child may need to change his strategy for the new opponent.

Keep A Routine

Throughout your child’s competitions you want to encourage him to be a little self absorbed.  While he should enjoy the friends and family who are there to support him, it isn’t the time for him to be accommodating everyone else’s schedule. 

  • He needs to get plenty of rest; that means going to bed at a reasonable hour and getting naps if at all possible.
  • He should eat familiar and healthy meals; during a tournament isn’t the time for him to try Thai for the first time or to be eating a lot of greasy fast food.
  • Your child shouldn’t feel obligated to play host to his family and friends.  He need to be at his practices and team meetings prepared and on time.

Enjoy The Festivities With Care

Some Competitions may be a once in a life time opportunity and I encourage your child to enjoy it as long as it doesn’t interfere with or sacrifice his preparation for his next competition.

At the 2000 Olympic Games I was strongly discouraged from participating in the Opening Ceremonies because I competed just two days later.  I knew another athlete who had been discouraged from participating in the 1996 Opening Ceremonies.  He had figured he’d just do it at his next Olympics, but he didn’t make the team four years later.  He never got a chance to experience Opening Ceremonies and he really regretted it.  So, in 2000, despite intense pressure not to, I decided to go.  I took some precautions to make sure the experience wasn’t too taxing; I sat down as much as possible, even on the field during the ceremony, I ditched the official shoes high heals and wore comfy tennis shoes instead, I made sure I stayed hydrated and I went to bed immediately following the ceremonies.  Opening Ceremonies was a phenomenal experience and I have no regrets in my decision, and in case your wondering, I had a personal best two days later.  I was so pumped up from the Ceremonies that it helped motivate and focus me.

  • Your child is there to compete, and win, and that should be his main priority, but despite what some people say, sometimes there is a lot more to a competition than just winning!

These five tips will help your child stay focused on the ultimate goal.  .

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Posted in Focus, Peak Performance, Uncategorized, competition, motivation | 1 Comment »

Seizing Opportunities

Monday, March 15th, 2010

Try This At Home…………….

Chose a task that requires leaving the house and ask your child to join you.  It should be a task that isn’t overly thrilling, something like grocery shopping, taking the recycling to the recycling center, etc.  Make his coming a choice. Say something like, “I’m taking the recycling to the recycling place, do you want to come give me a hand?”  If he decides to go with you, take the opportunity to stop and get some ice cream together afterward.  If he chooses not to join you, stop and get the ice cream without him and bring it home so he realizes that he missed out on the opportunity.  Regardless of what he decides, use the situation as an example to explain the importance of opportunities.  Explain that opportunities can arise anywhere, at anytime and in many forms.  Some may come from a bit of luck, but most opportunities arise from putting yourself in a good situation and being prepared for what ever happens.  Share the information below with your child.  Also, ask him to think of a time where he seized an opportunity, or missed one?  He may have to think a bit, but my guess is he’ll come up with a few.  If he is very young, you may have to help him think of one.

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My son Micah is two and a half.  At the end of his gymnastic class, they always play with a parachute.  A few weeks ago the teacher asked him if he wanted to help pull out the parachute, but he was distracted and by the time he got over there some other kids had jumped in and helped her.  He was upset and started crying.  In the meantime, the teacher had all of the kids sit in the middle of the parachute so they could go for a ride.  Micah wouldn’t get in the middle. I even tried to lift him up and put him in there, but he wouldn’t have it, he was still too upset about not getting to help pull out the parachute.   I ended up having to pull him aside.  He calmed down some and I brought him back out for the next activity, but he got even more upset when he realized he’d missed the parachute ride. He was so busy crying about wanting to do the ride, that he missed the next activity too.  Needless to say, the class didn’t end well.  My point in sharing my son’s temper tantrum with you is that sometimes, like him, we are so focused on the past, we miss out on the present and don’t jump at a new opportunity. 

Success is usually the product of hard work, determination, persistence and discipline but there are a few other components that can come into play. Sometimes success comes from seizing an opportunity that presents itself, even though it wasn’t part of the original plan. Teaching your child to be flexible, spontaneous and optimistic will help him take advantage of opportunities as they present themselves. 

Three Keys To Seizing Opportunities

1. Putting Yourself In the Right Place

The biggest part of being able to take advantage of an opportunity is putting yourself in the right position. Your child can’t get the ice cream, if he isn’t in the car when you stop for a scoop.  If your child has put in the work and is prepared, he’ll be ready and able to jump at a good opportunity.

I felt absolutely awful at the 2003 National Championships in Trexlertown, Pennsylvania.  I didn’t have good legs all week.  In the point’s race, despite being in a breakaway with two other riders, I felt absolutely awful.  (The points race is a mass start event where a group, or pack, of cyclists race to see who can acquire the most points.  You get points from both sprinting and gaining a lap on the field.  A breakaway is where several riders get out in front of the main group, thereby collecting most of the points.) Normally sprinting was my strong suit, but for some reason during this particular race I just didn’t have the legs.  I knew I was going to take third unless I did something; the problem was I just couldn’t get my legs to go.  Then, an opportunity presented itself, and I took it.  Our breakaway of three riders was about to lap the main group of cyclists.  There were only a few laps left in the race and the group was only about a turn in front of us, maybe about 100 to 150 meters.  The other two girls in the group had more points than me and were so busy focusing on each other, that they kind of forgot about me.  Any rider who lapped the field earned twenty points, so if I lapped the field and the two other girls in my breakaway did not, then I would win the race.  While they watched each other, I surprised them and took off really fast, breaking away from them.  I put my head down and rode as hard as I could to catch the group.  Once I caught the group I couldn’t let the other two catch as well, so I went to the front and pulled everyone along.  I managed to prevent the other two girls from catching the group and won the race.  I won the race, not because I was riding great that day, but because I put myself in a position that allowed me to take the opportunity when I saw it. 

2. Shaking It Off

Often times an opportunity presents itself after something else has not gone as planned.  Being able to set aside disappointment and not dwell on the past will help your child stay focused, keep an optimistic mindset and see new opportunities.  As hard as it is to believe sometimes, the past does not equal the future.  Mistakes are good chances to learn and improve.  Just because something didn’t work out, doesn’t mean that it’s a lost cause.  Sometimes your child will have time to regroup after a misstep, other times an unexpected opportunity my follow immediately; he just needs to stay focused and roll with the punches.

If I’d given up during the 2003 National points race, because my legs felt lousy and the race wasn’t going well, I never would have taken the chance I did and I never would have won the race.

3. Being A Risk Taker

Most opportunities aren’t a sure thing.  In many cases, in order to seize an opportunity, you have to take a risk.  A lot of the time, like in my case during the points race, you have nothing to lose by trying.  Next week’s blog will be about risk taking, so stay tuned.

Encourage your child to work hard and keep a good attitude so that he can be ready to pounce on an opportunity when it presents itself.  Remind him that an opportunity can pop up at any time.

For more information on me, or to purchase one of my children’s books, please visit www.erinmirabella.com

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Posted in Opportunities, competition, winning and losing | 2 Comments »

Raise your child’s game through competition and modeling.

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

Try This At Home……………………………

Here is a great way to help you child improve in a sport or activity that he or she is already interested in and good at.  Find out who is the most celebrated person in that sport or activity and do some serious research on them. (Research them on the Internet, watch videos of them, etc.) Analyze the specific things that make that person successful and encourage your child to emulate and model them.  Have your child work on improving those characteristics or skills you identified.

Next, find someone locally who is just a little better than you child and, if possible, have your child practice with him or her on a weekly basis.  Encourage your child to learn from them.  Monitor the situation to make sure you child is having fun and isn’t getting frustrated.

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Competition makes you better.  If your child is always the best player on the team or in his or her league, then they aren’t being challenged and pushed to improve. If at all possible, find someone for you child to train with who can push and challenge them.  This will prevent their progress from becoming stagnant. Without competition your child ends up a big fish in a small pond. Later, it’s hard to move from the pond, where he or she is the star and accustomed to winning, to the lake or ocean, where he or she is just a little fish and won’t necessarily find success immediately.  (It’s not a bad idea to get a realistic idea of what you child can expect when they bump up to the next level, but I’ll save the details of that for another post.)

My first year training at the Olympic Training Center was a gradual immersion into the world of elite international racing.   My second year however, felt more like getting thrown into the deep end of a pool to see if I’d sink or swim.  Thankfully I didn’t sink, but that was in large part because I was training with stronger, more experienced women.  They pushed me every day, physically and mentally, and their presence both encouraged and forced me to raise my game if I wanted to succeed.

I vividly remember a training day at a World Cup selection track camp in Plano, Texas. Nicole Reinhart*, Karen Dunn and I were all vying for a spot in the points race at the upcoming World Cup, and each work out was considered by the coaches in selection. This particular work out was on the velodrome (a cycling track.) Our coach was driving the motorcycle and we were taking turns coming around the motor and leading out sprints to the finish line.  The goal was to win the sprint.  Karen and Nicole were much more experienced than me.  For the first few sprints my timing was all off; I would either go hard too soon, or I would kick too late.  I’ve very competitive, but instead of getting frustrated I tried to figure out what the other girls were doing that I wasn’t.  We were rotating through and taking turns leading out the sprints, so every third sprint I had an opportunity to watch them from behind.  I noted how they made their moves, when they made their moves, and how successful they were at it. I started copying their successes and by the end of the workout I was winning sprints. 

That year I trained with, lived with, and vied for spots against those same women, over and over again.  As difficult and stressful as it was at the time, it was probably one of the best things that could have happened to me, because I never became complacent and improved immensely.

Later on in my career I didn’t have that same benefit.  I found that training with guys was another way to raise my game.  This is one advantage women have over men, women always have the opportunity to train or practice against someone stronger and faster than them, because they can train with the men. 

I am grateful that I learned this lesson early on in my career. If you child has aspirations to make it to the next level, then he or she needs to constantly be looking for ways to improve.  Training with and modeling after people who are better are great ways to do that. Just like in a free market, we all benefit from healthy competition.

* Nicole Reinhart was a fantastic road sprinter, fierce competitor, a good, kind person, and someone I looked up to and admired. Her life was tragically cut short in a cycling accident during a race on September 17, 2000.  I’d like to dedicate today’s blog to her memory and encourage you to visit www.nicolefund.org for more information about her.

For more information about me or my children’s books, please visit www.erinmirabella.com.

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Posted in Goal Setting, Modeling, Role Models, Strengths and Weaknesses, competition | 2 Comments »