RESPONSE QUESTION(S):
- What were your overall thoughts and impressions of the book The Fearless Mind as a whole? Be honest! Be sure to explain your answer.
- List three things you can take away from the book and how you can apply them to yourself this coming season.
- Based on your reading and your own personal experiences, define what having "a fearless mind" means and looks like.
"We think that extremes are the answer to high performance rather than finding the right balance from one moment to the next" (151).
"To tweak means 'to improve (a mechanism or system) by making find adjustments to it'" (151).
"Stay attentive to how [you] felt from one moment to the next and make good decisions" (152).
"If only they could take a step back and see that the zone is right in front of them. Just a little tweak and they would find that balance, that momentum that can take them further than they ever imagined.... We need to be careful of superstitions that prevent us from finding the zone.... Give up on superstitions and address each situation on its merits" (152).
The Highest Level
"You are only as good as the decisions you make" (153).
"The highest level of performance occurs when we have a clear understanding of what we are trying to accomplish and have a plan of action to achieve it. We have then developed and refined the fundamental skill sets needed. We know our strengths and weaknesses and are completely comfortable with who we are and how to maximize our strengths while minimizing our weaknesses. Finally, at that point we have disciplined our minds to stay attentive to the present, providing ourselves with the capacity to process large amounts of information at incredible speeds, allowing for split-second decision-making with minimal hesitation and doubt" (153).
The Power of Decision Making
"In the long run, the sword is always beaten by the mind" (155).
"[We must channel our] energy toward the tasks that [we] need to perform in order to improve [our] performances" (155).
"[We must have] a specific plan that channels [our] attention to the details of what [we] want to accomplish in [our] attempt to achieve the objective" (156).
"It doesn't matter what the physical setting is, it is our mental approach to what we do that determines how successful and happy we feel, and whether we continually learn from what we do well and what we can do better, channeling all our energy toward controlling what we do well and what we have control over. It is through taking responsibility for the decisions that we make and learning to control those aspects of our composition (spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical) that we develop a fearless mind. With a fearless mind it is only a matter of time before we find the path to what we seek. Once on the path, the joy of continual growth, of self-mastery, begins; and when it ends... I don't know. I don't know if it ever ends, and I don't care, because I love the journey" (158).
"A great benefit to using the Mental Skills Journal is that it provides feedback on the day's performance, on the day's decisions. The greatest key to achieving your objectives is to learn from your previous performance accomplishments and make an active commitment to do something different the following day. Utilizing the journal allows you to see how your choices impact your performance" (158).
Closing Remarks
"What is past is useful only as it suggests ways and means for progress" (159).
"High-performing individuals are motivated to perfect the task at hand, their focus is on what they need to do and not on what is wrong or what could go wrong.... They are intensely aware of what they are doing at all times, giving them a greater sense of control and confidence over their lives.... Their focus is tuned to the task at hand, their attention is consistently directed toward the present.... When the mind stays attentive to the task, the proverbial door to fear stays closed, as all fear exists only in the future" (159-160).
1. I really like this book. I think we know how our minds work, but we don't always have constant control. I think reading this was good to put how a fearless mind works into words. It was also good because now we have a base going into season.
ReplyDelete2. One thing I have found that works for me, is after each pitch, each hit, or whatever it is, I tell myself one thing that went well. I still acknowledge my mistakes, but it helps keep my mind relaxed concerning the process to fix the mistake. It is easier to fix one thing when you already know you have a piece of it right. Another thing is that there is a quote on some page that says(I'm paraphrasing): "When confidence is low, decision making is poor." This has really stuck with me because when I find myself frustrated, I go back to simple tasks. Lastly, I like how it talked about weighing strengths and weaknesses. This can apply to me for when I pick whether to slap or hit.
3. A fearless mind means having confidence in their ability to perform, knowing what it takes, facing it head on and doing it. You can't just say you'll do it, there is responsibility to go and do what must be done out of season.
I didn't think I would like the book but I ended up loving it! I love how it breaks components down and helps you realize that mental game is so important. It is going to be good for our team because we will be better mentally than other teams and have that level of maturity in our play that others don't.
ReplyDeleteThe first thing I took away is confidence. Telling myself repeatedly that I CAN do it. Not maybe, not I'll try, but I can. The second is Controlling what I can control. It is easy for me to get frustrated about things easily that I can't control but when that happens I need to take a step back and think about what I can do to make it a better situation. The last thing is Decision Making. Since the positions I play are so mental it is critical that I make the good decisions. So through deliberate practice I can make the good and best decisions when the time comes in a game.
A fearless mind means going into every game and taking it on as a challenge. Having the competitive edge and thinking "I will win." Not letting others beat you and always striving to be the best you can be personally. It is taking initiative to do things and not waiting around for others or the coaches. And lastly, having confidence. You aren't afraid of anyone or anything and you know you can do it.
I love this book and I liked how it simplified it down on how we can get stronger and have a fearless mind and how it gave examples on how it's not all about practice and who has the hardest hit it's about who has the strongest mind and is willing to push themselves to the limit. one thing that I really loved from this book that will stick with me was the quote about beating a dead horse it is telling you once you make a mistake its done and over with stop thinking about it and just move on, bury it. you cant change the past. I also really love the chapter on importance of confidence it just told me that confidence is a key Point in sports and life we just have to believe in ourselves that we can do it! another chapter that I love was control what we can control because sometimes thw other team gets a great hit and we can't control that and we get down on yourself but its not our fault, a quote i love is "if we are giving it our absolute best then we need to relax that's all we can expect of ourselves." I think having a fearless mind is just having the confidence and the strength of knowing that you can do it you're the best ! But you also know that everyone makes mistakes but you're willing to push through it and you don't let the mental side of the game getting your head. its just when you're up to bat you just have that confidence.when when I see i see a fearless mind i think of like people who just look intimidating and you're scared of them you look at them and they look like they're going to win. they know in their mind that they are going to win and they don't let anything change it. They give it their all you can see it in their attitude and their stance and just the way they hold themselves and how confident they are. I am going to have that attitude and a fearless mind!
ReplyDeleteThe book was pretty cute. It was a sassy little motivational book. The book taught me about confidence, keeping a sharp eye/mind on everything around me, and a lot about tennis. I fearless mind looks like Beyonce. Love, Kaycie Jensen
ReplyDeleteIn the end the fearless mind turned out to be one of my favorite books of all time. This book was a very good life lesson that at somepoint, everyone should read in there life, rather they are an athlete or not. The three things that I learned and pulled out the most from this book is that, one you need to be mentally thought, two you need to keep a good attitude no matter what it is that you are doing, and three you need to have some kind of drive to keep you going in life.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading The Fearless Mind, it wasn't like a lot of the books I read. It helped me realize how important it is to view things from a different perspective. It really motivated me to want to get better and try harder. What I have learned is to always have a positive attitude even when things are going rough. I also learned that team work is a major part in order to be successful. We have to rely on each other to get better everyday. Lastly, I learned that you have to put in the work in order to see the results I want. Having a fearless mind to me means never giving up, and always having confidence in myself. If I have a rough day at practice or at a game I need to be able to see the positive in the situation and strive to perfect it.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the book. It was very applicable and can be used in many ways to help me. Every time you read the book you get a different lesson from it. Although it was hard to read it was worth every minute of it.
ReplyDeleteI can apply many things to myself from the book. 1. Have a task oriented mind not an ego oriented one. This means look for specific things you are working on and what you can do about it. You shouldn't think of what might happen if you mess up or have unrealistic goals that won't help you. 2. You should be confident not arrogant. Which means knowing your good without comparing yourself with others. When you compare yourself to others you place your happiness in their hands. 3. Through every situation good and bad learn from them, there is no time to dwell on the past or worry about the future. Take a step back after every play and evaluate what just happened and what you can do to fix it.
Having a fearless mind means you go into any situation with confidence and caution. It means making good decisions and learning from them. It means always having a goal to complete and being positive about any outcome. You can tell when someone has a fearless mind because they work hard, they're productive, task oriented, confident, and makes smart decisions which determine their destiny.
My overall thoughts of this book, was that I loved it. I learn best from quotes and small, short, basic principles and this book is full of them. If I would have written down every quote or passage I loved, I would have half the book written down. Three things I could take from this book would be first, how much of the game is mental and how important it is I need to keep a clear, quick, mind. Second, I learned how important it is to be confident. Not only confident in myself in general, but specifically in game situations. I could easily have confidence in practice and do amazing, but if I can’t bring that confidence to a game, there is no purpose of it. Third, I learned how I need to have a good quick decision making process. In sports, if you can’t make a quick decision, nothing good can come from it. Quick decision making can make or break a game. It is a very important skill to have. Having a fearless mind means basically have a fearless mind. It means to be confident, have quick decision making, to know your situations, to have an amazing mental game, and to be able to put that all together into an intense situation. Like a game or practice or even life in general. It means to not fear what could happen and to play like there won’t be a mistake and like you can do anything. Play with confidence in your team, in your abilities, and in yourself.
ReplyDeleteI actually really enjoyed this book. I love motivational quotes and this book was just page after page full of them. One thing I took from this book is that I need to be a lot more confident. Two, I need to focus more on my successes than my mistakes. And three, I need to work harder. Having a fearless mind means to go and do what you want without worrying about the outcome. It means to be able to overcome your negative thoughts and be able to just play.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the book! It had a lot of good information and it had a lot of good quotes. It gave me the idea that in order to play the game you love you have to be strong physically and mentally. You just get so much information about how to be more confident and how to gain more mental toughness. It tells you that you can't just practice your physical skills you have to practice your mental skills too. Every thing is so important that he mentions. Be confident. You can't do anything if you don't have the confidence to do so. You can't step up to the plate thinking you can't do it and hit anything. You have to walk up to the plate thinking I can hit anything the pitcher throws at me and I have confidence in myself to do so. The second thing that I will take away from the book, like many others is the don't beat the dead horse quote. You make a mistake, you dwell on it and you let it get into your head and you mess up more and more until you make way more mistakes. Once you make a mistake, learn from it, don't make the same mistake again, or try to, and move on. Don't beat the dead horse. The last is from the quote "In the end the sword will always be beaten by the mind." That is so powerful. That shows you how powerful the mind can be and also that we can't just rely on physical things. We must always have a plan, a strategy. We can't defeat anyone or anything if we don't have a plan. Having a fearless mind to me is not being scared of mistakes. Working through things and not just relying on coaches or team mates to tell you everything. what it looks like is it looks like you are thinking, and thinking hard about something you can see when someone makes a mistake that they recognize it, then try to fix it they don't dwell. You can see how they are confident and how they have a strong mind. And that is what I thought of the book, what three things will stick with me and what i think a fearless mind is to me and what it looks like. I really enjoyed this book and I am glad I read it.
ReplyDelete1. I really liked this book! I feel like I got a lot out of it and can learn so much. I think it's important we learn now how to develop a fearless mind for our upcoming season.
ReplyDelete2. One thing that I learned from the book is that the most consistent factor distinguishing highly successful from less successful athletes is confidence. I can apply it this season by being confident out on the field while playing. Another thing I took away was it doesn't matter how good you are, but if you put your mind to it and work hard, skill will come. This season I can work hard to become a better and stronger player. Lastly, I learned that you have to leave the past in the past. Each day is a new day and you can be better than the day before. We can't look on our past mistakes too much or it will get in our heads. I can apply that to this season by looking at the games in front of me, and not last season or what I did the game before.
3. Having a fearless minds to be motivated and want to do something and do it with confidence, with concentrated non-stressful thoughts.
I really liked the book. It turned my mind around about a lot of things. I thought it include great skills needed to accomplish goals of anything. I learned that confidence is an important thing needed to carry out specific tasks. I learned that random training with gain muscle memory. I also learned that one must visualize things going correct and they will go as seen. A fearless mind is confidence in oneself no matter what Tue obsticals lie ahead.
ReplyDelete- This book was really motivational. Each chapter i learned something new that I could use to improve my game. It really gave me a new perspective on how your mind should work during the game.
ReplyDelete- Three biggest things i can take away from this book are one you can't let one mistake lead to another mistake. two you can't compare yourself to others you should only improve your game. Third don't focus on the huge picture, focus on one play at a time. If i can learn to apply this to my game it will help me feel more confident on the field. It will help me become a better player.
- When you have a fearless mind, you are confident and play with poise. You are in control of your thoughts and the game. You don't let one mistake get you down, you learn from them and come back stronger.