"I recently was reminded that giving it 90% almost always works out better than giving it 110% . . . Giving it 110% invites the overthinking, overtrying, and overdoing byproducts that coaches and players often refer to as “pressing.”  Giving it 90% allows for freedom, instinctive responsiveness, & athletic genius to emerge." - Bernie Holliday, Pittsburgh Pirates Director of Learning.

Last week, I spoke in Montreal at the 40th Annual Conference of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP). I had the pleasure of collaborating with Ceci Craft, Director of Mental Performance, Life Skills, and Education for the Philadelphia Phillies, on our presentation entitled: “Metaphors, Icons, and Maple Syrup: Sticky Mental Performance Messages.”

 

We focused on how metaphors and icons can make mental performance messages more memorable. Along with sharing some “sticky” examples from our own practice, we introduced a practical framework for integrating these strategies into everyday messaging. We had a lot of fun — and so did the audience.

Drawing inspiration from Walt Disney, PT Barnum, John Nordstrom, the Grateful Dead, and Steve Jobs, Cole is a voracious consumer of ideas. In the pursuit of creating extraordinary experiences, he relies on his 5 E's: Eliminating Friction, Entertaining Always, Experimenting Constantly, Engaging Deeply, and Empowering Action. He personifies a growth mindset with his complete tolerance for failure. As he likes to say, "You've got to get through the messy to get to the great." Since 2018, he's written down 10 ideas a day. Cole is fount of energy, which is derived from his energy list - work that fuels him on a daily basis. "For me," he says, "it was anything that fit in the buckets of creating, sharing and growing. If it was doing this work, I could do it for hours and never get tired." The energy doesn't stop when the show ends; it carries into a reflective practice called LCP - Learn, Change, Plus, where he and his staff in a continuously seek improvement.

At his first T-ball game, Cole's dad told him, "Swing hard in case you hit it." That mantra epitomizes the life and leadership of Jesse Cole. Go Bananas!

One idea I learned last week at AASP was the concept of job crafting. Job crafting is all about intentionally shaping the way you approach your work—or in sport, the way you approach your role—to create greater motivation, engagement, and growth. It typically happens in four ways:

In short, job crafting is about taking an active role in shaping your environment so your work, training, and mindset bring out your best.

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