The Mind of a Winner?

I’m learning to create the mind of a winner, no matter what happens. That’s so much more powerful than my old black and white (winner or loser) beliefs from childhood.

Mind of a Winner or A Loser

Which is why I wanted to share a story. I was at a horse show with my Pearli cow horse. We had our best runs ever! Yep, a few snags and Mom did have one mental error. But overall – we made so much progress.

After my class, I saw a fellow cowgirl walking toward me with a sad expression. I asked her how her run went. She looked down, frowned, scrunched up her eyes and said, “Well, it wasn’t good. My stops sucked. I have to work on my slides.” She looked so bummed. I couldn’t watch her walk away, so I gave her a hug and then asked her a couple of questions that I’ve learned to ask myself after tough things happen.

“So what did you learn?” I asked.

“I learned I need to work on my stops!” said friend.

“Then it was a good day! You know what you need to do next! So what went better than it has before?”

She paused a moment, thought and then said, ” Well, my cow work was better. Oh, and my turnarounds and lead changes were the best I’ve ever done.”

“Sounds like you had your best cow work, turnarounds and lead changes. Plus you learned your next training focus is on sliding stops. That’s a good day?”

By now she was smiling. She’d reframed her thinking and was a winner in her mind. Which means she’ll be a winner in her focus and things, well, things will go better.

Cultivate the Mind of a Winner

I use the above technique with business clients quite often. All too often we get so focused on what’s wrong, we lose site of the goal and how far we’ve come.

Being a winner is mostly about your mindset along the journey. No one wins without some form of learning, training or just plain hard work. Trust me, no pro athlete or best seller ever made a grand slam or wrote a NYT best seller their first time out. Their path to be a winner was a journey of many steps. So is every one of ours.

Which is why I have a simple approach to shifting into a winner’s mindset.

I do it every time I’m testing my progress, whether showing my horse or launching a new women’s program.  I simply ask:

1. What did I learn? What do I need to focus on improving next?
2. What did I do better? What can I be proud of?
3. What’s my next step toward the goal? And while you’re at it, How far have I come toward my goal?

Then focus on the entire picture.  Progress, success and not-so-great.  Get a 360 perspective vs. focusing on that one pesky thing you screwed up.

The Bottom Line

The mind of a winner has a lot to do with where you focus your attention. All too often our brains get in the way since we’re wired to focus on our failures, issues, limitations and weaknesses.

Use this simple mind shifting technique for a week as you review your work, life and whatever hobby you might have. Focus on the great steps you’ve made, the next step for improvement that will make you better and the progress toward your goal.

It’s simple, and it works. You’ll see the difference as soon as you practice.

Why?

Because our reality is defined based on where we focus!  Focus on feeling and thinking like a winner, and you will be!

How do you keep the mind of a winner?