Performance & Race Driving Tip
Speed Secret: Mentally program being lucky and you will be.
I once coached a driver who seemed to be unlucky. If there was going to be a crash on the track, he’d find a way to be in it. If another driver was going to crash, he somehow managed to include “Joe.” The crew actually looked to see if there were any large magnets on the car that attracted other cars!
Eventually, “Joe” began to believe he was unlucky, and the problem got worse. The more he thought he was unlucky, the unluckier he got. It became a self-fulfilling prophecy. The more he told himself he was luckless, the more he got collected in other’s incidents.
I’m not one of those people who suggest that you need to look in the mirror and recite positive affirmations. But I do know that our minds have this amazing ability to make sure we achieve what we put in it. If we internalize and focus on something happening, our brains work to make that occur.
If we think we’re lucky, our brains will do whatever it can to ensure “lucky” things happen to us.
Over time, I had “Joe” list everything that went his way, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant. At first this was difficult for him – he had a hard time seeing anything as being lucky, or positive in any way. But eventually he began noticing all the small things that did go his way, and ultimately he started to believe he was lucky. Guess what happened? “Joe” rarely ever got caught up in others’ incidents any more. And when unfortunate incidents did happen to him – as they do in the real world – he was able to see them for what they were (typically, a logical series of events leading to a negative situation). Most importantly, he saw the reason behind what happened – and it wasn’t that he was unlucky.
Ultimately, “Joe” had changed his beliefs. The funny thing is that he began to see himself as a lucky driver, and that contributed to some very good results.
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