EVERYTHING IS ABOUT THE INNER GAME

Life is a marathon. To run this marathon, we need to train like how any other athlete trains to be effective in the sport.

Many athletes think becoming great is about working hard but there is great power in non-action and non-thinking. Without awareness and clear intention, we may start too slow.

So, what do this non-action and non-thinking power look like?

These powers are spiritual and interacted - mindfulness, concentration, insight, right effort and trust discovered by George Mumford.

The hardest to adapt from these powers is mindfulness and concentration. Mindfulness is paying attention in a particular way in a non-judgemental way as if your life has depended on it. The minute you let your mind wander elsewhere, you will lose the present moment. The present moment is achieving the zone, the flow – the cultivated experience for optimal performance. Mindfulness has shown to be effective when experiencing negative self-talk, losing your mind when making a bad mistake, worrying about re-injury and lack of self-talk awareness.

If you stay in the centre you are focused, the minute you stepped away from the centre that leads to stress and self-doubt. It is not easy to focus on one thing over and over again. This takes training with your mind. Your mind is an organ that requires training, just like the other organs in your body. If you are getting bored doing something over and over again then you have to examine the intention behind the task.

When you are mindful, then you have concentration and insight in your mindfulness which helps you live every moment deeply. Everything is an inner game, pure performance stats with the mind, what your mind determines how well you perform.

Right effort cultivates positive mind states with the energy that does not cause our body or mind to suffer. Trust is having the courage to delve into the unknown and allowing to tap into any deep sufferings or self-awareness.

All of the science has come out showing the benefits of meditation. We learn how the top-level championship players in various sports use meditation to overcome stress during the game, after the game and within their ego. Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant talk about how mindfulness exercises were a routine within their team.