48. How to Have a Championship Mindset with Chad Busick
Joining Laura on the podcast this week is Chad Busick, owner of Championship Mindset, an organization that works with both corporate and athletic teams. Chad is a Master Facilitator with Advance Sports Technology, working with college teams at the DI, DII, DIII and NAIA levels as well as high school and competitive teams across various sports. In addition, he is a certified trainer for The Power of Positive Leadership training with The Jon Gordon Companies. Chad is also the host of ‘The Championship Mindset Podcast’ as well as the author of his new book, The Rock Tumbler.
Laura begins by sharing some exciting information about her own new book, and then Chad details his background and his journey to the work he does now, including some of the principles and techniques he employs in that work. Along the way, he shares a number of excellent resources and examples of his philosophy in action, offers valuable advice to athletes and parents alike, and provides a glimpse into his new book. As you will hear, Laura resonates with so much of Chad’s work, and you will undoubtedly do the same with the many lessons revealed here today regarding the world of sport, and, indeed, life in general.
Episode Highlights:
· Laura’s new book
· Chad’s background and his journey to the work he does now
· The Ten Principles of Entelechy and sports mindset
· His Championship Mindset brand and company
· The hardest part of achieving the championship mindset
· Emotional safety
· ‘Taking change by the hand’ during the pandemic
· Jon Gordon’s The Power of Positive Leadership
· Mark Batterson’s Win the Day
· Chad’s Championship Mindset chart and how to apply it
· Working with a team vs. working with an individual
· Chad’s The Rock Tumbler and his favorite lessons from it
· His advice regarding parental involvement
· Jessica Lahey’s The Gift of Failure
Quotes:
“It's the seven fundamentals of mental fitness. I've been a master facilitator with that for the last six or seven years, which has led me now to start my own company called Championship Mindset, and a lot of other things.”
“Whether we're working with corporate clients, whether we're working with athletes, coaches, teams, it's really just focusing on helping them be the best that they can be.”
“This championship mindset is the formula for success in all areas of our lives.”
“At the end of the day, it really comes down to our talent, our hard work, our attitude, our mental toughness, our teamwork, and our passion into everything that we do.”
“The things that I've learned through diving are the very things that helped me in my life outside of the pool.”
“I would say everything for me starts with culture, we have to have the right culture.”
“The first thing that we have to build is we have to build emotional safety.”
“Players don't care about how much you know, until they know about how much you care about them.”
“When we really think about what we've gone through this last 14 to 16 months, what we've really been doing is, we've been grieving.”
“Just be there for your students be there for your players in this moment.”
“It's okay to grieve the dream, but don't stay there.”
“Regardless of those tough events that we go through, we still get to choose how we respond.”
“How you do anything is how you do everything - and to me, that's the core of the championship mindset.”
“How we view the world and more importantly, how we interact with the world, greatly affects what you get out of the world.”
“If you have to go through it, you might as well grow through it.”
“Own your journey, it's your journey, own it to the best that you can.”
“We need to let our kids fail.”
“The most powerful thing that you can say to your athlete when they're done competing is, ‘I love watching you compete. I love watching you play.’ ”
Links:
Life at 10 Meters: Lessons from an Olympic Champion
5 Smart Strategies to Confidence
Laura’s Social Media:
Connect with Chad:
Championship Mindset Instagram
Resources:
43. How wisdom and experience are earned with professional cyclist Brad White
Professional cyclist, Brad White, joins Laura on the podcast this week. While working as a teacher, Brad discovered professional cycling somewhat later than most, but enjoyed great success in a very short amount of time. Eventually leaving teaching behind, he went on to compete internationally full time, and, upon retirement from the sport, has found a way to continue to make his passion his livelihood. Filled with wisdom and experience both within the sport and beyond, Brad has much to share with listeners today.
He starts off by recounting his rather unique beginnings in his sport, his transition to becoming a professional rider, and the type of cycling in which he competed. Brad goes on to share details regarding the team aspect of the sport, his preparation for races, the importance of patience in sports, and some of his most memorable moments. His training focus, special awards, definition of success, and transition out of professional cycling are also explored. Brad finishes up with a description of the work he does these days which keeps him connected to the world of cycling. As Laura notes, Brad’s wisdom and experience is ‘hard earned’, and today he demonstrates once again that so much of what is learned through sport is remarkably valuable in so many aspects of life in general.
Episode Highlights:
· How Brad found cycling
· His transition to becoming a professional
· Tours and road racing
· Team selection, training, and roles
· Preparing for races physically and mentally
· Developing patience
· Brad’s most memorable moments
· Where his nickname came from
· Brad’s training program focus
· Some of his special awards
· His definitions of success when he was racing and now
· Brad’s transition out of professional cycling
· Moms in Tow
· Velo Kids
· Velo City Cycles
Quotes:
“The next thing I knew…I was not teaching anymore, I was racing.”
“It's really important that you know your role, you can execute your job, but also that you show up ready.”
“The preparation for each course is going to be different, but kind of the same, and then you're just going to react differently.”
“The overall time is what matters to some riders, but then, to other riders, winning a stage is a big deal.”
“If I need to suffer this that little bit longer, you know, they may give up.”
“I think one of the biggest motivators for me was just not wanting to let down my team, my fans.”
“Patience is a huge part of, I think, all sports.”
“We were just riding so well together all the time, having fun on and off the bike.”
“I think there's definitely something about, even with a training plan, listening to your body and being able to react to what your body is dealing with, and get the most out of your training.”
“Kind of racing stupid made me stronger, made me a little smarter later, but it also got my name out there a little bit.”
“Being able to achieve what you set out to achieve that day is a success.”
“I think the biggest thing for people transitioning out of sports is you don’t need to find the thing right away.”
“The bike has done so much for me within my career but also, you know, mentally, physically, spiritually, it's connected me with people…and it's amazing what I've seen it do for people.”
“With COVID, bikes have been a big hit.”
“The programs we have are to give back to our community and to create experiences for people to use the products that we’re selling them.”
“You can make your sport very much a part of your life and still have that love for it and just bring it out in different ways.”
Links:
5 Smart Strategies to Confidence
Laura’s Social Media:
Connect with Brad:
42. Redefining Success with Olympic Hurdler Sarah Wells
This week, Laura welcomes Olympic hurdler, Sarah Wells, to the podcast. Once an athlete who was cut from every high school team she tried out for, Sarah discovered track and field and went on to become an Olympic semi-finalist and Pan Am Games silver medalist in the 400m hurdles, building a reputation for overcoming challenges and achieving the ‘impossible’ along the way. She is also the Founder of the Believe Initiative, where she now uses her story to help youth understand the importance of being resilient and the power of believing in themselves, and to help corporations build more resilient teams.
Sarah begins by recounting how she got her unique start in sports, the support networks which have sustained her throughout, her rapid development in the hurdles, and both working and learning through her injuries. She also shares her discovery of ‘her word’, her Olympics Trials and Games experience, managing her stress fractures, and preparing to qualify for Rio 2016. Sarah concludes the conversation by discussing her Believe Initiative, how to get involved in it, her retirement from sports, and her perspective and guide to redefining success. A gifted speaker with a truly inspiring story, Sarah Wells has learned so much from her journey which is so very pertinent to life both within and beyond the sporting arena, and she shares it all here today.
Episode Highlights:
· Sarah’s start in sports
· Her support networks
· Sarah’s rapid development in hurdles
· Working and learning through her femur injury
· Finding her word ‘Believe’
· Returning from her injury
· Her Olympics Trials and Games experience
· Managing her recurring stress fractures
· Preparing to qualify for Rio 2016
· The Believe Initiative and how to get involved
· Retiring from sport
· Sarah’s perspective and exercise regarding redefining success
Quotes:
“At that point I hadn't defined myself by sport and I also had some really amazing siblings.”
“You go from zero to competing internationally in, like, eight months.”
“When someone else says it, you know, you're instantly a bit more likely to believe it.”
“I would almost, like, live and die by how my leg felt that morning.”
“I just would get so mentally defeated and, like, halfway through an interval I would just start walking.”
“In the most important races in my life, when the gun goes off, I hear nothing. I just lock into completing what I need to do.”
“It hurts so much that I'm scared, tomorrow when I run, it could break in half.”
“It's a hard line to figure out when to push and when to ease off.”
“Success isn't linear, it’s this roller coaster ride of emotions.”
“Rest would have been very productive in that moment.”
“I miss qualifying by half a second.”
“Clearly you don't build self-belief through achievements, you build it through action.”
“It helps people everywhere take a passion they have with a problem they want solve, and they use that passion to solve that problem, and they build self-belief through action.”
“While hard work doesn't always lead to success, being resilient will always lead to another opportunity for it.”
“Far more people are inspired by the time where I didn't make the Olympics over the time where I did.”
“If you're able to continuously embody and act from a place of those powerful character traits that lead to success, well then, even in a moment where things don't work out, you're going to be able to rely on those things and find your next opportunity for success.”
Links:
5 Smart Strategies to Confidence
Laura’s Social Media:
Connect with Sarah:
39. Chasing dreams and making history with Olympic runner Dom Scott
South African Olympic runner, Dom Scott, joins Laura today for a truly inspiring conversation about persevering and making tough decisions to make your dreams a reality. Born in Cape Town, Dom’s journey to the Olympics meant moving away from her family at a young age to access the training and opportunities offered elsewhere, which resulted in multiple NCAA titles, 12 All-American honors, and, of course, her appearance at the Rio Olympics. Today, Dom takes some time out from her training for the Tokyo Olympics to share her story and the lessons it has to offer.
She begins by sharing some details of growing up in Cape Town, her start in sports, particularly running, and the difficult decision to leave home to attend a high school with a track team. Dom also discusses the road that took her to the University of Arkansas, her career there, her year of fairy tale moments, and her Rio experience. She concludes by delving into the lessons she has learned throughout her career, how COVID has affected her and her training, what keeps her going through the hard times, and the Dom Squad. The overriding themes of following your dream and cherishing support from family, friends, and faith run through Dom’s journey, and offer inspiration for us all in how we can approach our own lives.
Episode Highlights:
· Dom’s upbringing in Cape Town and her start in running
· Netball
· Living away from home to go to a high school with a track team
· Her Olympic dream and her parents’ support
· Going to the University of Arkansas
· Her college experience
· The differences between indoor/outdoor track and cross country
· How she improved so much over her college career
· Dom’s year of fairytale moments
· Her Rio Olympic experience and the process involved in getting there
· What helped Dom through her doubts and anxiety leading up to Rio
· What Dom has learned in terms of her identity
· Her current definition of success
· How COVID has impacted her and her preparation for Tokyo
· What keeps Dom going through the hard times
· The Dom Squad
Quotes:
“I grew up playing every sport.”
“I guess as a dreamer and the determined person that I am, as a 12 year old, that just seemed like something that was worth fighting for and worth making hard decisions for.”
“Selflessly…she told me to go and to follow my dreams, follow my heart, and if she hadn’t done that, I think I probably would have pulled the plug on the whole thing.”
“College, you’ve got to remember, everyone is away from home.”
“Very quickly, I started changing the way I was talking…and looking back at it, I’m so sad that I did that.”
“Don’t change who you are to blend in and be like everybody else…you want to stand up and rise above that.”
“My freshman year was a big learning curve.”
“I just tried to start observing.”
“Dress for the job you want, not the job you have.”
“Your 10 points just secured the win for the Lady Razorbacks.”
“That sermon gave me so much peace.”
“You earned your spot on that start line.”
“I had taken the necessary steps to make my dream a reality.”
“At the time, I was embarrassed to say I’d come 21st, which is ridiculous!”
“It’s not about the place, it’s about how you feel about what you did.”
“Being an Olympian and having competed in the Olympics is not something that made me a better person, or, like, changed my life significantly either…it wasn’t something I wanted to be branded as.”
“If you are searching for your identity in anything other than Christ…it’s never going to fulfill you, it’s never going to satisfy you, and you’re always going to be left wanting more.”
“I am…more than Dom Scott, the athlete.”
“I really feel like surrounding myself with people that love me and support me – that’s what helps me through those really horrible days.”
Links:
5 Smart Strategies to Confidence
Laura’s Social Media:
Connect with Dom:
37. Learning to run free with World Champion Chanelle Price
World Champion runner, Chanelle Price, joins Laura today to share her remarkable story and the lessons she has learned through it all. A supremely talented elite athlete, Chanelle’s many achievements include competing at the 2007 USA Outdoor Championships at the age of 16, running the second fastest 800m of all time by a high school female which qualified her for the Olympic Trials when she was 17, and becoming the 2014 World IAAF Indoor Champion – the first American woman to ever win 800m gold at an indoor or outdoor world championship. Along with these great successes, Chanelle has experienced some devastating low points in her career, and she courageously discusses them all here today.
She begins by sharing how she came to find her way into track, her early successes, her struggles with insecurity, and the dark days of her time at college. Chanelle then provides a highly personal account of the factors that led her to contemplate suicide, and how beginning her journey with Christianity pulled her through that tragic time. She also discusses the many challenges she still had to face throughout this journey, the difference between her Olympic Trials experiences, and training for Tokyo during COVID. She draws the conversation to a close by highlighting the importance of maintaining a healthy relationship with sport, surrounding yourself with the right supportive people, her current definition of success, and the crucial role her ‘why’ plays in keeping her motivated and moving forward. Chanelle holds nothing back as she recounts the shining mountain peaks and dark, dark valleys she has encountered in her fascinating journey, and how these have helped her to become the woman she is today - an individual overflowing with faith, strength, character, and commitment, who undoubtedly ‘brings a smile to God’s face’.
Episode Highlights:
· How Chanelle found her way into track
· Her early success
· Chanelle’s struggles with insecurity
· Her college experience
· Seeking a sponsorship deal
· Chanelle’s contemplation of suicide
· Her journey with Christianity
· Drifting away from and returning to God
· The many challenges Chanelle has worked through
· Moving to train in Eugene, Oregon
· Training for Tokyo during COVID
· Chanelle’s Olympic Trials experiences
· The importance of maintaining a healthy relationship with sport and surrounding yourself with supportive people
· Her current definition of success
· Chanelle’s ‘why’
Quotes:
“I just didn’t really find track fun. It felt more like punishment.”
“Once I started that singular focus on track once I got to high school, you know, it really paid off.”
“It was definitely the success that got me to like it.”
“That is where my sense of identity came from was my achievement on the track.”
“I don’t know who I am if I’m not Chanelle Price the track star.”
“It was like a 100 pound weight on my shoulders every time I went to race.”
“Behind closed doors, I was really, really, really struggling.”
“Chase after Me like you chase after track.”
“Your worth is not based off of how you perform out there on the track.”
“To whom much is given, much is required.”
“I was just a completely different person on the track.”
“You know, God, I’m going to come back to You.”
“The past 4 years have been the hardest years of my life…He answered, but it just wasn’t really what I expected.”
“I miss being that desperate for Him.”
“It was a very humbling experience.”
“God, I don’t know what You’re doing, but I’m about to break here…I don’t know if I can take this.”
“Every other month I said I was going to quit.”
“Maybe He’s telling me it’s time to move on.”
“I knew that this extra year was definitely a blessing in disguise for me.”
“Honestly, I considered retirement after that.”
“The woman that you have become through this journey is worth it.”
“I’m not thinking about anything else besides using my gift, and for me that’s when things seem to fall into place.”
“Some pressure is good, don’t get me wrong, but it shouldn’t get you to the point of suicide like it has for me in the past…that is not a healthy relationship with sport.”
“This is what you do. It’s not who you are.”
“The person that we become along the way - I think that’s what brings a smile to God’s face.”
“The sole thing that kept me going was my ‘why’.”
“Don’t sacrifice the gift.”
“There is always hope beyond what is happening in front us right now.”
Links:
5 Smart Strategies to Confidence
Laura’s Social Media:
Instagram: Laura's Instagram
Facebook: Laura's Facebook page
Connect with Chanelle: