I left the Olympic Excellence Series all fired up and proud. I continue to think of the many messages that resonated with me.

Ray Zahab started things off with such incredible energy! Achieving our goals, he said is “90% mental and the other 10% is in our heads.” His belief in “sweat equity”; that our most rewarding tasks are usually the hardest seemed to strike a chord with the group. Another quote of Ray’s that stuck with me was: “The sum of all our yesterdays brings us to where we are today.”   As Ray dropped himself  onto his little yellow snow sled in the Yukon and contemplated all the ‘good’ reasons and excuses he could give to others for not finishing; he realized the truth that “You are the only person who will know (or care) what happened.” It was enough to get him up and pushing forward. He didn’t want to (or need to) give up on himself.

The Winter Athlete Panel was full of highlights.

“As soon as you put meaning to what you do, there will be stress. You need to be comfortable in that stress.” Alex Bilodeau combats his stress and ‘what if’s’ with his “I Know…” list. Continue reading →