Orlean Mind: Wrap Your Head Around Success

As a lifelong athlete and coach, I’ve seen firsthand how much the mind influences what appears to be a purely physical game. Your routine, your mindset, and how you approach your sport are critical to performance—and ignoring this is a mistake. Success in sport isn’t just physical; it’s a mind and body connection. Enhancing performance, managing stress, and building resilience are essential steps for anyone pursuing greatness. Sport psychology, mental fitness, food for thought, whatever you'd like to call it, let's break down your goals into digestible pieces of information that inspire the right essential actions. 

As a coach, my role is to hold up a mirror and reflect your highest self—the one achieving your goals, winning games, championships, setting records, and exceeding your own expectations. My job is to ask the tough questions that bring clarity and help you rise to your potential.

• What drives you? Is your motivation coming from within, or is it external—your team, family, school, or organization? Are you chasing personal fulfillment or glory for others?
• Are you fueled by growth? Do you believe in your ability to improve, or do you feel you’ve peaked? A growth mindset is the foundation of elite performance.
• Do you feel control, competence, and connection? Are you in tune with yourself, your team, and the field you play on?
• Can you trigger your flow state? Do you know how to access that place where time slows, distractions fade, and peak performance feels effortless? Can you go beyond understanding the zone, and actually stay in the zone? Can you truly minimize distractions and unnecessary thoughts that don't serve your highest outcome? 
• Are your goals aligned? Have you set daily, seasonal, and career goals—and do you know the distinctions between them? Each requires its own plan of action.
• Can you visualize success? Can you see yourself achieving your goals with clarity and focus? If you can’t picture it, how will you achieve it?
• Do you manage your workload effectively? Are you balancing training with recovery, sleep, flexibility, hydration and nutrition?
• Do you fear failure—or success? If so, for whom? Understanding your fears helps you overcome them.
• Do you know the reward for your effort? Are you clear on what you’re working toward, and is the reward worth it?
• Are you capturing and reframing doubts? Do you recognize negative thoughts and actively work to reframe them into productive ones?
• Do you embrace nerves? I tell all my athletes, nerves show up because you care—it means you want to perform and succeed. Learn to embrace it as part of the process.
• Do you reflect on your work after every practice or game? Consistent improvement comes from analyzing and acting on lessons learned. 
• Do you have a mantra, role model, or mental image that gives you clarity during challenges?
• Are you aware of your senses in the moment—what you see, hear, feel, and even smell? These small details can center you and sharpen your focus.

Excellence isn’t an accident—it’s a habit. When you face setbacks, like slumps or injuries, do you know what steps to take, even in the worst-case scenario? Are you practicing excellence in other areas of life to build the habit of success? I've always noticed a common thread between successful people, no matter what the task is. It's undeniable. 

The path to greatness isn’t without challenges. Whether it’s fear of failure, doubt, or the grind of daily effort, the mental side of sport is a constant practice. As Bruce Lee said, “Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.”

In sports, living in the moment is a non-negotiable. Show up, reflect, adjust, and rise. Surround yourself with people who understand the intricacies of your game, and invest in a coach who can guide you through the nuances of peak performance. 

Sometimes the goal is breaking a world record, and sometimes the goal is simply just being consistent in the gym and maintaining great health. The best athletes on Earth have a coach, and we can learn so much from sports to live our best lives. Whatever your goal is, wrap your head around that success and make it happen. The best is yet to come.