Michael’s comments on the Article

I’m working on why you can’t post comments to the articles in that section of the site, in the meantime, if you have a comment on an article, send it to me and I’ll post it.

Here is Michael Lantz comment on the Goals Vs Ultimatum article

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One other way to state this is either thinking in the present (i.e., goals) vs thinking in the future (i.e., ultimatums).

Let’s use Tiger Woods as an example. Tiger’s dad taught him at a young age that the only thing he could control was the 6″ space between his ears and his current actions. He learned to never think about his competition. His dad told him that if he became proficient at this way of approaching the game then when he became good his competition would be focusing their attention on Tiger and not their own game. I don’t know if you ever watch golf on TV when Tiger is playing but always one of his competitors will say, “with Tiger in the field, we are always playing for second”. Tiger won an incredible 7 events in a row. His dad’s prediction is true. Tiger is aided my the poor thinking of his competitors and his good thinking.

When Tiger thinks only about the present, just the next shot, he never puts pressure on himself. When his competitors think about Tiger, they are not in the present, but the future and this puts an undue amount of pressure on their game and they never play to their capabilities and this gives Tiger a tremendous advantage.

This same concept applies in triathlon. When we stay in the present we give ourselves the best chance of doing our best. When we realize we did our best and several competitors beat us only because they crossed the finish line first then we can feel happy.
Athletes are their own worst enemy when they say things like, “I have to. or else”. That creates so much pressure and then muscles tighten up, our breathing system breaks down, and of course we have slow times and NO FUN.

I’ve never moved my mind from the present. I learned this a long time ago and I’m glad I did. I can only control my training and the actions I take to have the best performance. I realize that my results on race day are up to God’s grace. I don’t control any outcome in racing and in life. God is in control of everything. This belief allows me to always be happy and pleased with the outcomes God blesses me with. If I want a better outcome then I have “to do” the things that would put me in a better position so receive God’s grace.

I like the articles on your site because they give good information and cause me to think about what is being said.

Keep up the good work.

Michael