Athleticism and Mental Toughness Begin with Awareness

Truth be told, when I first began working out with Ryan Morrissey at PEAK, I think I initially felt like he was "nitpicky."  Did it really matter if my feet were perfectly place such that I was standing over the arch of my foot, engaging my glutes and my core?  (The answer is "yes"... it actually did matter).  I [...]

2018-03-27T16:26:38+00:00By |Life, Other, Performance, Sailing|

Goal-Setting in the 21st Century

I am working with many clients these days on goal-setting. That, by itself, is not a big switch. We still focus on SMART Goals.  We focus on setting process goals that are within one's control. The switch is that we're using a really cool tool called "Goalscape."  You can see it pictured below.  With Goalscape, we're able to prioritize [...]

What is it that makes family teams successful?

We put the question to Tim Herzog, a top sailor and coach who has studied group dynamics, and here is what he told us: It is no surprise that some of the best teams consist of spouses, siblings, or even multiple generations. Good relationships serve as the foundation for a successful team because of solid communication over the team's [...]

2017-10-06T01:58:17+00:00By |Sailing|

The Dirty Dozen Mental Skills of Sailing

Fifteen years ago, as Hobart Coach Scott Ikle was launching the US Sailing Level 3 Certification program, he invited me to speak to a group of coaches at Annapolis Yacht Club, who were attending the Advanced Coaching Symposium. I gave a talk that was inspired, in part, by a Sailing World article that Betsy Allison had written describing a pyramid of [...]

2018-10-15T15:28:06+00:00By |Sailing|

Parenting your Sailing Siblings

With more than one kid, parenting is no cakewalk.  Not only do you have twice (or triple, or quadruple, or…) the responsibilities, but you’ve got to navigate how to be fair, how to give the right kind of attention, and enough attention.  It can feel fraught with landmines.   Here are five tips for parenting your sailing siblings: Remember [...]

2017-09-13T22:42:23+00:00By |Sailing|

What to do When You’re Winning

I had one of the best high school sailing coaches in the country and one of the best college coaches, but boy, did they ever approach the start of practice differently. My high school coach placed our names on the board in order of where we currently stood on the team. My college coach intentionally put us in random [...]

2017-09-13T22:39:31+00:00By |Sailing|

Sailing Vanguard 15s Upwind in Breeze :  Like a Laser or Like a 420?

There seem to be two schools of thought about sailing V15s upwind in big breeze. V15 sailors often sail other dinghies bef ore jumping into a Vanguard — frequently Lasers or 420s.  I refer to the pinching style of sailing a V15 upwind as “Laser style,” and I refer to the footing style as either “420 style” or, more [...]

2017-09-13T22:31:31+00:00By |Sailing|

How to get through “tough times…”

We’ve all been there: The stakes are high, and this feels like a make-or-break race for you. You have high expectations and you’re revved up and ready to go. Then the tide turns, and the winds aren’t blowing your way…suddenly everything seems tougher. But there’s a lot to be learned from the times when things seem especially hard –including [...]

2017-09-13T22:43:43+00:00By |Sailing|

Control the “controllables!”

There are plenty of “uncontrollables” in sailing… wind direction, current, your competitors’ actions, your competitors’ training, race committee’s choices, and how you finished last race-- are all out of your control. You can hyperfocus on these things, but it’s wasted mental energy! What to focus on Would you take a math test while you’re on Snapchat or Twitter? Similarly, [...]

2017-09-13T22:26:23+00:00By |Sailing|

Habits of Excellence: Work, Fun, or Both?

Wade seemed to be having a rough day.  This kid normally dominated our Opti practices, winning the favored end with ease, exhibiting almost flawless boathandling, and sailing clean.  But today he was starting late, sometimes from the unfavored end, and he was spinning for hitting marks.  And yet he had a smile on his face as he overcame a [...]

2017-09-27T22:53:35+00:00By |Performance, Sailing|

Get SMART about setting goals

Goal setting can be a useful tool in many arenas. Experts say that 90% of the time, setting specific and challenging goals leads to better performance than “do your best” goals or none at all. Goals can direct attention, mobilize effort, increase persistence, and help you form good strategies. Famous sports figures such as Olympian Michael Phelps have achieved [...]

2017-09-05T16:19:19+00:00By |Career, Life, Performance, Sailing, Teams|