When my husband started his master's program in athletic coaching two years, our hope was that it would help him secure a job as a collegiate swim coach. As he's a few weeks away from finishing his final class ahead of graduation, the job search for him has been a lot of work, but so much of his program has been helpful for both of us in our professional as well as personal lives.
Now, I will say that Chris has been reading about athletic training and coaching, sport psychology, and athlete mindset on his own since we first met - including research studies he'd find on his own 🤓 (which is why I knew a master's was an obvious next step for him!) So we'd talk a lot about these topics even before he started the program, but thanks to the schedule and how we work as a team AND a couple, Chris and I have talked through so many different assignments, readings, research studies, etc. and how they apply to our lives and life together.
Last week he sent me something from his capstone course that I wanted to share with you all here. This is from a newsletter from sport Psychologist and mindset coach Lindsey Wilson:
"I write on most days.
I write to you, I write my book, I write IG posts or content for my paid products and clients.
Writing is a big part of my job. So I think about it a lot.
How to do it better, mostly. And about what to write about.
But I also think about how I feel about writing. Where do I get motivation and inspiration?
Where does the energy to write come from?
Because how I think and feel about writing matters;
these thoughts either motivate me to do it more,
or have me hovering above the ‘send’ button, questioning everything.
Here are two main thoughts:
Every time I write, people unsubscribe.
Every time I write, I inspire people.
Which is true?
Both.
Every time I write, I hear from some of you. You say things like:
'Lindsey, that is exactly what I needed to hear.'
'Lindsey, sometimes I think you are reading my mind.'
Or you respond with support and solidarity.
Or you just write to tell me a bit about you so we can create a relationship and community around our mindset journey.
Concurrently, others unsubscribe. Or, much more rarely, respond and call me an idiot.
These two extremes are inversely related.
It’s not scientific, but I notice that the more people respond positively,
the more others want nothing to do with me.
This is true in writing as it is in coaching, or teaching or sales or leadership.
The more of your truth you put into the world,
the more you attract your people and the more you get rejected by others.
But the magic comes in this: Which thought do you choose?
Every time I write, people unsubscribe.
OR
Every time I write, I inspire people.
One thought creates fear, hesitation, paralysis.
The other inspires creativity, service, love.
And I have the power to make that choice.
We all do.
I choose love.
Then I act.
Then I reap the rewards of all the love, support, community, and inspiration I receive back.
This is the power of one thought.
But the alternative is just as viable.
Choose to focus on rejection, and I’m paralyzed, alone, scared, a little bitter. I put nothing of value into the world.
I take no risks and receive no support in return. So I start pulling back more, keeping my inner truths to myself.
Maybe I keep writing, but it's not authentic.
Likely, even more, people will unsubscribe because, in my fear, I'm not actually saying anything.
So the thing I'm scared most of, rejection, actually happens more.
I can create either of those realities with my thoughts. I can create them with one thought.
One thought shift.
It can change your day. It can change your life. It's simple. And it's available to you right now."
I want to let that sit with y'all before jumping in with my thoughts, so here's my coffee this morning while watching the 17th Stage of the Tour De France. This is the first year we've been able to watch so much of the Tour, which my husband is a huge fan of as an ultra-endurance triathlete. Biking was a huge part of my childhood, and I've utilized the sport for positive stress management and adventuring in my adulthood as well, but have taken it to the next level recently, having purchased my first "name-brand" bike after selling my car. More on that later; back to coffee for now! I was awake for about three hours last night due to allergies, so this morning, I'm enjoying a yummy Vivida, which, yes, is fully caffeinated. No, I didn't include this newsletter because I didn't sleep, I'd already planned on sharing this after talking about strategy. Back to the coffee!! It's got a smooth, honeylike sweetness that doesn't need too much milk as it has a naturally creamy taste to it. The bonus that we love - it has 20% of your daily value of Vitamin B. So many reasons not to feel guilty about this fully caffeinated cup of joe!
Bonus -
Adding in a little somethin', somethin' post coffee talk. When I was awake last night, I came across this awesome post from The Atlantic about "cosmic background" ripples in space 🤓 and I had to share it with y'all as this is something I'm adding to the 'Coffee Check-In list of topics/subjects that I keep for organization and inspiration if need be 😎
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