Category: Personal Development
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How to stay conscious when you drown
I have often found that the end of one year is often the best time to reflect on what you’d like to see change for the following year. At the end of 2022, I found myself in a wintery blue rut, feeling a lack of purpose, and more gravely, a true sense of self. I…
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Essential traits of successful coaches and leaders
Truth be told, there are millions of checklist items that help to form a successful coach, mentor, or leader. But at the bare bones of it all, successful leadership ultimately comes down to a focus on social relationships.
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Visualization and race-specific training
I’ve always had a wild imagination. Growing up, I’d play hockey and soccer in my basement for hours on end. Every single time, I’d visualize being the best in the world. I’d break all the records, score the wildest of goals, and mesmerize the commentators every time. When I quit hockey at age 12 and…
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The power of reframing negative thoughts
As the self-conscious individuals that we are, it’s impossible to go an entire day with zero negative thoughts entering the mind. Despite the difficulty of that task, I used to subscribe to a ‘no-negativity’ mindset. It’s incredibly important to always think on the bright side and come up with the positives in any situation, but…
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How to coach with positive psychology
The days of yelling at players for not making it to first base are over! Or at least, they should be. Coaching has changed dramatically over the past twenty years.
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My method for optimal recovery: POSSM
In my own recovery journey and subsequent battles through injury, I’ve developed my own acronym for how I want to recover in time for the next effort. I call it ‘POSSM’.
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How can you inspire others, if you can’t inspire yourself?
To kick off 2023, I’ve had the privilege of teaching a coaching & leadership class to undergraduate students at Western University. To end the final class, I asked them one simple question – how can you inspire others, if you cannot inspire yourself?
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Why performance is dependent on optimizing your own training needs
Last weekend, the second Golden Ticket race of the year kicked off with a bang in the Arizona Black Canyon 100K. The day saw five runners (three men and two women) beat the previous course records, firmly establishing the race as one of the most competitive Golden Ticket races in years. But the most intriguing…
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Why you need a therapist
Last year, at the lowest point in my life, I finally took the leap to do something that I should have done long ago, and seek out therapy. I had often shied away from therapy out of fear of the price, the time, and whether or not things were truly “bad enough” to “need therapy.”…
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Why you shouldn’t train at maximum intensity
If I was to tell any athlete in any sport one piece of advice it would be this: You don’t need to train at maximum intensity to perform at maximum intensity. For that matter, you don’t even need to perform at maximum intensity in any sport except for in short bursts.
Rhys Desmond 