I’ve blogged about Dr Malcolms Simons before, the first time introducing him with a post on self-awareness, then recently sharing some of his Words Of Wisdom and now I want to share some of his professional expertise in molecular biology and then relate this back to having the Mindset Of A Champion

Cell Language Theory

The concept of cell language has been defined in molecular terms. The molecule-based cell language is shown to be isomorphic with the sound- and visual signal-based human language with respect to ten out of the 13 design features of human language characterized by Hockett. Biocybernetics, a general molecular theory of living systems developed over the past two and a half decades, is found to provide a physical theory underlying the phenomenon of cell language.

Nerve Cell Language Chart

The concept of cell language integrates bioenergetics and bioinformatics on the one hand and reductionistic and holistic experimental data on the other to account for living processes on the molecular level. The isomorphism between cell and human languages suggests that the DNA of higher eucaryotes contains two classes of genes–structural genes corresponding to the lexicon and ’spatiotemporal genes’ corresponding to the grammar of cell language.

The former is located in coding regions of DNA and the latter is predicted to reside primarily in noncoding regions. The grammar of cell language is identified with the mapping of the nucleotide sequences of DNA onto its 4-dimensional folding patterns that control the spatiotemporal evolution of gene expression.

Such a mapping has been referred to as the second genetic code, in contrast to the first genetic code which maps nucleotide triplets onto amino acids. The cell language theory introduces into biology the linguistic principle of ‘rule-governed creativity,’ leading to the formulation of the concept of ‘rule-governed creative molecules’ or ‘creations.’

This concept sheds new light on molecular biology, bioinformatics, protein folding, and developmental biology. In addition, the cell language theory suggests that human language is ultimately founded on cell language.

What does cell language theory have to do with the Mindset Of A Champion? Read More »»

If you’re into my 1 Percent Improvement Doctrine, you’re constantly looking for that elusive 1 percent improvement. Of course as an Exponential Marketing Enthusiast, you want to look where no one else is searching so you can get that secret ‘edge’ that is both effective and easy. I came across an article in Men’s Health Magazine that stated that 70 percent of Australians who admit doing a very low level of exercise. That is shocking to me – that’s the percentage who ADMITTED to it, which means the REAL percentage is even higher!

That’s why another article on the same page really hit home – it’s one of the ways you can get a 1 Percent Improvement with minimal ‘effort’ and have fun!

Life In The Fast Brain

Life In The Fast Brain

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In a previous post, I blogged about identify the orientation you have regarding your sports performance. Because of your predominant orientation, you’ll create attributions differently and therefore KNOWING that attributions are will help you become more self-aware as an athlete so you can more easily and quickly realign your training for improved results.

Attributions are best understood within the framework of self-efficacy. Self efficacy is a judgment about one’s capability to perform a particular task (1) at an elevated level, (2) with certainty, and (3) repeatedly over time. It means much more than just being confident, but that’s a discussion for another day.

Where self-efficacy explains the transition from expectation to effort, attributions re-direct the focus to the causes of expectancy beliefs, that is, HOW success and failure affect continue motivation.

With this in mind, there are three critical characteristics that underlie attributions:

1. Locus of causality. Perceiving an outcome to have resulted from either internal or external factors. Can you see how your orientation can affect this?
2. Stability. Perceiving the likelihood of the same outcome recurring.
3. Locus of control. The perception of whether an outcome can be manipulated. Once again, your orientation will sneak in here!

Let’s look at some examples and be honest with yourself… Where do your attributions lie?

Locus of causality.

• Internal: Your effort or an injury
• External: Field conditions, Equipment, referee, judge

Stability.

• Stable. Your talent and ability.
• Unstable. Weather, luck.

Locus Of Control.

• Controllable (Internal). Your game plan, pre-game preparation.
• Uncontrollable (External). Opponent’s actions, referee, judge, field conditions.

From this summary explanation, you can see there are many dimensions or what I call distinctions to dice and slice the Mindset Of A Champion. The more precise you can be about WHY you do stuff, the better you can be at FIXING the errors and mistakes.

More importantly, if you can change, alter or improve your mental model and motivations, the physical manifestations will follow with a lot LESS EFFORT.

That is why the Mindset Of A Champion is the one defensible advantage that you can count on. Talent won’t be enough. There is always someone out there with more talent – but very few with the mindset to beat you and win.

So, the question for today is – where do your attributions lie? The more honest you are, the better your results will be.

Remember, this is a completely confidential process – ONLY you know (and of course your coach or other champions who can see right through you!)

That’s the power of this psychological stuff – once you know it, it becomes your weapon, like an X-RAY machine that reveals all.

Fun stuff isn’t it?

This blog is called the Mindset Of A Champion Blog, dedicated to anyone who wants to think, act and perform like a champion. Of course sports metaphors, analogies and anecdotes are used, but as we all well know, there are a lot of similarities and parallels between ‘life’, business and sport. I’ve been researching top trainers, psychologists and coaches and will share with you some of their key findings in this blog – such as your orientation.

Sports participants are said to have one of two orientations: (1) task-mastery when they take pride in the progressive improvement of their knowledge and ability relative to their own past performance or (2) an ego orientation, intent on demonstrating superiority over others, motivated by social comparison and desire statistics in the win column.

One isn’t better than other – as we’ll see in future blog posts, they affect everything you think about and do (don’t do).

Psychologists and coaches generally agree that even though DURING competition, one’s orientation can shift, we each have a predominant orientation. By knowing what that is, you can become much more self-aware of your behaviours – the ones that help as well as hinder your progress.

Give it some though – which orientation are you?

What does it mean in respect of what you do/don’t do, how you train and how you compete?

It’s worthy of reflection.

Of course you can then extend this orientation to your life, career, business and other activities and hobbies.

I’ve blogged about Dr Malcolm Simons before. He is truly an inspiration, not just because he was a top world-ranked squash player, but because he lives his life with such an intensity and passion that is so rare. Anyway, the reason I am blogging today is because Malcolm sent me this e-mail several months ago and with his permission, I want to share it with you.

An element which distinguishes some of us from others is the capacity to focus, to resist distraction.  Once we have prioritised how we want to apply our resources of energy and time, we then identify the essential elements and hold them in focus in order to most efficiently and expeditiously achieve the projected outcome. While the process takes place, variations arise, as they do with all evolutionary, emergent processes.

Another distinguishing characteristic of successful people is to be flexible enough to allow reprioritization as these inevitable variations arise. Some have been hunched earlier, so they come as less of a surprise and therefore incur less resistance to review and change.  Others are unexpected, even unimaginable, coming from some space that is not on the stage on which we are currently strutting. The mental image that I hold is of the Galilean thermometer in front of me now on my desk. The indicative glass balls respond to variations as they arise, in this case primarily environmental temperature. They respond smoothly as they sense the destabilising change, then float quickly to the appropriate level, in the process rearranging the grouping of the other balls.

I have the existential experience of reprioritization on a now-by-now basis, such that the process is as fluid as the thermometer indicator changes. Once priorities are rearranged, the secret is then to implement the most appropriate changes required, again, to ‘most efficiently and expeditiously achieve the projected outcome’.

Another element to which you allude, and which is to be recognized and usually avoided, is to change a winning game. [Personal communication removed] There’s a developed skill in seeing one’s life in that sort of structure so that the occurrence of variations and the impact of those variations on achieving a winning game or in departing from a winning game, are most easily discerned.

Whatever the stage on which we strut, and whatever the accolades or brickbats that we experience, always remember that “life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more; it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

Words Of Wisdom that we can all learn from, thank you Malcolm!

I know you’re on pins and needles, so I’ll get right to it. I arrived VERY early for a friend’s match that was scheduled before mine… Seriously – the first match started with a lot of nervous energy that is symptomatic of the first and early morning matches. I won it 11-9 which is a little deceptive since I had a comfortable lead throughout the game. I came out with a plan and stuck to it, I was just a little nervous which is normal. I knew I would settle into my rhythm.

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I was at the Australian Masters Championships this week… If you know me well, you know I am a competitive squash player, if you’re just getting to know me, now you know about my squash addiction. I wanted to take this opportune moment to talk about lifestyle, concentration of focus and ‘purpose’ today.

Too many people equate success with money.

There’s a famous ‘joke’ that sums it up quite nicely:

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Today’s result – a long, well fought 5-setter. I’ll save you the drama. The match was won fair and square by my competitor who was better than me on the day. I didn’t lose, he earned the victory and I learned priceless lessons.

As I keep saying, we’re reasons or we’re results. This match and competition was a GREAT RESULT – it ‘ranks’ me as #12 in Australia, which puts me way ahead of my development schedule and confirms I am training properly as I ascend through the rankings.

Some people (non-champions) think RESULTS means winning, but that’s often not the case. It quite often is about IMPROVING so that you can eventually ‘win’. In my case it’s not even about winning because as I’ve mentioned before, I am not aiming to win the World Championship, but to get into the top “16” in the world. When I get to that point, I will have reached what I consider to be my equitable and optimal ‘RESULT’. In case you didn’t read the blog posts about this – my opportunity costs are much too high to devote the time and effort to trying to beat people who do this for a living and have a 30 to 40 years head start.

Plus – it’s still just a black ball in a white room that you have to hit before it bounces twice…

Anyway, amongst the many lessons (there are more than I list below) I learned, I’d like to share the following with you as my gift for supporting and following me on my journey.

Lesson #1: Read More »»

We are reasons or we’re results:

Result today: I lost in 3 games to an equally talented left-hander. There are less than 1% left-handers playing squash in my age category = I don’t train for that eventually, so when it happens, I do my best and move on to the next match.

No time to waste with something like that.

Lesson: In life and in business, we all have to pick the battles worth winning and losing to win the war. Trying to figure out how to play a good ‘lefty’ is not on my to do list.

Eventually, my skill set will supersede a lefty’s advantage, then the problem will take care of itself. I’m not there yet, that’s not my Next Best Step.

Yes, I live what I teach.

Sure it’s disappointing to lose when I ‘could win’ if he held his racquet in the other hand, but what’s great is I didn’t waste any time trying to win this battle – the ultimate war is a Top 32 ranking in the next World Championships which would take 2 equally talented lefties in a row for it to be worth worrying about.

I can live with those odds and sleep well at night.

Wish me luck in my last match tomorrow!

Last week, I explained how I increased my speed, agility and quickness with a 5-minute Pilates exercise… An exercise I promised to show you. Here it is. It’s self-explanatory – enjoy!

This is compliments of Bruce Hildebrand – B.App.Sc.(HM)
Bruce is co-director of Balance & Control Pilates Studio in Melbourne and Consultant Strength Coach to the Australian Ballet School.  With a lifelong involvement in sports, Bruce holds a degree in sports-science, international certifications in Pilates and is the Australian pioneer of the revolutionary Franklin Method®. With 10 years Pilates experience, Bruce presents to related industries his teachings of Imagery and Movement incorporating both Pilates and the Franklin Method® at Conferences in Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland and the UK.  His clientele range from Olympians, Masters Athletes, Elite Athletics, AFL, A-League and Tennis players, Models and TV stars.
Balance & Control Pilates Studio offers internationally trained and experienced professionals to deliver proven medical-research-based and results-oriented Pilates exercise to accelerate your back pain reduction, core strength, postural pain and flexibility so you will excel at your chosen daily activities.

Pilates Exercise To Increase Squash Speed, Quickness And Agility