Olympic Mindset

I recently had the opportunity to meet with Ruben Gonzalez. Ruben is a four-time Olympic athlete. Even more impressive is he competed in four winter Olympics over four different decades, and has his goal of breaking a world record by being the only person in history to compete in five different Olympics over five decades. I found Ruben incredibly genuine, passionate, and a pleasure to speak with. In fact, Ruben even signed and gave me three different nationally recognized books he personally wrote, one for each of my three precious daughters. In addition to being an Olympic Athlete, Ruben runs a professional speaking and training company. I was fascinated with Ruben's mindset, which is why I called this post "Olympic Mindset".

My incredible network provided many of the questions listed below. Thanks for taking the time to provide questions to my prior post. My desire is you each benefit from some of the answers below. I could have talked with Ruben all day about life, success, failures, and lessons learned.

Here are a few of the questions we discussed. Enjoy.

Question: When did you make the decision to become an Olympic Athlete and what changed from that moment forward?

Answer: At 21 years old, Ruben watched Olympic skating athlete Scott Hamilton win a metal on TV. At that moment, Ruben made a decision to become an Olympic athlete. He started researching what sport would get him into the Olympics. Through research, he discovered the luge sport could be his vehicle to the Olympics. He wrote a letter to Sports Illustrated magazine asking where he can learn the luge. They actually responded with a letter, saying go to Lake Placid, NY to learn. He traveled from Houston TX where he was living to Lake Placid to find someone to teach him the luge. Four years later, and a lot of practice, at 25 years old he earned a spot in his first Olympics.

Q: What did you do differently than others to achieve such a high level of success over a long period of time?

#A: Find someone in the world who has accomplished what you want to personally achieve. Hire a coach/mentor. For example, when Ruben set a goal to climb Kilimanjaro mountain, or even run with the bulls in Spain, he found someone who has successfully accomplished those goals. He did the same to learn the luge. Be coachable, check your ego at the door Ruben advised. Don't question the instructions, full heartily follow the advice and direction.

Q: What do you consider to be the number one trait you need to be an Olympian?

A: Perseverance! At 12 years old, Ruben made the decision to not quit in life. No matter how hard, never quit. As a kid, Ruben said he was bullied a lot, considered kind of nerdy, and had a low self-esteem. These experiences prepared him for everything he has accomplished so far in life. Ruben stated, “Broken bones are a temporary inconvenience. Life is tough, you will get knocked down. Pick yourself up, get back in the game as fast as possible". Never quit!

Q: What inspires you?

A: Meeting, studying and learning from others who have overcome obstacles in life. Olympic skater Scott Hamilton inspired Ruben to set a goal of becoming an Olympic athlete. Mother Theresa being bold enough to change the world one human at a time. Being involved with Paralympics inspires him by filling his heart and soul with gratitude. 

Q: What was most impactful; the goal to become, and stay, an Olympic athlete or the journey?

A: Both. The goal to be in the Olympics is what gets him out of bed in the morning. What you become along the way of achieving the goal is the journey. You become a better person in the process. Set big goal in life.

Q: How do you maintain the mental clarity and motivation to continue the fight towards greatness during the difficult times?

A: Focus on the dream! The luge is just a vehicle to accomplish a goal. For 20 years, Ruben did not like luge, but saws it as the vehicle for him to achieve his goal. Ruben said others should think about their career as a vehicle to accomplish goals in life. Not everyone is going to enjoy every part of their career, but it can fuel what they want to accomplish in life. Connect with positive people. Disassociate with negative people. Read books, learn, and grow every single day.

Q: If you were to start on this trek again, what would you do differently?

A: Start younger. Most Olympic athletes start when they are 10 years old and even younger. Ruben made the mental decision to become an Olympic athlete at the age of 21. He would also give the advice to learn the fundamentals earlier. Very well could have had more success with less stress if he learned and embraced the fundamentals earlier on. 

 Q: What does your routine looks like on a regular day?

A: Does yoga every day to keep the body flexible and loose, and the mind focused. Surrounds himself with positive people. Reads positive books. Watches positive, “can do” movies. You become who you associate with on a regular basis. Consistently is key. He practices his luge (on wheels) in the driveway of his house. Goes to the local ice skating rink and practices on the ice. Every morning and every night before bed, he visualizes success. Spends time with his family. He even wrote a book with his daughter, which I am looking forward to reading.