What a Professional Bowling Career Has Taught Me About Mindset

I started bowling when I was five years old.

Growing up, I wanted to be a professional bowler.

Every Saturday afternoon, my dad and I were glued to the television watching ABC’s Pro Bowlers Tour. I grew up wanting to bowl like Earl Anthony and competing for the trophy and the giant novelty check.

Thankfully, my parents were extremely reasonable and not risk-takers.

They told me to get my education first, and then, if I was good enough and wanted to, I could pursue a professional bowling career.

When I graduated college in the early 90s, the tour was going through some changes, and bowling was losing some of the popularity it had in the 70s and 80s.

I did all of the “right” things.

I got my degree.

I got a job.

I started my career.

And I competed in as many local tournaments as I could to get ready for the tour.

You needed a lot of money to go out on tour, and prize funds were diminishing. It was tough to go out there and “win,” let alone “cash” in an event. You were competing against the best of the best.

And my mindset wasn’t anywhere it needed to be for me to compete.

I got my PBA Card in 2001 and began bowling regional events, which took place over the weekend so we could all go back to our jobs on Monday.

It was a perfect balance. Pursue a passion but still have the stability of a 9-5 job.

For years, I practiced and competed as often as I could. I worked on my physical and mental game to play at the highest level.

I won a PBA Regional title in 2010.

I have four second-place finishes on tour as well.

With any individual sport, you rarely win. Competition is tough. And it takes great mental tenacity and resiliency to compete every week.

Today, I bowl mostly PBA Senior (over age 50) events. And given my performance last year, I was invited to participate in a tournament this week in Las Vegas.

The Professional Bowlers Association Regional Players Invitational is our major. One hundred twenty bowlers (regular and senior players) from across the United States participated in this event. Everyone deserved to be here, and I am honored to be invited and be one of 18 players representing the East Region.

While I didn’t score as well as I had hoped to this week, the experience was priceless.

One of my favorite mental game books is from Olympic Gold Medalist Lanny Bassham. His book is called, With Winning In Mind . Lanny created a Mental Management System that he used after every training session and event. He would ask himself these three questions:

1.????What did I do well today?

2.????What did I learn?

3.????What do I need to work on for next time?

These questions were the bedrock for improving his mindset and performance. ?I ask myself those questions every time I train or compete in an event.

I’ve had the privilege of attending a two-day seminar listening to Lanny several years ago, and his daughter Heather Sumlin has been my mental coach for years.

When we adopt a “Learner’s Mindset,” we open our brains to see things from a different perspective. We get curious about what we can do to improve while at the same time learning what worked well to reinforce that behavior.

I love Lanny’s book and encourage you to get it for yourself or an athlete, you know.

With Winning In Mind is a book that extends beyond sports performance. It’s a great book for helping with your career also.

Those three questions are tremendous questions you can use to ask yourself after an interview, a major presentation, or meeting. You can ask those questions to your team members or direct reports in preparation for their annual performance review.

Your mindset is the key to unlocking your potential.

Remember – How You SHOW UP Matters.

John

This Week on The Mid-Career GPS Podcast

“It’s Not Your Resume or Interview. It’s Your Mindset.”

When people inquire about coaching or ask why they aren’t landing their dream job, they often think it has something to do with their resume or how they interview.

Naturally, it’s part of it, but many people miss the point that their mindset is all off when it comes to how they SHOW UP for that interview or that job application.

Just like any great athlete, a performance and learner’s mindset is key to helping them achieve the success they want. You need a similar mindset to help you land your next advancement opportunity. After all, your mindset is a critical factor in whether or not you will achieve your goals in 2022. Your mindset is everything to help you get the results you want this year.

In this episode , you’ll learn about two essential mindset tools – the Energy Leadership Index Assessment ? and The Model ? to help you increase your awareness about your attitudes and perceptions you place on various situations and circumstances related to your career advancement and progression.

Plus, you’ll examine your mindset through a situation about one of my favorite pricing games on The Price is Right – the Hole in One or Two Game. That’s a fun exercise!

Click here to listen to this week’s episode and let me help you shift your focus about your mindset as you head into your next interview.

Setting and Achieving Your New Year’s Goals Doesn’t Have to Be Difficult

Like me, you enjoy setting New Year’s goals or resolutions. However, the process can either be over-simplified or super-complex. Not everything has to be a SMART Goal.

I created a free guide to help you set your New Year’s goal, or any goal, without the stress and complexity that other goal-setting processes can have.

These are your goals. You get to make them whatever you want.

My process works, and I’m looking forward to seeing where I take my personal and professional goals this year.

And yes, this ties into mindset too!

If you want to get your free guide and start working on your goals now, click here to get Your 2022 Guide to Help you Set Your New Year’s Goals Differently .