Top 10 Mental Habits of Peak Performers

Often, these are the situations and phases which define us as human beings. These are the times when our characters are shaped and our stories are written in the canvas of our own minds. These are the moments which build us and transform us into the best versions of ourselves.

When we see the world, we see most people succumb to the challenges life throws at them. The few who address these conflicts head-on are the ones who live their lives as masters rather than slaves or victims of tragedy. These few are the ones who we see at the top of their game and as the best in their craft – the legends and the icons from whom we draw inspiration.

We all have that legend and icon inside us. But it will only come to the forefront if we choose to develop ourselves to the level where we become unstoppable and push ourselves every single day.

We will now see the top 10 mental habits of world-class performers – the habits which are the tools and techniques which they use to rise amidst challenges, chaos, and destruction. These habits are available to all of us to inculcate in ourselves. Once established, they allow us to reach where we aspire to.

Habit 1 – PERSPECTIVE SETTING

This is the starting point of all change and transformation. Without getting the perspective right, you will not be able to move ahead in the right direction. Every situation has multiple perspectives to it, each unique to the people who build that perspective. A solid skill to have is to develop many perspectives about one single situation in your life, thereby developing a sense of wisdom.

Think of a scenario in your life which is challenging. Consider how you define the situation. Take a couple of minutes to think through this thoroughly, writing down your thoughts for clarity. Now think of three people in your life who have been a source of inspiration to you. It can be a family member, a movie star, a sports champion, or a businessman. Now, one by one, visualize them in your situation and reflect what perspective they will have about the challenge you are facing. Write this perspective down on a piece of paper. Once you’ve completed this exercise for all the people, you will see how many new perspectives you have gained. These will give you new thoughts, new emotions, and new energy to take new actions. There’s a reason that world-class people operate within a different framework – it is a unique combination of what they admire most.

Action Step – If this habit appeals to you, take out 2-5 minutes every day and think about one challenging situation in your life and see what perspective you have about it. Then, follow the above process to create 3-4 more perspectives. Develop this habit over the next couple of months. 

Habit 2 – MEDITATION

This is by far the most powerful habit you can develop. If you google “Scientific research on benefits of meditation”, you will get more than 10 million results. Thousands of studies have shown the power of meditation to shift our life. But all these make no sense until you experience the benefit of yourself. Studies now show that the benefits of meditation include increased intelligence, increased brain power, reduced stress, better decision-making, higher creativity and problem-solving skills, and many more. World-class sportsmen like LeBron James and Kobe Bryant and actors like Jim Carrey and Will Smith are all popular for their regular meditation practices which have helped them phenomenally in their performances. Meditation has many aspects to it. The simplest to start with is mindfulness meditation or twin heart meditation. The latter is a guided meditation which you can learn from any pranic healing center whereas mindfulness meditation is a simple practice you can carry out on your own. 

Action Step – If this habit appeals to you, take out 5-10 minutes once or twice a day and practice your meditation. You can do a short and quick mindfulness meditation by following these steps: wherever you are, take a short pause for a couple of minutes. Make sure you are not doing something critical and that it is safe to pause. Start by being consciously aware of your body, right from your feet to your head, going through each part of the body. As you reach each body part, say to yourself, “Relax, you are healthy”. The entire process will take you 2-3 minutes. Once done, reflect on your emotional and mental state. You can practice this 2-4 times a day. 

Habit 3 – SELF-TALK

This is one of the fastest ways to reprogram your subconscious mind. Until there is a change in self-talk, no other change will be permanent. If you reflect back, you will see evidence of this. World-class performers take time to create a powerful, positive self-talk which serves them for a lifetime. The US navy seals practice this as well.

Athletes like Muhammad Ali, Michael Phelps, Mike Tyson, and Bruce Lee are some examples of those who have mastered this habit. If you can take out time everyday to develop this, the change will be unimaginable.

Action Step – Developing this habit is very easy. To start, decide on a powerful statement which you want to keep affirming for the entire day. For example – “I am the greatest and the best” or “At lightning speed, I have all that I need” or “Day by day, I am becoming the best version of me” or “I am becoming happy, joyful, amazing, and awesome”. Choose a statement like this and then consciously chant this 20-30 times every day. Every 2-3 days, you can add five more chants. In a month, you will have affirmed yourself over 100 times. This will help you build the habit and slowly program your self-talk positively. If done regularly for a period of 90-120 days, it will automatically become a part of the mental system. 

Habit 4 – PRACTICING UNSHAKEABLE CONFIDENCE

Without the fire, how will the rocket launch? Self-confidence is a similar concept. The world has been sold a lie – that confidence only comes with experience, success, or having degrees and qualifications. However, the origin of confidence has nothing to do with any of the above. Though these achievements can help build confidence, they are not prerequisites. Otherwise there would be no stories of rags to riches, from extreme failure to extreme success. Read the story of Rocky Balboa, Muhammad Ali, M.S. Dhoni, or many other great performers. All of these people had practically no experience, success, or people backing them up. They developed self-confidence by understanding a fundamental truth.

Confidence is a gift given to us by God. It requires nothing to be developed apart from the mere decision to develop it. A decision and commitment to develop self-confidence is all one requires. And once this idea takes birth inside you, it can become your greatest friend and a weapon which you can use to conquer the world.

Action Step – Reminisce back to how, when you were a child, you were confident for no reason at all. Embrace that and drop all notions and reasons. Every day, for 3-5 minutes, choose to be at a silent place. Visualize your own self,  being super strong and full of confidence. Once the image is clear in your mind, move your hand in a winning posture with intensity, saying “Yes, Yes, Yes” 15 times. Repeat this activity at least three times a day, and see the effect on your confidence in a week’s time if done properly.     

Habit 5 – CONQUERING FEAR 

One of the most famous and impactful quotes from Michael Jordan is, “Limits, like fears, are often just an illusion”. How profound is this statement? Ultimately, what is fear? If you dissect it, it’s an imaginary possibility which we assume to be definite.

However, it’s purely an imaginary possibility which the brain perceives to be true. Then, the brain goes on releasing chemicals in our body which make us lose our confidence and put us in a fearful state with our body paralyzed.

Without overcoming your fears, no greatness is possible. No success can reach you until you divorce yourself from your fears. This habit has to be strong to combat the fear that will try to knock you down every now and then.

Most people fail to understand that it is very easy to remove fears. Ultimately, fear is nothing but an emotion and emotion is nothing but energy in motion. You can convert the existing form of energy of fear into a different form. Bruce Lee used to practice a tool of removing fear by visualizing it burning over and over again. You can do the same. Do it enough times and see what happens. 

Action Step – A simple habit to practice every day is to mentally write your fear on a piece of paper and visualize burning it. Do this back to back 3-4 times. As you do this activity, be aware of how you are feeling, and keep exhaling the fear from your mouth. As you exhale, you throw out the energy in motion which is fear. Consistently following his habit will eventually make you a fearless person. 

The next five habits will be a part of the next article coming week. Please watch this space.