Playmakers

One who is described as a playmaker has the capability to have a huge impact on the game. Playmakers are generally known to be that captains and the leaders of sports teams. They are able to set such an example that corrals his/her teammates into responding and listening to their every command. Playmakers don't just appear in the sports environments, you can also find them in the classroom. Anyone has the power to be one in the classroom. It's as simple as just taking care of your work and getting your stuff done on time. playmakers are also very active in the classroom. They take part in discussions and having their thoughts heard out by the rest of their peers. I believe that it is an attitude one must strive for to become that playmaker. They are always positive in everything they are doing whether it is taking place in the classroom or wherever their sports take place. I need to strive to do better with my time management and staying focused for the whole class period. When I accomplish these two tasks it will allow me to achieve all my goals I have set for myself in the classroom, I will then be able to label myself as an academic playmaker. Seeing what it takes to be one first hand on the soccer field gives me a fantastic example for the things I need to do to be one in the classroom. With the way our education system continually evolves, so to must the student. They must adapt all the time to the new forms of studying and the different types of learning environments. Playmakers aren't the way they are by accident. They are shaped and molded into people that are just all around good students and players. I plan on taking the examples set by my fellow peers and teammates and applying them in my everyday life. Adding other peoples strategy's into my own can give me the opportunity to become the best student and player possible. Thus making me a person that others will be wanting to notes on, and them using my examples. I want to be a playmaker and also a role model to others. I hope that with determination and hard work I will be able to accomplish these goals.

Goals continued..

The goals I have set for myself are very important to me and to my college career. I must be able to reach every single one of them. It is not an option for me to just attempt to slide by in calculus - it cannot be done! If I fail to reach my goal of understanding calculus I could never hope to pass! I can not afford to fail any of my classes to insure that I will not be at risk for losing my financial aid and/or scholarships I have been awarded. Also if I were to drop any of my classes I would then be ineligible to  play soccer because I will have dropped underneath the required number of hours. That would not be acceptable by me or my parents. Soccer is a very important part of my life and I would be miserable if I was unable to participate. If I fail to reach my goal of gaining a starting position for Friday's game it will  be disappointing but it will give me even greater incentive to  work even harder. Although my soccer goals are important to me they still do not matter as much as passing my classes. Education must come first in setting my goals. Getting an A on my exam is very important because it is a very big portion of my grade. Failing the exam would not be the end of the world but it would make getting an A in the class for the whole semester very difficult. Getting an A for the whole semester is a long term goal of mine and is one I am determined to reach. The lowest grade I would be willing to accept on my exam is a B. All of my goals have a consequence if the are not met. Some consequences are more severe than others and I will do my best to avoid those consequences. I understand that the goals I set require work to accomplish them and I know that I must be prepared to have a back up plan in case I end up falling short. I believe that I am extremely lucky to have family and friends that do everything they possibly can to help me achieve my goals. I also am very glad to be a part of TLU where achieving my goals becomes very easy because of the welcoming and helpful environment provided by TLU.

Goals

In life there are things that you must have in order to succeed, goals just happen to be one of those things. There are two types of goals, short term and long term. Short term goals are goals that can be reached within a short time frame such as a couple days or weeks. Long term goals take much longer, ranging anywhere from months to years. At this point in time my short term goals mainly involve school. The biggest goal I face is doing better in calculus. For reasons unknown calculus has turned into a subject I feel like I don't understand at all. Seeing that I am struggling brought a new goal onto my to-do list. My goal for calculus is to be able to understand what is going on and not be confused the whole time. I don't believe that this will be a hard goal to accomplish. With the help of tutoring and meetings with my teacher it should be a piece of cake. Another short term goal of mine is to earn a starting position for my soccer game on Friday. This will be a little more challenging then calculus because their are many talented players on my team. Every one of my teammates has the skill and ability to be playing just as much as I do, therefore I will have to prove myself in practice by outworking them and showing my coach that I deserve to be on the field. There is a countless number of goals that I have set. Every single goal has a different way to accomplish it and a different difficulty level. Being able to stay focused on those goals will play a major roll on how fast I will reach my goals or if i will even reach them at all. My last main goal is getting an A on my biology exam on Wednesday. This goal will require a lot of studying and determination. Since we go over so much information in one class period it opens the door for lots more to be on the exam. With this in mind I know I will have to take extra time out of my day to prepare for the exam. With all my goals its amazing that I am able to keep track of them all, and we haven't even begun to tap into my long term goals!

Athlete's vs The Norm

To every individual the definition of mental game will vary in some shape or form no matter how big the difference may be. But the importance of those two words are the same in every country and in every language. Some may say that only athletes are capable of understanding this importance in its entirety. I believe these accusations to be false. My reasoning behind this conclusion is based on my belief that anyone who is willing to be mentally strong is capable of achieving an understanding of this concept. No matter who you are you can posses a strong mental game with a positive attitude. Just because everyone is able of attaining a strong mental game does not mean everybody will. This is were athletes are set apart from the rest of society. For athletes, reaching a strong mental game is made easier due to the pressure athletes face. If an athlete wants to be successful they must be mentally strong to block out any type of negativity posing a problem. This type of mentality becomes second nature to athletes. Playing sports has allowed the mind of young athletes to be shaped and molded by the ideas of their coach. Depending on the values, ethics, and learning tools provided by the coach will determine how quickly a young pupil will develop this way of thinking. Therefor I believe athletes have the upper hand in the journey to a strong mind. Understanding the power of this ability only strengthens ones mental game. For people who are not athletes this understanding is brought on by different means. Influential people in young people's lives such as parents, teachers, or even close friends and relatives play an important role in giving incite towards this concept. Sadly for people that wind up with unfortunate circumstances due to events such as one or both of their parents not being in the picture or a tragic event that sends their life in a down spiral this understanding is something never achieved. Because they do not posses this understanding it makes being successful in live a vary difficult challenge. To anyone who is lucky enough to have this understanding should feel extremely blessed. Athlete or not, anyone is capable of understanding the importance of the mental game.

"Mental Game" to me is..

What allows professional athletes to preform at their peak when fifty to sixty thousand fans are screaming their heads off for the big game? Not to mention the rest of the world sitting at the edge of their seats, inches from the television screen for the live feed. The ability to block things out and focus only on the task at hand is a skill not everybody has. I like to call this having a strong "mental game". Being present physically is only twenty percent of the battle. It is a common misconception that physicality is the most important part in any type of competition or challenge, but it has been seen time and time again that the most physical or most athletic do not always emerge victorious. People have wondered for years why the best fail even when they have an almost guaranteed win. It is obvious to see that the greatest factor, the other eighty percent, is the mental aspect. The mental game is more than just a way of thinking, its an attitude... A way of life. Having a strong mental game gives people the potential to be successful in every area of their life. In this ever changing world education has become a vital part of everyday life. With a good education a high end job can be attained. An individuals mental game is greatly needed to achieve his/her goals in school. Being mentally present in the classroom is the most important part to learning. If you are not mentally available during class then the chances of retaining any information from the lecture is slim to none. The mental toughness needed to succeed in school must also be strong outside of class. One must take it upon them selves to study on their own and prepare everyday to be ready to learn. The mental game can simply be described as mind over matter. A positive mentality has the power to make the impossible suddenly become possible. As Thomas Jefferson says "nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude".