Commit to Compete and Complete

Teammates - the title says it all: Commit to COMPETE and COMPLETE. I'm not talking about a completing a marathon or a triathlon - I'm talking about having the discipline to COMPLETE your goals (dreams with deadlines). There are too many folks out there that start a job, project, program, course, mission, or task (or whatever you want to call something that has a start and stop to it) only to come up with an excuse on why they didn't complete it. You've heard my stories about folks approaching me about their reasons why they didn't become a Navy SEAL. The truth is completing something is more uncommon than it should be. Why? Because we humans have the ability to reason - we can rationalize anything if you give us enough time to think about it! The rub with reasoning is that it works both ways - you spend as much time rationalizing why you should do something versus not doing it.

In addition to our innate ability to reason is our human wiring - our instincts - that drive us to avoid pain and pursue pleasure. When these two elements act together, the ability for us to create an excuse for not completing something (especially if that something requires hard work and dedication without immediate payoffs) is very high. Hence the reason why there are so few millionaires in the world - earning money is hard, earning more than most is even harder. Same can be said for losing weight or earning a gold medal or being #1 at something. So what's the trick to completing something?

I say: learn how to Commit to Compete and Complete.

For you to really give it your all you have to care about something - there has to be meaning to your reasoning machine (your brain) on why you're willing to suffer now. That is, the payoff of completing something is GREATER than not completing it. When this occurs then you have the foundation for success - you have a purpose, a purpose that you CARE about, that Fires you Up, that will keep stoking your Persistence engine when everyone else's has run out of gas. To keep the persistence fresh and purpose focused, create games for yourself to compete against. In life, your competition is yourself - no one else. You determine if you succeed or fail - you are the one responsible for taking and making the actions that will put you on a path of success or failure - the buck stops with you.

As we enter this holiday season and get ourselves ready to slam the chapter shut on 2009 and ring in a new year of goals in 2010, be thinking about what you are really wanting to make happen in 2010, why it's important to you, what it will mean to you if you accomplish it - find purpose in these goals, and when you're ready - write them down and commit yourself. When you commit yourself to something, you'll learn how to compete against yourself and win - and when you do, you've found your own winning formula for repeat success. It's all you. It's your call - I know you can do it - you just have know you can do it too - the only way you'll know is when you Commit!

CHARLIE MIKE -- ALDEN

Picture from wikipedia: Two crews racing in Lagan Head of the River (British Columbia, Canada). The closer boat is being overtaken by the boat on the far side.

Relaxed but Alert in Competition: An Oxymoron?

What tips do you have for staying relaxed but alert in an equestrian competition*?

CM SEAL Team blogger: Tom Rancich

It takes some practice to find the right combo of whiskey and coffee, but that is what I do. Seriously, the biggest thing is: do not be afraid to relax—you don’t need to be keyed up for two days to make a successful first or second jump.

My son, the starting defensive end for his high school team, asked once why right before he makes a tackle it almost seems like he has already done it. Well think about it—when the play starts, he doesn’t know what is going to happen—is it a pass or a run toward him or away---but as the play progresses variables start to drop away. It is a pass (bunch of running variables drop away) so he can rush the quarterback. Quarterback is in the pocket (more variables gone). He is past the blocker (more variables gone). Quarterback doesn’t see him coming (only two variables left, either he beats the pass or not) and then the split second before he hits the quarterback there are no more variables and he can totally focus on one event—hitting the quarterback. So it would be pretty silly for him to have been all worried about that before the play started.

So, what I am trying to get across in this long winded way is, break your event down into bits that you can handle and don’t artificially amp yourself up before it makes sense. Nervousness costs energy—so at the point that you are in competition, is it logical to worry about what is going to happen? You are either prepared or not---in either case worrying won’t help. The horse is going to respond well or not---if he responds well it wasn’t because you were worried. The horse wouldn’t know that. If the horse doesn’t respond well then worrying didn’t help and won’t help: you have to act.

That is part of what visualization is about---working through the actions you will take when things vary from plan.

* Carole, a CHARLIE MIKE Teammate who’s an expert equestrienne, asked Tom Rancich how would a Navy SEAL stay relaxed but alert when competing. Her field of battle: the dressage arena.
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Lt. Commander Thomas Rancich, US Navy SEAL (Ret.) is the co-founder of VRHabilis, a disabled veteran-owned small business that seeks to employ the highly trained and motivated veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars for work in construction and related fields. Rancich and co-founder Elliott Adler are pioneering the concept of using adaptive technology to bridge the gap between industrial and medical technology. Their company contributes proceeds to two worthy causes: a fund for the development of adaptive technology that will allow disabled veterans to pursue their desired career path and the EOD Wounded Warrior Fund.

Through his consulting firm, Off-Shore Consulting, Tom provides professional advice on leadership and team building, often as a motivational speaker, in addition to being an expert consultant to the entertainment industry.

Alden Mills and Charlie Mike blogger Tom Rancich served together in the Teams.