Refilling Your Tank Mid Season

This is the time of year when tendency begins to shift on focusing on the shortcomings of others. For a variety of reasons, but mostly because of our own shortcomings. It’s a trap. Tell someone something positive today. And be positive because of it. #DailyMight

I’ve always loved the first few weeks of the new year during the winter sports season. The holiday festivities have just finished and typically that comes with a small built in break from the season grind and a chance to refill the emotional tank. Attitudes have been uplifted with the holiday happenings and we get some time-off to evaluate how things went the first half of the season and what improvements can be made for the stretch run. There is optimism in the air and resolutions to uphold, of course.

Over the years I’ve learned to use this valuable time to refocus my attitude. Early in my coaching journey I found myself shifting the focus of my attitude negatively just before the winter break based on shortcomings. For a variety of reasons, but mostly because of my own shortcomings and the emptiness of my emotional tank. I would get tired. Leading from the front can be exhausting, but it doesn’t have to leave you drained, like it used to for me. Especially once I started to focus on these two things.

Attitude is everything.

I know it might seem overly simple, but I have the cure for an empty emotionally drained tank: An attitude adjustment. The grind of a season can wear down your attitude defense systems shifting your otherwise positive outlook into a stressed, blameful, and comparative hot mess. It’s important to realize this, and strive to make a change back to good. It is your attitude that effects everything else. Remember that excitement at the start of the season? Get back there, by choice. Lead the path back to a positive attitude for your athletes.

Refilling happens via positivity.

I’m not saying that you should fake positivity. Fake it till you make it is a fool’s prophecy. But I dare you to see the difference in the outcomes when your attitude is refocused on the positives for the second half stretch. Negativity is an excessive emotional drain of your tank. By focusing on the encouragement of others (usually by highlighting something positive) you instinctively help fill up their tank. And you know what – your own tank is refilled too. A full tank for a young athlete is an important multiplier for effort, in case you didn’t know.

Let’s promise together to continue momentum of the holiday season by rooting ourselves in the positives. By doing so, we can top off the refill of our mid-season emotional tank and increase the chances of a successful second half. Tell someone something positive today, and be more positive because of it.

Give everything your everything. And then some.

If you’d like, connect with me on Twitter and Facebook, where I’ll share near daily insight on helping you navigate youth sports.