Ever wonder what separates winners from losers, in sports, careers and life?  It’s not just about talent.  Having the right state of mind or attitude, and ability to recover from adversity can enable even the average person to achieve far more than someone with natural talent.

Throughout my life I have encountered a lot of individuals that tend to beat themselves up any time they face a setback or make a mistake.  They focus on the negative, wondering how it could have happened and even feeling sorry for themselves.  For example, if you play golf you can often see frustrated golfers who turn one bad shot into a series of even worse shots over many holes.  Negativity in your mind only builds on itself, and in most cases will magnify setbacks and ultimately crush self-esteem and increase the fear of failure.

Great achievers focus instead on positive self-talk.  That is, their attitude and state of mind ultimately determines the altitude of their achievement.  These individuals constantly repeat positive affirmations in their heads…. I’m the best, I’m the best, I’m the best… Instead of allowing their mind to go negative when facing adversity, they view it instead as merely a single transaction along a much longer achievement journey.  They’ll say things like “That’s OK, I got the next one, because I’m the best,” or “I can do this, I can do this, no big deal, I can do this.”

If you do not believe in the power of positive self-talk, try this exercise.   Spend one day with a commitment to using positive self-talk through the entire day.  Make a game of it.  No matter what happens to you during the day, constantly repeat positive affirmations in your mind.  You will be amazed at the change in your attitude, energy and overall confidence.  Just getting up in the morning and repeating over and over “This is going to be a great day… this is going to be a great day…” will make a huge impact on your approach to the day and what you are able to accomplish.

Imagine what could happen if you did this every day!

You are what you think about.  Garbage in, garbage out.  Fill your mind with positive affirmations and you will fill your life with achievement.