014 - Audley Harrison - Gold Medal Mindset

In today’s episode, Audley Harrison, public figure, speaker, presenter, and boxer, explains why visualization and mindset was key to turning his life around and winning an Olympic gold medal. Audley has experienced the result of when your mindset is 100% ready – and when it isn’t – and gives insights so that we may learn from his accomplishments and struggles. He now inspires others to stay positive and align their dreams with the mindset to attain them. Listen in as Audley recounts what makes the difference between winning and losing – in life and in sport.

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Time Stamped Show Notes:

• 01:30 –Introducing Audley and his background
• 02:00 – He thought he had no future and got into trouble as a kid; his mindset shift is what turned his life around
• 03:10 – At 9 years old he had an epiphany that he’d be a great sportsman one day; he spent years seeking the sport he loved
• 03:35 – He was connected to boxing through his younger brother and he enjoyed the Rocky movies
• 04:00 –At age 19, he got into a street fight and people said he looked like a boxer; he went to the gym to try it and quickly realized it was his sport
• 04:30 – He trained, went to college, graduated, and quickly advanced in his boxing career
• 05:20 – He was on the world stage, won national championships, and began visualizing the Olympic gold medal
• 06:10 – He started a boxing union when he was 27 because boxing at the time wasn’t funded and he was in debt; he knew that couldn’t work long-term
• 07:15 – Only two boxers of twelve qualified for the Olympic Games; when he was in the Olympic Village he was pumped, focused, calculated, and confident
• 8:30 – He introduced himself to the other athletes and told everyone he was going to win a gold medal; he wanted to put boxing on the map
• 09:20 – Audley fought Alexei Lezin from Russia and beat him; that’s when everyone began to take an interest in his fights
• 10:40 – The crowd was behind him in the semifinals; his abilities matched his task and everything came together
• 11:30 – He ruptured a tendon in his knuckle in the semifinals and needed to get cleared by the doctors to continue fighting; he didn’t want to settle for silver
• 13:00 – He spent 3 days icing his hand; the doctor looked at his hand and his face, and told him he needed to shave
• 14:20 – He shaved and got into the final despite his hand injury; Lennox Lewis visited his room before his fight and encouraged him
• 15:30 – He won the gold medal; he did it for himself, his legacy, and to put boxing on the map in Great Britain
• 16:40 – The mindset Audley had to create his own reality
• 16:55 – He knows to never give up, no matter how dark, hard, or difficult; he learned determination, talent, resilience, and courage is required to live your dream
• 17:50 – Be who you are and live your best life; use everything you have to make your dream happen
• 18:30 – It’s all about mindset; everything is a fight and your mindset is what makes the difference
• 20:02 – He tore his pectoral muscle in a fight with Michael Sprott but he didn’t care, he kept fighting because he had already made his mind that he was going to win
• 21:50 – He had a surgery and was still injured when he fought David Haye; he knew he wasn’t ready when he walked out on the ring
• 25:00 – He was trying to heal his pectoral quickly, he took chances, cut corners, and wasn’t being true to himself
• 25:50 – It was the title that he wanted, he didn’t just want to win another fight
• 26:28 – He didn’t win; he learned that you don’t win world titles simply “hoping for the best”
• 29:00 – He was hoping that everything was going to come together, and that was his mistake
• 29:45 – If you want a special performance, you must know; when Audley’s mindset wasn’t at 100%, it didn’t work out well for him
• 33:05 – He took fights when he was still injured out of desperation; he didn’t know when he’d get the chance again
• 33:55 – When he became a professional, he wanted to be his own promoter; he wanted to do his own deal with the BBC
• 34:14 – He worked with the BBC because he put his mind to achieving that goal
• 35:15 – How Audley feels looking back on his journey
• 35:30 – Fondly, even though he didn’t get everything he wanted; he achieved his goals and changed the future of boxing
• 36:15 – The way he lost the BBC deal made him very depressed; he found faith in himself to recover
• 37:06 – He is part of Samaritans to support those dealing with depression, stress, and suicidal thoughts
• 38:00 – The Samaritans campaign is to encourage people to support each other through life’s difficult seasons
• 40:00 – He now plays poker and guarantees that he’ll play in the WSOP next year

3 Key Points

1. Visualize, act, and speak as if you’ve already actualized your goal.
2. You must have determination, talent, resilience, and courage to live your dream.
3. Prepare and know that everything will come together – hope alone won’t get you there.

Contact/Resources

• Primed Mind – Elliot’s Mindset App
• Audley Harrison – Website
• Harrison vs. Sprott Knockout - Video
• Samaritans - Website 

Credits

• Podcast Production by Podcastily