93. How a business athlete prepares for competition

To bring her whole self to the game, the business athlete

• Stays physically fit, flexibility, strength, cardiovascular fitness – because in long days at work, physical fitness supports mental alertness
• She insists on getting enough sleep
• She practices some form of mindfulness, to remain centered in the midst of inevitable crises
• She finds a coach who will help her keep improving her game through deliberate practice
• She puts time into mastering the basics until they become automatic -
• She studies the competition to understand their moves
• She regularly reviews, with an objective lens, her own performance, identifying what went well and what can be improved
• She is motivated not by standing on the medal podium, but the satisfaction of performing at the highest possible level
• She compares herself, primarily, not to other athletes, but to her own performance yesterday
• She looks out along the full arc of her future career, and not just to the next competition.
• She phases out from her life acquaintances who are a drag on her energy rather than a contribution to it

Thanks to Michael Feiner, who, in his course "High Performance Leadership" at Columbia Business School, introduced me to this concept of the business athlete.