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Rory McIlroy’s Mental Game & Business Yips

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Rory McIlroy won his first major in great style yesterday, by winning the US Open with a record breaking 16 under par.

He’s only 22.  But i think what’s more impressive is the fact that he demolished the best field in the world (the closest to him was 8 shots away) only a short while after ‘throwing’ away the US Masters recently.

Here’s a significant sound bite from a TIME article today:

“Bad Masters memories could have popped into McIlroy’s head on Sunday, wreaking havoc on his game, and endangering his enormous lead.  More than any other sport, golf is a mental minefield. Those yips are as common as chips.”

– TIME, June 20th 2011
You could say business is a mental minefield also.  A bad day/week/month/quarter if you let it, can set you back.  Just like an average golfer. I believe this is because most people play bad memories & worries too much in their minds. And then the ‘business yips’ emerge…
McIlroy was quoted over the weekend as saying he wasn’t going to “let his mind wander onto the negative memories of before – only on
his strengths and his game plan.’

I’d love to have a chance to interview him.  I’m pretty sure that if we go into his mind, we’d find a few of these things:

1. He made himself remember the great things he’d done & his strengths. (this relieves stress and builds confidence)
2. Because he go so close to winning before he had faith that if he  ‘just played’ he’d get there

3. This time round, he only focused on what he wanted to happen and also remembered the great memories of his game to date.

All of the above impact hugely in your state of mind, and that is the key to composure, consistency and high performance.

Either way, a great exhibition of how you CAN bounce back from big set-backs – and the trick is in the mental game.

Have a great week,

Shane

www.shanecradock.com

ps to read the full TIME article go here:

http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/06/19/a-rory-story-mcilroys-mental-game-wins-the-u-s-open/#ixzz1Pp1DKaIK