"Sean, worry about yourself." - Sean Killion's mother to her then 8 year-old-son
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As it turns out, Sean held the American record in the 400 freestyle for almost 17 years. Additionally, he beat Vladimir Salnikov--the Michael Jordan of distance freestylers--in the 1986 Goodwill Games. More importanly, Sean was able to takethe skills he learned in the pool and transition them into a brilliant career and marriage. There are few things that he talked about that I have been pondering on, and want to get them out into the internet. Here goes:
1. Worry About Yourself
Sean said that when he was growing up in New Jersey, he had a tendency to complain about things that were outside of his control. Mrs. Killion, being a wise and integrated human being, told her son, "Sean, worry about yourself." He said that was the best advice about life that he ever got. Maybe this is why Mr. Killion was able to accomplish so much: he listened to his mother, and he mastered a very difficult lesson at a very young age.
The way I see it, a human being only has so much energy. Holding this constant, this energy needs to be put to the highest and best purpose each day. Any energy spent worrying about things that are outside of one's control, or are things that others should be doing but aren't, is energy that could be redirected towards the task at hand. I am not saying don't be compassionate, or don't be concerned about family members. What I am saying is focus your energy towards the things of great importance and let the unimportant stuff go.
An example: At every workplace I have EVER been to, there are always a group of people or groups of people who love to talk about the ongoing of the office, who did what to whom and how, etc. I have never seen the thought leaders of the company engage in such behavior, they usually have their head down at a computer trying to figure out how to solve the real issues of the company. Case in point: If you want to be amongst the best at anything, keep your head down and worry about yourself. [Unpacked: Essentially stay focused, never give up, and if you fail get right back up and keep trying again until you succeed. Don't let anyone or anything distract you from your goals. Set your own standard.]
2. Get Out of Your Own Way
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Lots of times I think about epic performances being full of tricks or special knowledge. Most of the time the greatest performance in any arena are so basic that they almost seem magical. And in just focusing on the basics and getting the job done, you put yourself in a position to win rather than a position to lose.
3. Managing Your Highs and Lows
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While I was working in public accounting, I knew early on that it wasn't the right career for me. Even though I have moved on, there are still a lot of wonderful little tricks that I picked up from those years. All experiences--in some way or another--can be used as direction to become the person that we want to be.
Author: Michael Munson lives in Phoenix, AZ and is one of my Girevoy Sport (G.S.) Kettlebell Students who regularly practices endurance swimming, running, and high intensity workouts. To read more of Michael's work follow him here: http://www.zenaccountant.blogspot.com/
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