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Extra Inning Softball is excited to announce a new series and partnership with former DI softball coach Julie Jones (Akron, Cleveland State), who is also a Mental Performance and Mindset Coach.
Julie regularly sends Mindset Made Simple Tips to coaches across the country as well as posting them on her site, SSB Performance.
Coach Jones explains: “Mental training is such an important part of the game, and as a former DI coach I know how hard it is to fit the mental part of the game into training. I hope that sharing this information will help athletes improve performance by strengthening their mindset, routines, focus, etc.”
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Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have heard a ton about “PPE” (Personal Protective Equipment such as masks and face shields) and how it protects us.
According to science, it is our best bet for staying healthy!
I am going to talk about four other “P’s” that are our best bet for Peak Performance (lots of “P’s” going around here!):
The four “P’s, which are key to separating success and failure, are:
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PRESENT
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POSITIVE
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PROCESS
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POSTURE
Instead of the Ps protecting us—to perform well—we must protect them, especially in these three situations:
- If (or when) we turn into our time-traveling self and begin to think of the past or future.
- If (or when) we allow our negativity bias or limiting beliefs sneak take over our thoughts.
- If (or when) we begin to focus on results or outcomes.
And, if (or when) we walk around like the sky is falling… then we need to SHIFT!
I am sure I am telling your something you already know, but it is important to share with our teams that this SHIFT is a CHOICE…and it must be PRACTICED! Know that this is a conscious switch… a deliberate mindset shift. This is where our self-awareness superpower comes in.
The sooner we realize we have shifted away from the PRESENT, being POSITIVE, focusing on the PROCESS and when our POSTURE tells a negative story, the sooner we can get back to the task at hand!
You see/hear examples of all these situations daily at practice… heck, we do all of the above ourselves!
How do we SHIFT when we become aware that we are not protecting the 4 Ps?
There are a lot of options and as my long-time assistant used to tell our kids” “your generation needs options!”
Some sample ideas:
- find and PRACTICE using a RESET WORD…
- ask yourself a QUESTION…
- PINCH the side of your leg like I used to do when I was looking ahead or behind in our games.
Whatever it is, whatever fits your personality, find something that brings you back to NOW…THIS PITCH, THIS PLAY, THIS MOMENT…
…for these are the only things we can truly control, change, affect! So, help your team make a plan, individually and/or as a group.
What will you do when one or all of the 4 Ps get lost?
Will you focus on your breath? Will you focus on a spot on the scoreboard? Will you sing a song? Will you ask yourself what your next move is?
Whatever it is, it must get you back TO THE NOW, so you are ready for WHAT COMES NEXT!
If I can serve as an outside voice to help you set your team up to PROTECT the “4 P’s” or help you by taking planning for your mental game off your plate, email me anytime! I would love to help!
Hoping all of you work to protect your 4 Ps, too! We all know that how we handle them makes a huge difference for us and our team!
Have a wonderful week!
Julie Jones
SSB Performance
Website: www.ssbperformance.com
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: /ssbperformance
Twitter: @SSBMindset
Instagram: /ssbperformance
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Note: Coach Jones will be providing a FREE Mental Performance Workshop this Sunday, March 28th at 7:00 p.m. EST to cover in more detail the “4 P’s of Peak Performance…
To register for free, click HERE
- Learn simple training tools you can use RIGHT AWAY to up your game…
- Learn how our brain’s automatic processes affect how we play…
- Walk away with tools you can easily add to your training to improve your performance…
Get more info on Coach Jones and SSB Performance HERE
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Coach Julie Jones Bio:
Julie Jones spent 26 years leading Division I softball programs with her mission being simple: to build Smarter Students, Stronger Athletes and Better People. Continuing her work of helping student-athletes reach their goals on and off the field, Coach Jones now serves as a Certified Mental Performance and Mindset Coach and Positive Performance Visualization Specialist as the founder of SSB Performance, LLC. – Smarter, Stronger Better Mindset Training, working with college and high school sports teams all over the country.
Coach Jones also serves as an Adjunct Professor at Ursuline College teaching well-being and performance, mindset training, coaching and career development courses in both the undergraduate and graduate studies programs. She is also an instructor in Ursuline’s Institute for Women, Wellness & Work where she currently leads the Personal Energy Management program. Jones also serves on the Institute’s Women’s Leadership Committee and was instrumental in helping develop the College’s new Curated Wellness Master’s Program.
During her 13 years each at Cleveland State University (1993 – 2006) and the University of Akron (2006 – 2019), Coach Jones mentored five Academic All-Americans, 55 All-Conference honorees, eight NCAA All-Mideast Region selections, 86 Academic all-conference student-athletes, thirteen Academic All-District selections, 12 All-Region selections, four Pitchers of the Year, the 1997 MCC Player of the Year, the 2016 prestigious MAC Nan Harvey award winner the 2017 MAC Freshman Pitcher of the Year and was named MCC Coach of the Year. These honorees and their teammates rewrote the CSU and UA record books for pitching, home runs in a season and in all base running categories as a perennial NCAA leader in stolen bases.
Jones began her head coaching experience at CSU as the youngest head coach in the country and ended her time at CSU with the most wins in school history of any sport.
She finished her career with more than 500 career victories. Five of her former players have been inducted into the CSU Athletics Hall of Fame with several going on to play professionally in softball and football in the US and abroad.
With a strong emphasis on academics, the Vikings and Zips posted GPAs as high as 3.53 and annually ranked atop all Division I programs.
Along with athletic and academic achievements, Jones stressed the importance of giving back to the community as her teams contributed to many community projects over the years, winning conference awards year after year for their commitment to the community.
During her tenure at CSU, Jones also served as the Compliance Coordinator for the Vikings while serving on conference and NCAA Championship committees. Jones also designed and implemented department wide leadership, mentoring and team building programs at both CSU and UA.
A sought-after speaker, Coach Jones has presented to hundreds of groups ranging from Fortune 500s to National and State conferences to business and athletics teams to small community groups. Her experience in teaching public speaking and her personal energy and intensity allow her to reach audiences of all types sharing stories and information related to mental training, leadership, team building, culture and community service.
Coach Jones graduated with a degree in Communications from Baldwin-Wallace University and earned a Master’s Degree in Communication Theory and Methodology from Cleveland State University. She was inducted into the Baldwin-Wallace College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2003 and the Summit County Softball Hall of Fame in 2018. She is a graduate of Leadership Akron (Class 28) and the prestigious NACWA/HERS Administrative Institute in 2005.
She is a member of the Baldwin-Wallace Brown & Gold Club Athletics Board and the Leadership Akron Alumni Association. She sits on the Akron Amateur Softball Association Board. Jones also serves as Chair of the Gay Community Endowment Fund of the Akron Community Foundation. She and her long-time Associate Head Coach Julie Pratt are co-owners of Softball at the Point, LLC, offering coaching clinics and showcase camps to continue the growth of the game and to help young softball players reach their dream of competing in college.
A breast cancer survivor, Jones is a seven-time Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure Survivor winner and her Akron Garfield High School #9 jersey was retired. Jones was an All-Conference, All-Region and NFCA Academic All-American catcher and 4-year starter at Baldwin-Wallace University, leading her team to the NCAA Tournament as a senior. She and pitcher Donna Wheeler set the all-time DIII record for strikes outs in a career.