Melinda Harrison - Personal Next: What We Can Learn From Elite Athletes Navigating Career Transition

PRAISE FOR PERSONAL NEXT

Melinda does a masterful job of describing the stages of all high performers: the ascent to a personal best, the struggles of the messy middle, and then the discovery of a personal next. The journey she takes you on will help you take ownership of your next steps.

Simon Keith, soccer player, author of Heart for the Game, and the first athlete to play professional sports after a heart transplant

One of the most effective forms of support is peer to peer. Melinda has provided this support in Personal Next. Well done for providing this great resource for our community.

Gearoid Towey, three-time Olympian and founder of crossingthelinesport.com

Harrison turns her keen eye on investigating her fellow athletes to uncover what we can learn about growingand thrivingany time we face a life-altering transition. Using inspiring stories, powerful frameworks, and the seamless integration of the latest science, she weaves a powerful case for why change is the greatest opportunity of all.

Dr. Sarah McKay, PhD, director of The Neuroscience Academy and author of The Womens Brain Book

This book will help you thrive in life after sports. As a former World Cup and Olympic skier, I found Harrisons concept of the PRACTICES rang true. This is an awesome model for anyone looking for that next big bold mission.

Anja Bolbjerg, founder of Athlete Story and host of the Successful After Sports Summit

Personal Next is full of stories that I could relate to as well as strategies to help me with my post-sport transition. Thank you for reminding athletes that they are not alone.

Mercedes Nicoll, four-time Olympian, host, and public speaker

In my experience working with athletes, many of them have more difficulty making the transition to their next challenge in life than they do mastering their sport. Personal Next offers invaluable insights about how to find success and make that transition to the next chapter in their life.

Robb Dalton, IMG Chief Creative Officer (retired)

Melinda Harrison is finally sharing her wisdom with the world. This is fantastic news for all athletes out there. Ive worked with student athletes for over 25 years and Personal Next is the book they need. Melinda gets what they are going through and I guarantee every athlete will benefit from her wisdom and heart and have an easier transition out of sport because of it.

Shari Acho, founder and CEO of BlitzPrep Consulting

When you have dedicated your entire life to one thing, transition is never easy. The advice and research in Personal Next will inspire athletes to use the very training that helped them on the field to make the transition off the field and into a new life.

Victor Hobson, former NFL player and managing partner, ASE Global Group

Loved reading this book! Personal Next will help me as a coach to better formulate conversations with those athletes facing retirement.

Rachel Stratton-Mills, Associate Head Coach, Swimming, Arizona State University Sun Devils

I was struggling to figure out what I wanted to do with my life after sport. I wasnt even sure if I was ready to retire. Melindas process helped me figure out what I wanted. She helped me remove outside influences and think clearly about what matters to me. I was able to critique my current life and figure out what my next steps should be.

Gamal Assaad, swimmer, athlete representative, and founder of Orgashell

Personal Next is a very useful resource for any athlete. The sooner you read, educate yourself, and act, the better it will be for you.

Jim Peplinski, former NHL player, captain of the Calgary Flames, and winner of the Stanley Cup, 1989

Copyright 2020 by Melinda Harrison

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written consent of the publisher or a license from The Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency (Access Copyright).

For a copyright license, visit www.accesscopyright.ca or call toll free to 1-800-893-5777.

Cataloguing data available from Library and Archives Canada

ISBN 978-1-928055-58-7 (paperback)

ISBN 978-1-928055-59-4 (EPUB)

ISBN 978-1-928055-66-2 (PDF)

Editor: Kendra Ward

Cover and interior design: Greg Tabor

Author photo: Wallbanger Media

Published by LifeTree Media Ltd.

LifeTreeMedia.com

Distributed in the US by Publishers Group West and in Canada by Publishers Group Canada

This book is dedicated to my mom and dad, who put me on a plane to Florida, with no concept of what they were really getting into.

And it is dedicated to athletes: those of you just putting on your water wings, and those of you taking your final bow. If you have done it before, you can do it again!

CONTENTS

Introduction

High Achievers

People often ask me what it was like to compete at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. They tell me that they cant imagine anything more incredible. But I always tell them that I feel my peak moment wasnt at the Olympic Games themselves but at the Olympic Trials six weeks earlier.

In the last few hours before that race, many thoughts zoomed through my head. I knew I had the proficiency to compete at the elite level. As an athlete, I had made the sacrifices asked of me. I had regulated my behaviours to achieve my goals. Through all my training and many competitions, my attitude had always been to keep learning, keep trying. Although my failures had taught me more than my successes had, I was acutely aware that each win and each loss represented only a moment in time. But I had done the work, recommitted after every bout of bone-shaking doubt, and I knew I could achieve the results. I competed on the last day of the six-day trials, and leading up to my race, I had heartily supported my teammates, encouraging their success. They reciprocated in turn, telling me how much they believed in me, too. Warm, positive feelings abounded.

As I stood on the blocks, I felt a deep sense of belonging. I never once in those moments doubted my identity as a world-class athlete. That I had spent many years preparing for this event filled me with assurance. As I jumped into the water (backstrokers start in the pool), I said to myself, Here we go. No matter the result, I have done everything I can to give it my all. I wanted this, and even though I was nervous, I had mentally trained to control these emotions. Before the starting buzzer sounded, I looked up to see my entire family in the stands. I had always known that they supported me, but more importantly, I had come to realize that they would love me no matter the result. They were a secure base. There are no guarantees in high performance sports, but as the starter said Take your mark, I was filled with an unflagging certainty that the race was mine to own. I had no fear and I was ready.

I touched the wall at the end of the race, exhausted, heaving to catch my breath. The times flashed up on the board. I knew what I had to do to make it to the Olympics: meet a qualifying standard and come in either first or second. I looked around and saw my coach jumping up and down, my friends running toward where I would exit the pool, and my family hugging each other in the stands. As I write this I still feel the emotions of that moment. The heavy weight of dreams lifted, my emotions skipped from joy to relief, from excitement to an incredible sense of honour. I was going to compete at the Olympics. For the next few hours I celebrated with family and friends. And then the reality hit me. I had spent my entire career wanting to make an Olympic team. I now had six weeks to reset my goals. I had never before this moment contemplated my race at the Olympics.