Terry Orlick - In Pursuit of Excellence - 4th Edition

In Pursuit of Excellence

FOURTH EDITION

Terry Orlick

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Orlick, Terry.

In pursuit of excellence / Terry Orlick. 4th ed.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN-13: 978-0-7360-6757-7 (soft cover)

ISBN-10: 0-7360-6757-4 (soft cover)

1. SportsPsychological aspects. I. Title.

GV706.4.O73 2008

796.01dc22

2007025190

ISBN-10: 0-7360-6757-4 (print)
ISBN-10: 0-7360-7744-8 (Mobipocket)

ISBN-13: 978-0-7360-6757-7 (print)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7360-7744-6 (Mobipocket)

ISBN-10: 0-7360-7875-4 (Kindle)

ISBN-13: 978-0-7360-7875-7 (Kindle)

Copyright 2008, 2000, 1990, 1980 by Terry Orlick

All rights reserved. Except for use in a review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying, and recording, and in any information storage and retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.

Notice: Permission to reproduce the following material is granted to instructors and agencies who have purchased In Pursuit of Excellence, Fourth Edition: pp. 63, 64, 67, 77, and 94. The reproduction of other parts of this book is expressly forbidden by the above copyright notice. Persons or agencies who have not purchased In Pursuit of Excellence, Fourth Edition may not reproduce any material.

Developmental Editor: Heather Healy; Assistant Editor: Carla Zych; Copyeditor: Robert Replinger; Proofreader: Pamela Johnson; Permission Manager: Carly Breeding; Graphic Designer: Nancy Rasmus; Graphic Artist: Tara Welsch; Cover Designer: Keith Blomberg; Cover photo: courtesy of Topmost, Inc.; Photo Asset Manager: Laura Fitch; Photo Office Assistant: Jason Allen; Art Manager: Kelly Hendren; Associate Art Manager and Illustrator: Alan L. Wilborn; Printer: United Graphics

Human Kinetics books are available at special discounts for bulk purchase. Special editions or book excerpts can also be created to specification. For details, contact the Special Sales Manager at Human Kinetics.

Human Kinetics

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This book is dedicated to YOUfor choosing to excel, for choosing to become what you are capable of becoming, for choosing to make a positive difference in your own life, for choosing to make a positive difference in the lives of others, for choosing to embrace a path with heart.

CONTENTS

I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to my daughtersSkye, Jewelia, and Anoukfor the wonderful gift of pure love and support that they have given me and continue to give me.

To the thousands of great athletes, coaches, students, and performers who have challenged me to give my best, find a better way, and continue to learn and grow as they have explored their own potential

To the team at Human Kinetics who continue to help me share my experiences and visions of excellence in a clear and meaningful way with readers around the world: Rainer Martens and Ted Miller, as well as Heather Healy, Justin Klug, Nancy Rasmus, Robert Replinger, Tara Welsch, and Carla Zych

To my colleagues and administrators at the University of Ottawa who have helped provide me with the freedom to pursue my personal and professional goals, and to my insightful and devoted graduate students who have been a continuous inspiration and joy to work with

To all the inspiring athletes and performers who are quoted in this book and to those who agreed to share intimate details of their challenging journeys: Allison Forsyth, Kerrin Lee Gartner, Thomas Grandi, Chris Hadfield, Bruce Malmberg, Chris McCormack, Dan Nadeau, and Beckie Scott

Thank you all for the ways in which you have inspired me and enriched my perspectives, my life, and the thoughts shared in this fourth edition of In Pursuit of Excellence .

This book tells you in simple and practical ways how you can excel in your life and live your dreams. You can turn challenges into opportunities in every part of your life so that you can succeed in your sport, school, profession, and relationships. You can make your focus work for you to raise the level and consistency of your performance. Perhaps most importantly, this book will help you see that you control your own destiny through your decisions and your focused actions. You are the only one who can take full control of you and your own focusthis alone puts you in a position to direct the course of your own life.

The strategies presented in this book work because they are derived from the hard-learned experiences of real people who have excelled in sport and many other high-performance domains. You can apply and adapt these lessons to surmount every conceivable challenge in your life. The recurring theme in their experiences is that focus is incredibly powerful. The focus you adopt in your life leads your performance and your reality in positive or negative ays. You decide.

As you read, keep in mind that different strategies work for different people, in different contexts, at different points in their lives. Clear your mind of clutter. Open your mind to possibilities and read with full focus and full intent to act on what is most relevant to you right now. I wish you the best in this quest.

Simple Joys,

Terry Orlick

My goal in writing this book is to help you become the person and performer you can beto empower you to perform and live consistently closer to your potential. That is my mission.

Every journey to excellence is filled with challenges, victories, setbacks, lessons, and simple joys. I hope that the simple wisdom contained in these pages will make your personal journey richer and more joyful, and that you will apply what you learn to the various contexts of your life. I encourage you to act in ways that make your mission and my mission a reality.

If you picked up this book, you probably want to excel at something. In your heart, you know that you can be better and more consistent than you are right now. The great performers I have worked with have taught me how to live and perform closer to full potentialright nowand you can learn to do so as well.

Excellence in every part of your life is a decisiondecide to excel.

Excellence is a choicechoose to excel.