We often talk about our LifeLoveLife 'ferraris' in the studio, our high performers that still come in for regular adjustments years after any initial complaints have resolved because they just know that being clear and connected is an integral part of being able to perform at their highest level. Here are details of our health secrets for high performance:
1. Meditation, Mindfulness & Breathwork ~ These practices can reduce stress, anxiety, depression, irritability and burnout; improve energy, vitality, focus, mood, productivity, attention span and satisfaction and encourage self compassion and self-awareness. Research shows that twenty minutes of meditation, when performed regularly and consistently, can have similar restorative effects as two hours of sleep. Jerry Seinfeld attributes much of his success to his 40 years of transcendental meditation practice. Ninety percent of the thoughts we have on a daily basis are the same thoughts we had the day before and that is literally like groundhog day! Meditation helps to clear out the clutter in your brain so you can start each day with a fresh page, allowing the dynamic thinking necessary for disruption and innovation.
2. Have a crystal clear vision that you can feel ~ cutting edge neuroscience suggests that the very action of marrying intention/vision with emotion is what signals our pineal gland to secrete the hormones that communicate the message of our emotion to our body. We can fool our body into thinking it has already experienced the benefits we reap when we actually achieve our goal. Visualise not just who you want to be but how you want to be. Visualise achieving your goal and have total belief this happens. Visualise what you can hear, see & feel when you achieve your goal. Think about Mohammed Ali “I am the greatest” - He visualised it, he believed it, he felt it and he was! The secret formula of high performers here is: Intention/Vision + Emotion = Action/Success.
3. Enhance your natural strengths and know your weaknesses ~ Get the most out of yourself rather than wasting time on things you aren’t so great at or passionate about. What have been the things in your life that have worked? Rather than trying to get better at everything, drill down on what you are already great at. Think about the successful and inspirational people in your life, the sports people, artists, musicians, entrepreneurs. They have most likely identified what their key strengths are and have put 100% of their focus and energy on them. Equally importantly, if you know your weaknesses, you can surround yourself with people who can ‘fill your gaps’. Provided they share your beliefs and passion, they will get the job you struggle with done with ease and you can create your dream team. As a guide, spend eighty percent of your energy and time on things that come naturally to you and twenty percent on learning new things that can complement your strengths.
4. Make creativity, discipline and productivity a daily ritual ~ Most of us have an idea which has the potential to create success but an idea isn’t enough. It is the execution of that idea that makes success possible and execution is only made possible with discipline and work. Nothing in life happens without consistency over time. High performers are not only 100% committed, they are efficient and effective at managing their time so they can focus on getting the work done. Our tips: only check emails during the first & last hour of the day rather than get lost in your inbox all day; write to-do lists each night; keep your phone in another room to avoid the distraction of constantly checking it; time block - map out the time you can realistically give each task and stick to it. Productivity Apps such as Trello, Slack and Doist can help get you started.
5. Have a desire to contribute to humanity ~ Richard Branson said “there is no point in starting a business unless you are going to make a dramatic difference to peoples lives”. Regardless of what area they have excelled in, high performers are all driven by a vision of contributing to humanity in a new and profound way, of leaving it inspired. Passion, desire and compassion are driving forces, not money. Having goals and working towards outcomes is important however agility and flexibility are key and being loosely attached to the outcome of how you will contribute to a better world means that you never actually fail, you only learn along the way and the result may be even better than you visualised.
6. Work to create a high performing body ~ You need to be a finely tuned machine to be your best. Usain Bolt said "As long as I'm in great shape, nobody beats me, for sure." There are 5 basic requirements for a healthy body and focusing on each will ensure high performance:
Nutrition ~ ninety seven percent of our cells are replaced every seven years using building blocks from the food we consume. Minimally processed, whole foods will build better cells than big macs.
Exercise ~ our bodies require movement. Aim for a good balance of strength, flexibility and cardio.
Sleep ~ this is when our body regenerates and quality of sleep can be the difference between high performers and skating through life in sympathetic dominance.
Healthy mental attitude ~ find balance between periods of extreme efficiency and rest/relaxation/play.
A healthy spine and neurological connection ~ wheels out of alignment - old bomb - leaching energy and efficiency vs finely tuned performance machine. That’s what we do. Help people get more out of their life.
If you would like to find out more about how your spinal health and neurological connection affects your performance please or get in touch at hello@livelovelifechiro.com