Ask Cael: Do you have any tips on how I can stay focused on my goals and pick up my motivation to finish out these last several weeks of my career on a good note?

Story Published Tuesday, January 12th, 2010

name: Todd

question: Hey Cael, your one of my heroes and me and my dad have really enjoyed watching you over the years. We expect great things from Penn State. It’s my senior year and honestly I’m getting really burnt out. I took fifth last year at state and I have high hopes to win state this year but I’m just lacking motivation on a daily basis. This lack of motivation and cutting weight is starting to show in my matches and I don’t know how to get out of this rut I’m stuck in. I was doing well at 119s and then I dropped to 112s and I’m not sure if i should go back up because then maybe I would have more energy and I would be happier. Do you have any tips on how I can stay focused on my goals and pick up my motivation to finish out these last several weeks of my career on a good note. Thanks…

Thanks for the email. Make sure you are focused on the right things. What you choose to focus on is what you are going to get. If you focus on trying to accomplish something great and being the very best you can be, then that is what you are going to get. If you focus on your lack of motivation, and cutting weight is, then that is what you are going to get. Cutting weight is tough.

What weight you should go is something you and your coach need to talk about.

Remember your goals. Visualize yourself reaching your goals. That should respark your fire. Remember YOUR desire to be successful. These are your goals and an opportunity to do something great.

Remember you aren’t cutting weight because you hate food. You are cutting weight because you have goals to accomplish!

Like I said before, don’t focus on your obstacles or that’s what you will get. Focus on your goals. Expect and accept that there will be obstacles. If you expect obstacles, it is not that big of a deal when they pop up. The only certainty is that there will be obstacles. Questioning your motivation is an obstacle. One of the keys to winning is to expect obstacles. Those obstacles are part of what makes what you are trying to accomplish special. If it were easy, everyone would do it right?

I was taught that obstacles are nothing more then life testing to see how badly you want to reach your goal.

A great quote is “judge a man’s strength but the amount of adversity it takes to slow him down.”

At the toughest time in my career I had very similar thoughts. The best advice I received was “you are responsible for everything you think, everything you say, everything you feel and everything you do.”

That is the truth. You can think and feel positively or you can be negative with yourself.

It is all your choice. Obstacles like the ones you are facing are only as powerful as you allow them to be. Remember your goals. Remember why you are working and making sacrifices. You are doing all of things for yourself, so you can make a run at a goal.

M. Ali said it well, “suffer now, and live the rest of your life as a champion.”

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