tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65688688794289483872012-02-16T15:55:43.671-08:00Bill Howiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04058485907118822177noreply@blogger.comBlogger21100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6568868879428948387.post-85926674576063540522009-03-01T20:55:00.000-08:002009-03-04T11:24:15.708-08:00My athletic journey began as a boy playing imaginary football on my bedroom floor. Gatorade had a promotion with NFL Team logos under their bottle caps. I collected as many as I could and went to work with my own season of glory. I would play entire games in my imagination. Different teams had different styles. One team would have a power running game with a deep pass threat, while another team would work its way down my bedroom floor with a controlled short passing attack. I remember a feeling of immersion and joy in those glorious seasons of my secret league.  My next sport was bathroom floor tennis. We had square tiles in our bathroom and I would spend way too much time playing imaginary Wimbledon and U.S. Open matches. My mother would have been relieved to know what was really going on in there. Basketball was next, one on none, I would create thrilling finish after thrilling finish. I fell in love with sport in those days of innocence. <div>Then I began sports participation in the"real world". I played football, basketball, volleyball, surfing, baseball, and Tennis. My skill, talent, and competitive levels were very high. My coping skills were less than to be desired.  The pressure of competitive athletics on a young person can help to build strong character and self esteem. It can also lead to misguided coping skills and a false sense of self connected to the outcome of an event or a career for that matter. Fear based ego comparison became my coping skill. When I won, I was king of the world, when I lost I was a loser! The habitual projected pressure of this behavior was, In hindsight, the main reason for an athletic career that can only be characterized as unfulfilled promise.<div>  Becoming a student, a motivator, and a teacher has been my saving grace. Through the honest desire to help my students I have found purpose and clarity in my life. I began to see myself in my students. I began to see clearly what worked and what did not work in the arena of sport and life. My experience with sport has truly been a spiritual path. I have had a revelation of the divine. Love is what attracted me to sport; the love of movement, the love of flow, and the love of spirited competition. I believe with conviction that a conscious connection to this Love is critical to <a href="http://geniusofsport.blogspot.com/">consistent peak performance in sport and life</a>. </div><div>  In my next posts I will share with you a process which will, if consistently practiced,  lead to peak performance in any arena every time! </div><div>May your path be an expanding, joyful mystery</div><div>    Sincerely,</div><div> Bill Howie  </div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6568868879428948387-8592667457606354052?l=geniusofsport.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Bill Howiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04058485907118822177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6568868879428948387.post-89127257253378753982009-02-26T11:12:00.000-08:002009-03-03T21:25:18.233-08:00<script type="text/javascript"><!--<br />google_ad_client = "pub-0145329464694909";<br />/* 728x90, created 3/3/09 */<br />google_ad_slot = "3060684683";<br />google_ad_width = 728;<br />google_ad_height = 90;<br />//--><br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript"<br />src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"><br /></script>I love sport. The feeling of transcendence I experience when I am deeply involved in the process of sport can only be defined as divine revelation. The awe and wonder of what the human body, mind, and spirit is capable of is truly miraculous. In a tennis match the server can serve in excess of 130 mph and the returner can react and return the serve with uncanny accuracy. A quarterback can scan the field, throw a perfectly timed pass in stride to a streaking receiver, all within a split second of being tackled by a very powerful defensive end. A surfer can feel the energy of the wave beneath him, time his takeoff perfectly and flow with the wave in perfect harmony. A walk on the beach can align one with the natural rhythm and beauty of life. The examples are infinite. Whatever the sport, whatever the level, sport is a joyful mystery and<a href ="http://geniusofsport.blogspot.com/"> a revelation of the divine.</a><div>    I have been a teacher, motivator, and student of peak performance in sport and life for over twenty years. I believe with conviction that I know what works in peak performance and what does not. The biggest hurdle I have seen in my students and in myself is the unconscious arguing for ones limitations. The most powerful solution for this shortcoming is an expanded view of ones capabilities. What greater an expansion than ones own sense and connection to divinity? This is the first step in the process of consistent joy and peak performance in sport and life.</div><div>     I believe everyone is an athlete. I believe everyone was born with a natural genius for sport. Whether your sport is walking for health, or you are a high level athlete in any sport, you are a genius and you are connected to divinity.</div><div>   My intention with this blog is to share my knowledge and experience of the principles which allow for the highest level of performance and the highest capacity for joy in sport and life continually. </div><div>Bill Howie</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6568868879428948387-8912725725337875398?l=geniusofsport.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Bill Howiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04058485907118822177noreply@blogger.com0