Clear Thinking: Essential for Success On and Off of the Field

Guest Blogger: Inner-Sports

by Garret Kramer

Because at Inner-Sports we focus much of our attention on the principle of thought, I am often asked how players can use their thinking to enhance their athletic experience and to be more successful. The answer is fairly simple: recognize the truth that thought is the creative agent that we use to direct us through life. Your thinking will create your reality, so it is your choice how this power is used. Let me give you an example: as a pitcher at the youth and even the high school level, with every game comes a different type of pitching mound. Some are high some low, some are soft some firm, some have a deep hole at the rubber some hardly any. When a pitcher takes to the field at the start of the game he has the ability to use his thinking to make whatever type of mound he encounters, his favorite type. If there is a deep hole, great I get more push off. If there is hardly any, great I have more leverage….you get the picture.

Another way to put it is to make everything and everyone you encounter an ally in your quest for great play. That way no matter what you run into, think and thus believe that it is there to help you. It is amazing how confident and competitive you will be when you use your thinking in this manner.

Lastly, I want you to rest assured that like you, the top players in Major League Baseball will, at times, think negative or errant thoughts. The most “clutch” players however, possess a secret that the average guys haven’t tapped into. These players know that they are the creator of the “bad” thoughts and these thoughts aren’t real (as opposed to the average player who is a victim of his negative thoughts). This understanding allows the mind of the top player to quiet down in the midst of a negative thought, as clear thinking, positive feelings, and peak performance emerge spontaneously.



Garret Kramer is the founder and Managing Partner of Inner-Sports, LLC. Inner-Sports evaluates and then coaches athletes of all ages on the behavioral characteristics that lead to peak performance on and off the field of play. Inner-Sport’s evaluative partner has created the behavioral assessment used at both the National Hockey League and the Major League Lacrosse scouting combines. Inner-Sports and Garret work with Baseball Factory players at select player development events.