Tag: performance

Road to Beijing 2020: An Athlete’s Story – Who Are You?

Who Am I?

Who are you?

This week I took a look inside my mind to find myself. Who am I, what do I stand for and believe in? Self-image is a very important piece of the puzzle to having a positive mindset and self-confidence. How we see ourselves and how others see us… well for those who have been following along, you probably already know it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks of us. What matters is how you see yourself and that you believe it.

All my life I dreamt about being a world cup downhill ski racer. For as long as I can remember, my dad (Glenn) would bring home VHS recordings of all the World Cup races that season. I would watch the famous Kitzbühel downhill over and over, thinking “one day I’ll stand on the world cup podium, just like them”… Forwarding through the years, more and more outside influences had me questioning myself and my abilities.

“You’re too small” was one of many criticizing remarks I received, along with…

“You’re too old “

“You aren’t strong enough to be a Downhiller” 

My personal favourite – “You are Glenn’s son, you should be winning by a bigger margin” 

The list goes on and on, unfortunately, I have experienced this throughout my career. Lucky for me I learned at a young age to believe in me, both my parents gave me this gift. Whenever I was really struggling with something, I was always reassured and given the choice to think for myself. Was I wrong sometimes, and got injured or failed… of course. But that is growth, I will proudly say I would not be who I am without experiencing failure or enduring such hardship. I am very grateful to have learned this when I did.

Society is tough and judgemental. I have to admit, I’ve opened up Instagram a few times and became jealous of others. Comparing myself to others and then putting them down in hopes to make myself feel better or lift myself up. I am willing to bet many of you have also done something similar. Casting a shadow on another… or throwing shade as the kids say nowadays, doesn’t brighten us. 

In last week’s section, we talked about attitude and how others are not in control of our attitudes. We are solely in control of how we feel about everything. The same theory applies here with self-belief. 

Others can have a huge impact on you, criticizing who you are, what you’re capable of and believe in. Talking you out of dreams or ideas and putting pressure on you hoping you will fail. Yes, it is very hard to block these outside influences, but at the end of it, you choose your thoughts so you can choose what to believe.

I say believe in you! and encourage others, Smile, be kind and enjoy life.

If you have a chance this week, check out the movie “Cool Runnings”. This film is filled with lots of great reminders to always believe in ourselves and stay true to who we are. 

Road To Beijing 2022: An Athletes Story – Roles

Roles

We all play many roles every day in life, some we choose, others are chosen for us. Amongst the other roles, I’m currently playing I have decided to pursue my goal of becoming a Three-Time Winter Olympian, competing in the 2022 Beijing Olympic winter games.

What does this entail?

Well, no two roles are the same, but we can apply specific skills, tricks or tools to play this new role as best to our ability. I have found it is helpful to identify what are my weaknesses or tendencies that will create hurdles or challenges for me in this new role. No doubt I am taking on a lot with this role so I need to be aware of what problems might occur when I get run down and overworked.

Unwanted advice – I can feel personally attacked when others give me unsolicited advice or coaching. In my head, I’m thinking “pfft you have no idea how hard this is”… “I’m doing my best who are you to give me advice” (That’s my ego kicking in) Check your ego at the door, Ben. If you are so good and know everything why are you racing independently?

Procrastination – In one shape or form I believe we all procrastinate, I tend to give in to my tiredness and push things. Being conscious of this, using my day planner and holding myself accountable is how I will stay on target.

Communication – The old saying is “ communication is key “ when I get low my communication can suffer and then Ben is MIA. Two-way communication is important, responding and letting others know you’ve received and understood their messages in a timely manner.

Of course, learning from past challenges and mistakes is a part of progression but confidence and self-belief are another. What are the strengths I possess that will benefit me in this Role?

Mental Strength and Endurance – Developed through many struggles, losses and pain, my mental strength and ability to endure unforgiving circumstances is a great asset. Although extremely difficult life lessons to experience, I am very grateful and proud I’ve been able to use these in an empowering way to better myself.

Experience – Having competed at two Winter Olympic Games, four World Championships and achieved a World Cup Podium I know first hand the level of professionalism needed to compete at the elite level.

Athleticism – Knowing my limits, and constantly pushing. Many have described my racing style as fearless. As much as I wish this were true, it’s not. Fear is present during every race and training I attempt or complete. Over years of pushing my boundaries, I have developed a strong athletic base and ability that I am immensely confident in.

By Identifying my strengths and weaknesses I allow myself to imagine what might be asked of me in this role, the challenges I could face when asked and how to be successful when the challenges present themselves.

Your best can always be better, it only gets better by trying your best… never stop trying.

Road To Beijing 2022: An Athletes Story

Have you ever witnessed someone go through an incredible transformation? You watch as they accomplish a goal or overcome all odds and you think to yourself… “how the heck did they do that?!?!”

Hi, my name is Benjamin Thomsen, a two-time Canadian winter Olympian aiming for my 3rd winter games this coming winter. As you are probably aware, becoming an Olympian multiple times doesn’t happen with luck. Correct, the odds are slim to none, but so are the odds of being born (about 1 in 400 trillion) and you have overcome those odds so what stops you from becoming your greatest? In my opinion, odds are just numbers and history shows humans overcome and beat the odds consistently. Yes, living in such a competitive environment these days it’s very hard not to get caught up in the numbers, but I am here to show you, we all have the tools and skills to beat the odds.

Competing on the world stage is a big challenge in itself, but last year seemed to be a lot more difficult than before. Returning home after such a difficult and unsuccessful season had me down. The world is so strange and constantly changing every day.

I have so many questions, I imagine so do a lot of you. The kicker is none of us have experienced something quite like this before. So how does one succeed?

Life right now can be so overwhelming, many of us are thinking about where to begin. These thoughts are followed by overwhelming stress and a craving for a much-needed break, but given the current global state, this isn’t always possible.

So what do I do!?!?

Last winter my competition season was very tough, to say the least. Alpine Canada dropped me from the team, forcing me to fully fund and organize my team independently. Covid-19 stripped away many training hours, days and funding. Not to mention the confusing and challenging travel restrictions. Finally, I wrapped up my competition season at the beginning of February by partially tearing both my left ACL and Patella tendon over 50%.

Sure, I could retire and make an income, I wouldn’t have to deal with the stress and complications that is competition. I’ve had a tremendous professional career over the last 10 years. I’ve competed at two Winter Olympic Games, achieved a World Cup podium in 2012 and have multiple national titles… But I have my drive, passion and love for my sport, body and life again. I’m very excited for what the future holds and continue practicing my newly acquired skills. 

I’ve made my decision to continue my career and defined my role.

“Three-Time Olympian” 

Join me alongside I Got Mind over the next 10 weeks as I complete the success strategies courses that have enabled me to be my best in all roles of life. Having completed the course in the fall of 2021, I am psyched to have this opportunity again to learn more and improve my skills while sharing them with you.

– Ben