I received a call from a German tennis pro in August 2006. He'd had a lot of success in the past reaching the final of the Australian Open and was at one time ranked as high as Nr 5 in the world. When we started to work together he was ranked 158. He had been injured for a while and for more than 12 months he could not get past the 1st round in major ATP tour events, he was struggling finding his form again. But what I noticed was not so much the content of what he was saying when we had our conversations that was so important, it was the phrases he was using, such as “I don’t think I can do this anymore” or “this isn’t working like it used to.” I supported him in becoming aware of how destructive what he was saying was, and how it had nothing to do with the present moment, or about what skills and resources he had to offer right now. We then talked over his resources, the strengths and skills that he could apply right now, such as his speed, experience, and a great counter attacking style of game, and how he could start to apply them in a positive and constructive way. Right away his focus was no longer on what he didn’t have or wasn’t doing, instead he was focusing on what he was doing, could do and decided to do. It didn’t mean that he would start winning every match, but it made things a lot clearer and easier to accept the results in a more constructive way. The most important thing was, a seed was planted in his subconscious mind based on what he wanted, and that was to be back under the best 30 best tennis players in the world. After a very up and down journey he made the semis in Wimbledon and was ranked 30 in world rankings again. Interestingly enough, that was exactly what he decided for, and that was exactly what he got. Not one place more, not one place less. So be very aware of what you are thinking!

I knew through our first conversation that Gunnar and I could work well together. He had many years of experience as a coach with a lot of success with many different teams, but this particular problem he could find no solution to it. I made an appointment to visit him and his team, and when he picked me up from the train station, I could see the weight he was under by the way he was just carrying himself, shoulders down, slow and heavy. Then, after a long conversation in private, I came to realize that the key to the problem laid in him. We went to the ice rink to meet the team, and as I walked through the locker room I saw players with enthusiasm and interest, but by the time I reached the coaches office in the back, any positive energy had disappeared. I transmitted this observation to the coach, and a light went on. We made a detailed plan for his training for the day, based on fun, hard work, and learning. He got his whistle out of the drawer and was ready to go. I accompanied him back into the locker room where he delivered the very dynamic and positive plan for training, blew his whistle and was ready to go. From that day on the team transformed into a team that wanted and believed they could win. They moved up from the bottom of the league to a playoff position and lost in a fantastic seventh game of the playoff series against the Cologne Sharks, one of the top teams in the league that year.e.

One of the most interesting seasons I have had working with a professional ice hockey team, was the season with the Vienna Capitals when they won the Austrian national championships. We were having a good season, we were the best team, winning over 70% of the games. Even though it was lock-out year in the NHL, and all the other teams had picked up top players from north America, and we had not. We were on a tight budget, so we had to go with the players we had on the roster, so team dynamic was what would make the difference from any lack in quality. We were a team on a clear mission to win a championship that year. I had a feeling though, just before crunch time, the play-offs, that we were lacking something to make sure we could go all the way. We were missing two absolute leaders, one to cover the team and the other in the team. We had one player who had the experience and the respect from the whole team, but he wasn’t stepping up until we asked him to. It was as simple as giving him the permission to lead, and he did. The inside team leader was a true warrior, someone who would sacrifice himself for the team. Again, all it took was an invitation from the coach to take up that role, and he did. Those two players lead that team to winning a championship that no other team in Vienna had done in 43years, in a way that nobody in the league will ever forget.

Not all teams are easy to work with, even if you have worked with the leader of the team successfully before. One season I supported a trainer with whom I had worked with a couple of seasons before with the Cologne Sharks. He had put together a strong team as he always did, with a lot of top performing players, especially the goal tender, who was the number one goalie in the German premier league the year they won the cup. Due to us having done so well before, naturally the coach was hoping we could do it again, but the team didn't have the same intentions, they had no vision for winning a championship. I joined the team at the time of the season where they were struggling a bit and needed to decide what they wanted to achieve. We brought the team together for a meeting, but it started strange, because they wanted to hold the mission meeting without the head coach. I agreed even though it didn't feel right. A mission session starts with getting things clear about where we want to go, what we have for resources, and what steps we need to take to reach our goal. To get a clear realistic image they would really need their leader present. It was the goaltender who lead the meeting and suggested that all they should first decide, is to make the play offs, and then see what might happen from there. From skill and potential, they could have won another championship, but they didn’t believe it, so they didn’t choose to. Well, they did reach the playoffs, but lost in the 1st round to a team everyone knew they could have beaten. They dominated the first match in the series, but they found a way to lose it, and then it was done. Again, it shows potential is not enough to achieve something, “if you believe it then you can achieve it” and for that you need to make a choice, just decide.