Positive Thoughts, Positive Outcomes

The day I figured out the mental part of my flick-lay on high beam was, shockingly, a moment that has the way I approach obstacles. I stepped up, positioned myself in line with a small crack in the wall in front of my beam, and without thinking, swung my arms and did the series. I finished, and while I was surprised that I had stayed on, I was more surprised that I hadn't died in the process. The butterflies faded and I really started to think about what I had done differently. Finishing my series assignment was always less about staying on the beam and more about doing it in the first place. I fought a war with myself before every attempt; going through every painful possibility of how the series would land. Thinking to myself as I stood on the beam "What if my hands are a little too far to left?", "Wow, I've stuck three in a row. This one is almost guaranteed to crash.", or "What if I suddenly forget how to do a back handspring (something I've been doing for years) and completely die?". After this series though, I realized how counter intuitive this interrogation was. Feeding one's mind with negative thoughts before doing something even the slightest bit risky turns into a self professing prophecy.    Flick Lay Video