If A ,B, C, D....X, Y, Z equals 1, 2, 3,4.....24, 25, 26 then

K+N+O+W+L+E+D+G+E = 96 per-cent 

&
H+A+R+D+W+O+R+K= 98 per-cent.

Both of these are important but fall slightly short of full marks, but

A+T+T+I+T+U+D+E = 100 per-cent.

Is this a coincidence or not? I posted this picture on my CORE Kids social media accounts and received a lot of interaction. It is something so simple and coincidental but holds a lot of meaning. You may have also heard the saying ‘that hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard’. You will see it plastered on the walls in gyms or sports teams' changing rooms, which is true. But can you work hard if your attitude isn’t right? Mindset, belief and focus all fall under attitude. If you get these right, along with knowledge and hard work, you have become an unstoppable force.

In my many years of coaching, I’ve witnessed the short-term and long-term effects of a negative and positive attitude. Teams or players who adopt a negative attitude before a big game, even if all the preparation is perfect, may already be beaten before the match starts. Take someone trying to lose weight who starts with the wrong attitude. If they commit with the philosophy of it being a quick fix or aren’t in it for the long haul, they will find themselves dropping off on their commitment and desire to reach their goal. Conversely, going into any scenario with a positive attitude sets you on the right path. This doesn’t guarantee you results. You still have to have the knowledge, work hard, take action, commitment and sacrifice, to name a few, but if the right attitude isn’t there at the start, you might as well forget these other elements. For me, commitment and sacrifice are vital to reaching any goal, whether in health, fitness, or life. We can get ourselves motivated to work hard in the gym once we are there, but your attitude comes down to the commitment to consistently be there.

You could say, ‘I’ll go tomorrow or ‘one missed session isn’t done any harm. That’s your negative attitude taking over. Your positive attitude will say get your backside off that sofa and let’s do this. The same can be said about sacrifice. Are you willing to get up early, change certain eating habits, and kindly decline when friends or family ask you to do something when you know it will interfere with your goal? A negative and weak attitude can give in to these temptations. Even worse, you may still carry out the tasks that will help you reach your goal but not enjoy them or feel guilty. In this case, you think you HAVE to do it rather than you WANT to do it. There is a massive difference. When you want to do something, you will have a positive attitude towards it, and you will get up early knowing that it is going to help you reach your goal, change and enjoy your new eating habits, and explain to friends and family why you are declining their invite and ask them to support you because this is what you want to do.

The thing is, attitudes can change. They can even change daily or hourly. But hold onto that positive attitude towards reaching a goal, and the times you know when your attitude is strongest when you are at your weakest. Feeling tired, hungry, having too much on, or you are feeling stressed all play a part in testing your attitude. So remember to do the things you want to do and attack them with a positive attitude.