Developing correct habits of thought is the precursor to all success.

Og Mandino said, "In truth, the only difference between those who have failed and those who have succeeded, lies in the difference of their habits. Good habits are the key to success. Bad habits are the unlocked door to failure." Substantial CHANGE in our attitudes and actions will happen as we choose to develop good habits of thought.

According to James Allen, "You are today, where your thoughts have brought you. You will be tomorrow, where your thoughts take you."

Golf legend Bobby Jones put it this way: "Every game of golf is played on a six-and-a-half inch course... the distance between your ears."

Dr. Seymore Epstein, Chair of the Psychology Department of the University of Massachusetts, confirmed

 these statements in his study of 50 super achievers. Over ten years, he found nine basic similarities in the way these "super achievers" chose to think.

1.         Successful people are less sensitive to disapproval and rejection. This doesn't mean they don't care, it just means they don't carry the baggage of what others think around with them.

Successful people learn early not to worry very much about what others say about them. They embrace change, even though it is sometimes awkward for the rest of the world. Success often comes from setting a different course or doing what most people have never thought of. History is full of examples:

• The first steamboat took 32 hours to go from New York City to Albany, New York.

            People laughed.

• A horse and buggy passed an early model car. People laughed.
• The first electric light bulb was so dim they had to use a gas lamp to supplement it.

            People laughed.

• The first flight lasted 59 seconds.

            People laughed.

Pavel Bure is one of the most exciting players in the NHL. It was my pleasure to play with him for a couple of seasons when he first joined the league. We both played for the Vancouver Canucks at the time, and everyone knew instantly that Bure was going to be a star.

Pavel told me the story of his first 60-goal season in Vancouver. That season, hockey fans in Vancouver and around the league "worshipped him." However, ten days into the post-season playoffs, after playing six games in the first round, Pavel had yet to score a goal. Because of his 60-goal season, the expectations for Bure's performance were very high. During games five and six, people actually booed him! The fans' opinion of Bure went from adoration, to disgust, to adoration again, as Pavel went on to score the winning goal in overtime in game seven, moving the Canucks into the second round of the playoffs. Suddenly, everyone was back on the Bure bandwagon.

A professional athlete must learn not to embark on the emotional roller coaster ride that the fans tend to be on, by refusing to worry about disapproval or rejection. I learned this lesson the hard way in 1982. I was traded from Washington to Montreal, and the corresponding headlines in the Montreal Gazette boldly proclaimed, "Worst Trade in NHL History." I clearly remember the pressure I felt to be superhuman in order to prove that headline wrong. I was being publicly disapproved of, but was determined to make everyone say, "See, Walter proved them wrong; his play is incredible."

I internalized this disapproval until it made me ineffective. In one exhibition game during training camp, I remember being on a breakaway in the old Montreal Forum. I pretty much stick handled into the corner, and never did get a shot on goal. I wore that headline on my shoulders until we won the Cup in '86. I learned in Montreal-the Mecca of Hockey-to be far less sensitive to disapproval. We had a saying that I repeated often during my nine seasons with the Canadiens: "You're never as bad as they say you are, and you're never as good as they build you up to be."

Hockey players in Montreal have learned to deal with demanding fans! As a hockey dynasty the Canadiens organization has won 24 Championships. When we were fortunate enough to work our way to the Stanley Cup finals in 1989 and then lost to the Calgary Flames in 6 games, the city of Montreal was in shock, and went into a period of mourning. Other cities would have thrown a parade just for arriving in the finals. Not Montreal! The expectations were high.

I learned a lot about fans, and people in general, in Montreal. Another of our favorite sayings was, "The fans, they love you win or tie." Experience tends to desensitize us to disapproval and rejection, and this is a good thing. We need to worry less about what other people think or say, and concern ourselves more with developing the internal character and mental toughness that will, in the long run, enhance our performance.