COMMAERNTTARY
POSITIVITY
By Dick Crippen
MARCH/APRIL 2018 | TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE 139
I am labeled. As much as I hate to
label people, I myself am labeled.
In my case, I am an optimist.
That means I am one of those
people who sees the proverbial glass
half full instead of half empty. I am
constantly charged with finding the
positive in what may appear to be
negative situations. You can call it
positive thinking, or anything else
you want, but the fact of the matter is that it works. I would love
to tell you it is a burden I carry with me, but in reality, I wouldn’t
have it any other way.
I am a firm believer that your day is determined in your
waking moments. It is at that point that there are decisions to
be made. You can dread going into the day, or you can look
forward to it with anticipation of good things happening.
One thing is for sure, your day will be determined by the way
you start it. You can call it positive thinking, visualization or
whatever you want, but it works, whether you want it to or not.
In my career, I have talked with and befriended many athletes
in diverse sports. I found that one thing they have in common
is the use of positive visualization. They visualize the situations
they will face and project positive results – the quarterback
completing the pass, the kicker splitting the goalposts, a runner
with speed and grace. The list goes on and on, but the ideas
are the same. They are going into a game or a race and they see
themselves doing well.
I have read enough sports books
on this subject to know that the
body responds to the mind. A good
example is golf. When you learn
the game, you are told that before
you take that shot, you should be
looking at the ball. That is good
advice. Look at the object you are
going to be hitting with the club,
but there is one other element
that I try to use. I pick a target down the fairway, and as I am
looking at the ball, I see that target in my mind. (Don’t just hit
to an open fairway. Have a target in mind.) The body responds,
and although you may not make the same shot Arnold Palmer
would make, it’s probably going to be a lot closer to the mark
than if you had not had that target in mind.
The great thing about positive visualization is that it applies
to business or any other situation, just as it does in the athletic
world. Preparing for an interview by visualizing what’s to
come will not only help you with your answers, but it will give
you a degree of confidence.
While I dislike labels on people, my label fits and I wear it
proudly. I am optimistic, and I am positive. 9
EDITOR’S NOTE: Dick Crippen, a staple in Tampa Bay broadcasting
for more than 40 years, is a senior adviser for the Tampa Bay Rays,
and works extensively with the military. He is active in the world of
charity fundraising and sits on 11 boards for nonprofit organizations.
Dick Crippen