Shift Your Mind: 9 Mental Shifts to Thrive in Preparation and Performance Paperback – October 6, 2020

First things first, I know Brian Levenson enough to realize he lives what he wrote in this book. He helps others live what he wrote in this book. He is an expression of the strength of confidence and the humility that it takes to keep practicing and honing his gifts (some like the word talents) to be the best at what he does without diminishing those around him. He recognizes the need to keep on keeping on despite being good at what he does.Now for the book, Brian has written a book that challenges thinking and, well, let's say, "shifts they mind." In energetically written, forceful prose, Brian shares many anecdotes that give one pause and increases awareness about how the frames of mind impact performance.Among many topics, he explores why we need to have arrogance enough to show up confident and the humility to know we have more to learn and practice; why being fearful and fearless supports success and why and seeking perfection also requires adaptability. He explores the benefits and downsides of those topics and others, including having fear and fearlessness, perfection focus and adaptability, being both comfortable and uncomfortable, and the work required to play at what we do.I found the chapters on Work and Play, Analysis and Impact, and Fear and Fearlessness the most relatable to myself. A quote from the Work and Play chapter that I enjoyed was on page 40, "The best performers I know take their work seriously as a heart attack but have the perspective that nothing is fatal in performance- what matters is experience." He goes on to say, " They bring the work ethic and energy of a professional to their preparation, approaching improvement and growth as their daily job. That gives them the right to perform with the joy and energy of a kid." In the chapter titled Fear and Fearless, this question stuck out to me, "What if I fail to live up to those expectations?" Brian relates this to how others can feel confident in our abilities than we believe in ourselves; A time when our fear is more intense than their belief is in our capacity. As an executive coach of leadership clients, I hear this question from my clients in the moment of a new challenge, new level position, or the like. When I don't hear this question stated to me, I observe its impact in the hesitancy to commit or in the narratives or stories they share as they pull away from a commitment to action. At times, I have felt that question in me and felt the impact in the moment of play. Brian writes about how holding that question in the moment of play or action can limit successful results and provides tools to support the mind shift necessary for better outcomes.Buy the book! Read to learn how to shift your mind, increase confidence and strengthen your capacity and impact. Success requires practice. Use the tools Brian offers, get a coach, as sports professionals do, and make a personal commitment to practice the tools Brian offers. Take Brian's advice, work hard so you can play at game time.

I loved this book for so many reasons, but most notably because of the way that Brian explains how certain behaviors, that many of us view as negative, are still necessary to be a top performer and achieve our performance goals.Arrogant has always been an adjective I’ve worked so hard not to embody, and I’ve realized through this book that I actually work harder on trying not to be arrogant than I do on trying to maximize my performance. Up until now I thought not being arrogant really served me well, but after reading Brian’s book I’ve learned that actually I’ve been doing myself a disservice.Arrogance is absolutely needed in certain situations in order to maximize performance. I’ve seen it with my own two eyes over and over again, but somehow missed it until now. Based on this new understanding and awareness and through the thoughtful exercises included in the book I’ve now been able to embrace my inner arrogance, which has been lying dormant for so long.This book has changed the way I think and act when performing, which has already led to improved performance in my career. I highly recommend this book for anyone who shares my view on arrogance and just in general struggles with when and how to shift your mindset between various polarities to achieve your goals.

it's not just hard work that one requires to reach peak performance. That was always the cliche' - outwork anyone, and good things will happen...well, sort of. Brian's book was eye-opening, as it breaks down in detail the mental shifts required to really excel. There is a definite difference between preparation and performance, it was there just waiting for someone to break it wide open. I missed it for so long. I spent 26 years at CIA leading teams across the globe - I could have used these principles in so many occasions. I loved this book, and I gave it to everyone from my former colleagues running intelligence operations in South Asia and the Middle East, to my son, a college athlete, to my daughter, who aspires to enter the legal profession. A quick peak -- Humble in practice vs Arrogant in play. Just think about that -- makes so much sense. Must read, in the leadership category. Five stars.

The author has done a good job of pulling info from various fields to arrive at a well-rounded understanding of the right mental mindset for preparation and performance.

Within about 5 hours of receiving my hard copy of the book, Shift Your Mind by Brian Levenson, I finished reading the entire thing. WOW! I was totally blown away! This is a MUST READ for all! I can't say enough good things about the key take-aways from each "shift" (chapter) and how the combination of research, science, information gathered from conversation and relationships along with practical actionable steps and little 'scorecards' and exercises included throughout the book, make the reading experience feel like a "bible" to understanding one's own necessary mind shifts (preparation vs. performance mind, selfish vs. selfless mind, analysis vs. instinct, fear vs. fearlessness, etc.). I could go on and on about this book, and about the overall philosophical approach Brian takes to the performance mindset (and EVERYTHING that comes before shifting from preparation into that space between preparation and performance mindset), but I won't give too much away! GO READ THIS BOOK. NOW! It will SHIFT your entire process, outlook, mindset, and LIFE!