Sports Slump Busting

I read this book when I was down and out in high school. I was ranked in the top three in my two individual events for our State Swimming Championships. I ended up sixth in both. At the end of the meet, I vowed I never would swim again and was to focus my Senior year just on academics alone. My father gave me this book and it turned my swimming career around. My Senior year I was able to put the past behind me, swim faster then expected, and even making a Junior National Cut to travel to Alaska to compete. That year I also accepted a full scholarship (instead of being a walk-on like I had thought). I went on to compete in Division II and swim better each year, never ending the season with out a life time best. I recommend this book to those who are willing to take a deep look around and within themselves. If you are looking for a quick fix, look elsewhere for a band-aid. This book is meant to be read slowly, so best to be read during an off-season... or committing a chapter per week to actually have an effect on an athlete.

I disagree with our Czech friend's review of the book. I found it well written and very easy to follow. It is one of my favorites and I actually prefer it over Goldberg's other, "Playing Out Of Your Mind". If you are an athlete specifically looking to improve the mental side of the game and aren't a big reader, then POOYM is the digest version of what you'll find in "Sports Slump Busting" (although I still think SSB is the better written version), but if you want a complete understanding of the whys and the wherefores, SSB is the book to purchase. I consider this book a good read for an athlete trying to understand their performance issues, for a coach that wants to help their players perform better and for parents who might want a better understanding of their athlete's problems. All three can contribute both positively and negatively to athletic performance and the book will explain how to avoid the negative in favor of the positive.

I'm a die-hard golfer and this book saved my life. I stumbled across it a couple of months ago while in a major league slump with my game. I thought I was really screwed up, but this book helped me understand how my slump started and that I wasn't nuts. That was half the battle. The other half was in all the specific - and easy - ways to correct the problem. I can't play too much at this time of year, but I've played enough to see these techniques work. Greg Norman should have called this guy. The icing on the cake is that so much of the stuff in this book has not only gotten me out of my slump, but has really helped me play much better than I was before. My last 3 rounds have been the best I've ever done in my life.Anybody who has hidden fantasies of being the oldest player ever to qualify for the PGA Tour (like I do) should check this out.