08.04.2017

Golden Rules - Become a Champion in What You Do

- a book that tells us about ten rules that will help you find motivation, set high goals and achieve them - in sports, business, work and personal life. The golden rules are based on simple principles... The goal is divided into parts, a plan is drawn up for the day, week, month, year.

Bob Bowman - About the author

Bob Bowman is one of the most successful coaches in history Olympic Games... Bob is the coach of the most decorated athlete in the history of the Olympic Games - Michael Phelps. Under the leadership of Bob Bowman, swimmers set 43 world records and over 50 US national records

Golden Rules - Book Review

Rule 1. Draw a big dream

The first rule is divided into several sub-stages. First, you need to set yourself some goal or task. The author advises to set super-goals for yourself. The method begins with an essential element — the presentation of the ultimate goal. Set a goal for yourself, and then imagine it many times more ambitious! Then you need to plan your future based on the facts. For a vision to appear, drop old beliefs. You need to outline your goal, and then think about how to get to it.

Try not to just think about the super task, try to think creatively about it! It is important to remember that the super task should take you over.

Rule 2. Give it your all

The right attitude - full load - can turn a weak chance into a tremendous success! Also, according to the author, it is important to remember that you need to strive not for medals, but to achieve the goal. Go forward with positive energy and enjoy the process of achieving your goal. Don't hurt yourself and avoid negative enthusiasm!

Rule 3. Take risks and enjoy the fruits

Taking risks from time to time makes life more interesting. After all, it is risk that can unexpectedly push us to growth. To get used to taking risks, you need to look into the eyes of the unknown. As you become accustomed to taking risks, you prepare for life's big challenges. Every risky step we take leads to even greater risk, and the habit of taking risks makes it easier to make dreams come true.

Rule 4. Short-term goals lead to long-term

It is necessary to prepare a game plan - a plan to achieve your goal. The game plan should be based on short term goals. Having a plan increases the chances of achieving your goal many times over! Set task after task, follow step by step to reach your goal. Make it impossible to hide from the target, place information, tips, pictures with your target in the most prominent places! Remember to advance to the super task gradually, and not skipping. Also, always be ready to revise your game plan and make adjustments to it.

Rule 5. Live your dream every day

If you want to be successful, you need to keep one of the highest priorities on your to-do list every - at least almost every - day. Make a schedule of your tasks and put the step to the super task first. While moving towards the goal, you need to be patient, but sometimes you can speed up. At the end of the day, take a look back and think about what you did for your ultimate goal.

Rule 6. Team approach can bring individual approach

Following Golden Rule describes the importance of having a support team. Look for like-minded people who will help in difficult times and stay away from people who drag you to the bottom. Also help others to believe in themselves.

Rule 7. Don't lose motivation over the long haul

Everyone has bad days, the author shares a strategy that helps us when the passion fades. On a bad day, try to convince yourself to stay focused. Try to take care of the variety of everyday life. Try to let your passion lead you, not leave you. The more you introduce motivational techniques into your work, the easier it will be not to lose passion for achieving the goal.

Rule 8. Trouble makes you stronger

Learn to deal with stress to cope with other challenges. Focus your thoughts not on the problem, but on the solution.

Use failure to motivate.

Success is the ability to move from one failure to the next without losing enthusiasm.

Winston Churchill

Get rid of anxiety at any cost, they do not help us achieve our goals, but on the contrary leave us behind.

Rule 9. When the time is right, act confidently

When the time comes to act, try not to forget about any little things, learn from past results, focus! Dividing the super-goal into tasks (steps) and completing them in turn will allow us not only to achieve our goals, but also to do it well and on time. Do yourself a favor - don't hold yourself back! Try to enjoy every action, action happens best when we are enjoying the moment. At the most crucial moment, relax and enjoy the action.

Golden rules. Become a champion in what you do

Michael Phelps, whose willingness to trust me and test me started the adventure

To all swimmers Butlers

Foreword by Michael Phelps

All I've ever dreamed of was becoming an Olympian. Thanks to Bob Bowman, the dream came true.

Of course, I also had a hand in getting to the Summer Olympics in Sydney, and then in Athens, Beijing and London. If all goes according to plan, I will participate in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. For nearly twenty years, my day has started early in the morning with a pool workout - the next step towards achieving my athletic goals. Rarely is a day like this that Bob Bowman does not meet me: he monitors every movement, prescribes the next exercises and, perhaps most importantly, encourages me: “Michael, you can do better! Much better!" It makes me squeeze more out of myself than I ever imagined.

With his training methods and even more with his passion for excellence, Bob showed me where my talents and dreams can take.

Since we started working together, his voice has become softer and his hair has turned even grayer. This is also my fault. You know, Bob is probably the best swimming coach in the world, but that doesn't mean that we always agree with each other and that I exactly follow his golden rules. Of course, there have been ups and downs in our relationship. Nevertheless, the list of records shows that overall result turned out to be positive: at four Olympic Games we won twenty-two medals, including eighteen gold medals. Both - olympic record... Now we have the Rio Games ahead of us, and there is no reason to believe that we will not be able to make our dreams come true again.

Whereas appearance and my coach's demeanor has changed a little over the years, one thing remains the same: he is still faithful to his method of moving towards success and excellence in small steps, no matter what you do. Almost immediately after Bob became my coach, he said that he had a plan: he would help me set goals, develop an action plan to achieve them, and then stay on track. I have verified that his method works flawlessly.

There are many reasons that could lead you to take this book off the shelf. Maybe you, like me once, dream of participating in the Olympic Games. Or want to become the best cardiac surgeon of all time. Or you need advice on how to become a top manager, an outstanding pianist, or simply the best parent in the world. I, of course, do not know what you are striving for, but I am sure that you are on the right path. Because if you have a dream and desire to become the best, the Bob Bowman method will help you. Believe me.

Believe me. I myself am surprised that I say these words, because I remember very well how my relationship with Bob began. When I first saw him in a pool in Baltimore, I was ten years old. Then I told myself that I would never try for this person. He seemed almost obsessed - constantly whistling, walking around the site and shouting at the swimmers: “Guys, push! Guys, you can do better! "

Information

from the publisher

Published with permission from RAB Enterprises, LLC c / o CHASE LITERARY AGENCY and Van Lear

Foreword by Michael Phelps, 2016

This edition is published by arrangement with CHASE LITERARY AGENCY and The Van Lear Agency LLC

Michael Phelps, whose willingness to trust me and test me started the adventure

To all swimmers Butlers

Foreword by Michael Phelps

All I ever dreamed of was becoming an Olympian. Thanks to Bob Bowman, the dream came true.

With his training methods and even more with his passion for excellence, Bob showed me where my talents and dreams can take.

Since we started working together, his voice has become softer and his hair has turned even grayer. This is also my fault. You know, Bob is probably the best swimming coach in the world, but that doesn't mean that we always agree with each other and that I exactly follow his golden rules. Of course, there have been ups and downs in our relationship. Nevertheless, the list of records shows that the overall result was positive: at four Olympic Games we won twenty-two medals, including eighteen gold medals. Both are Olympic records. Now we have the Rio Games ahead of us, and there is no reason to believe that we will not be able to make our dreams come true again.

While the look and demeanor of my coach has changed slightly over the years, one thing remains the same: he is still faithful to his method of moving towards success and excellence in small steps, no matter what you do. Almost immediately after Bob became my coach, he said that he had a plan: he would help me set goals, develop an action plan to achieve them, and then stay on track. I have verified that his method works flawlessly.

There are many reasons that could lead you to take this book off the shelf. Maybe you, like me once, dream of participating in the Olympic Games. Or want to become the best cardiac surgeon of all time. Or you need advice on how to become a top executive, an outstanding pianist, or simply the best parent in the world. I, of course, do not know what you are striving for, but I am sure that you are on the right path. Because if you have a dream and desire to become the best, the Bob Bowman method will help you. Believe me.

Believe me. I myself am surprised that I say these words, because I remember very well how my relationship with Bob began. When I first saw him in a pool in Baltimore, I was ten years old. Then I told myself that I would never try for this person. He seemed almost obsessed - he constantly whistled, walked around the site and shouted at the swimmers: “Guys-ata, push! Guys, you can do better! "

But after a year of training in his group, I discovered that this coach is not like everyone else. He was always prepared, constantly planning not only today, but also tomorrow and uncontrollably striving for perfection even in the smallest details. In the days and years that followed, I began to realize the wisdom of this approach.

Within a few weeks after I began to study with him, some kind of connection appeared between us. We began to understand each other perfectly:

- Jump!

- How high?

I did not hesitate. I did almost everything. He told me how long it took me to swim the distance, and I swam. I have made significant progress towards achieving my cherished goal. As I said, I have always dreamed of participating in the Olympic Games, winning a gold medal and setting a world record. I just needed a map, a plan of action. And in the summer of 1997 I received it. Bob asked my parents and me to meet. At first I thought that something was going wrong with me, because in the last training session I did not give my best. However, he, on the contrary, said that I have a chance to leave a mark on the history of sports. He said exactly what I wanted to hear. I can get not one, but several Games. And when I go to the Olympic Games, I will have a chance to win medals. He did not promise anything, but spoke confidently enough about these possibilities.

Something that day pushed me to trust Bob with my career, and I didn’t regret that decision.

Four years later, I got into the Olympic team for the first time. I was fifteen. I didn't even have a driver's license. But as promised, Bob made me do something special. We went to the Sydney Games, and although I didn't get any medals, Bob and I got into the atmosphere and started thinking about next Games... Back in Baltimore, we made a plan, and after four years I had my first gold medal and another dream come true.

When it turned out that along with successes, I also had shortcomings that became public, Bob - my coach and friend - was there, saying that I had to break through the difficulties today and tune in for a better tomorrow. In The Golden Rules, he argues that perfection is the fruit of daily effort. But gold medals don't happen every day. Difficult periods are unavoidable, and correcting mistakes is an integral part of excellence training. I am grateful to Bob that he taught me this.

It happened that Bob gave me lessons outside the pool. It's funny, but in big competitions, even in the Olympics, we never discussed strategy. These questions remained somewhere far away, in Baltimore, so in free time we most often talked about life. These conversations will help in the future, in times of crisis and when my sports career will come to an end.

If I go my own way, it won't happen soon.

I went back to swimming and started preparing for the 2016 Olympics because I still want to achieve. But for this you have to go back to best practices workout. These are Bob's methods. He is a master of tactics. He is able to decompose any style of swimming so that any swimmer - young and old, beginner and Olympian - sees a system in this madness. But to call Bob a tactician is to underestimate his true calling.

Information
from the publisher

Published with permission from RAB Enterprises, LLC c / o CHASE LITERARY AGENCY and Van Lear

Foreword by Michael Phelps, 2016

This edition is published by arrangement with CHASE LITERARY AGENCY and The Van Lear Agency LLC

Michael Phelps, whose willingness to trust me and test me started the adventure

To all swimmers Butlers

Foreword by Michael Phelps

All I ever dreamed of was becoming an Olympian. Thanks to Bob Bowman, the dream came true.

With his training methods and even more with his passion for excellence, Bob showed me where my talents and dreams can take.

Since we started working together, his voice has become softer and his hair has turned even grayer. This is also my fault. You know, Bob is probably the best swimming coach in the world, but that doesn't mean that we always agree with each other and that I exactly follow his golden rules. Of course, there have been ups and downs in our relationship. Nevertheless, the list of records shows that the overall result was positive: at four Olympic Games we won twenty-two medals, including eighteen gold medals. Both are Olympic records. Now we have the Rio Games ahead of us, and there is no reason to believe that we will not be able to make our dreams come true again.

There are many reasons that could lead you to take this book off the shelf. Maybe you, like me once, dream of participating in the Olympic Games. Or want to become the best cardiac surgeon of all time. Or you need advice on how to become a top executive, an outstanding pianist, or simply the best parent in the world. I, of course, do not know what you are striving for, but I am sure that you are on the right path. Because if you have a dream and desire to become the best, the Bob Bowman method will help you. Believe me.

Believe me. I myself am surprised that I say these words, because I remember very well how my relationship with Bob began. When I first saw him in a pool in Baltimore, I was ten years old. Then I told myself that I would never try for this person. He seemed almost obsessed - he constantly whistled, walked around the site and shouted at the swimmers: “Guys-ata, push! Guys, you can do better! "

Within a few weeks after I began to study with him, some kind of connection appeared between us. We began to understand each other perfectly:

- Jump!

- How high?

Something that day pushed me to trust Bob with my career, and I didn’t regret that decision.

Four years later, I got into the Olympic team for the first time. I was fifteen. I didn't even have a driver's license. But as promised, Bob made me do something special. We went to the Sydney Games, and although I didn't get any medals, Bob and I got into the atmosphere and started thinking about the next Games. Back in Baltimore, we made a plan, and four years later I had my first gold medal and another dream come true.

When it turned out that along with my successes, I also have shortcomings that became public, Bob - my coach and friend - was there, saying that we need to break through the difficulties of today and tune in for a better tomorrow. In The Golden Rules, he argues that perfection is the fruit of daily effort. But gold medals don't happen every day. Difficult periods are unavoidable, and correcting mistakes is an integral part of excellence training. I am grateful to Bob that he taught me this.

It happened that Bob gave me lessons outside the pool. It's funny, but in big competitions, even in the Olympics, we never discussed strategy. These questions remained somewhere far away, in Baltimore, so in our free time we often talked about life. These conversations will help in the future, in times of crisis and when my sports career comes to an end.

If I go my own way, it won't happen soon.

I went back to swimming and started preparing for the 2016 Olympics because I still want to achieve. But to do this, you will have to return to the best training methods. These are Bob's methods. He is a master of tactics. He is able to decompose any style of swimming so that any swimmer - young and old, beginner and Olympian - sees a system in this madness. But to call Bob a tactician is to underestimate his true calling.

He teaches and inspires. He is able to captivate with passion, to show how far a person can go. He developed a recipe that helps to grow, and thanks to his method, a person learns more about his true self. He makes people better.

I am an example of that. Without Bob, my fate would have been completely, one hundred percent different. Without Bob, I would not have had a chance to set all these records, win medals. I do not believe that any other coach would lead me to such heights. Bob is a unique person. He helped me see how important it is to strive for excellence, how much it gives. What exactly? Not medals or records, but memories generated by dreams.

Champion path

Sometimes you stop for a second to look into the future. This pause does not diminish the number of cases. It will not make the list of people who depend on you smaller, and certainly will not cross out the accumulated accounts, and it will not bring any more money. When this happens, when anxiety and stress are knocking on the door, it's easy to say, “Guys, I'm giving up. Yours took it. "

But in the summer of 2013, on one of those wonderful evenings, when the setting sun was throwing rays on the white beaches of Delaware and a light breeze was blowing from the Atlantic, these monsters had no chance.

Just a few weeks ago, I took a break from work, competition, and my daily routine. I was tired of the constant hustle and bustle and needed a break. For sixteen years in a row, I was almost completely consumed by the four-year Olympic cycle: Summer Games(Sydney) moved to others (Athens), then the third (Beijing) and the fourth (London). Of course, I really appreciated the opportunities offered by the Olympic Games: travel, television appearances, exchange of badges in Olympic villages, bottles with local beer. My work brings me great pleasure and requires tremendous dedication from me.

But to climb to such heights, it was necessary to spend an incredible amount of energy. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining. This happens in any job: for bankers, directors, programmers, mothers and fathers - if there are requirements and deadlines, and a person strives for perfection and is not satisfied with a "good enough" result. I knew that such pressure is an integral part of success: in order to achieve something, sometimes you have to try harder.

Now ahead of the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. It's very soon, and every day the to-do list is getting longer. I can feel the anxiety and stress impending, but I cannot let them take over me. On the contrary, the challenges posed by the new cycle inspire me. We need to prepare new athletes and strive for records. Plus, I knew what to expect, and I knew how to deal with almost any challenge.

And one more thing: now I can work without pressure, because I don't need to make the greatest Olympian of all times and peoples even greater.

August. I look at the ocean, a couple of teenagers are riding surfboards, toddlers with their parents smeared with ice cream are walking along the waterfront, and I think that the to-do list growing on my desk and in my head will not break me.

The phone rang.

Strange, I thought, glancing at the screen. Interesting that him necessary.

“Let's have dinner. MF ".

Simple and specific, like many other messages that he sent me for almost two decades of our acquaintance. All this time we pushed each other towards records, medals and glory. Sometimes our friendship reached incredible heights, and sometimes it hung by a thread.

Over time, I realized that if MF (Michael Phelps) was involved, things would be easier than ever.

A few days later, Michael and I met at a restaurant.

“At your expense,” I said.

Lately we have seen each other infrequently: since the end of last year's Olympic Games in London, our paths crossed only a few times. At those Games, Michael won the last of a record twenty-two Olympic medals, became a star, and announced that he was retiring to star in commercials, travel the world and play a lot of golf. Typical life of a twenty-seven year old guy. And I? I still had a mortgage, I had to make a living, I had other athletes who wanted to see if I could make them the next superstar. I was forty-seven years old, and I was not going to retire. However, I realized that I needed some time to refresh myself, assess the state of affairs and decide on further plans. Therefore, I spent ten months at the racetrack, looking at the trotters, relaxing on the beach, reading a lot, constantly watching culinary programs, and most importantly, trying to take a break and look into the future.

After the London Games, Michael and I called each other from time to time and saw each other at Baltimore Ravens matches and charity events. But since we worked shoulder to shoulder over four Olympic cycles - and that meant thousands of hours of preparation at our headquarters (in the training pools in Baltimore) and travel to competitions around the world - we wanted to take a break from each other.

However, this was by no means a rupture. We remained business partners and planned to open an international network of swimming schools in the coming years. We developed in cooperation with one company the design tracksuit new type. These are big projects, but they were not very urgent and could wait a bit. Plus, I thought it had nothing to do with my previous job of making Michael the greatest Olympian of all time.

Michael asked about my latest adventures in the kitchen: because of the Food Channel show, I wanted to become an amateur chef. He himself talked about his recent successes in golf: “Bob, I hit the ball well, I hit the ball well, but I just can't figure out the trajectory. It just pisses me off. " The word "infuriates" I have already heard from him, and last time most recently: the last few Olympic years became a test of our friendship and my nerves. We wanted Michael to have a spectacular end to his Olympic career. And so it happened, but it took such an effort on my part that I have no idea how to repeat it.

But today, I said to myself, we will not talk about the past. I took a glass of wine, took a breath, leaned back and relaxed for about half a second.

Michael leaned forward, looked at me and narrowed his eyes.

- I'm coming back.

I stared at him. He smiled slightly.

- Yes Yes. I want to participate in the Olympic Games again.

I didn't know whether to cry or laugh.

- Do you want to come back? I finally said, somewhat dumbfounded and embarrassed.

He chuckled and nodded.

I probably shouldn't have been so surprised. A few months before that, Michael was on vacation with friends, called me late at night and started talking about the need to return in some way. Then I decided that this was his usual evening chat, said: "This is out of the question," hung up and did not attach much importance to this conversation.

But now he was sitting opposite me, and I understood that he was serious. "And yet why?" - I wondered. Why does he want to go through the next Olympic cycle with all its difficulties? After all, Michael is already a legend: twenty-two Olympic medals, of which eighteen are gold, a dozen world records and millions of dollars. The media have penetrated almost all the details of his short biography... A return would thrill the journalists again. And has he forgotten the preparations for the Games in London? What was it like for both of us?

- Do you remember the last four years? I finally asked.

“Everything will be different,” Michael assured.

- Yes of course. I've heard that before, ”I shook my head.

There was silence for a moment. I thought about the implications of such a decision for him and for me. Then he said:

- If you want to return for the sake of sponsors, or if you simply have nothing to do, or you cannot understand life, you better not. Michael, I'm serious, don't come back.

He nodded, paused, and then said:

“Bob, that's not the point.

Then I went on the attack again.

- Michael, let's be honest. If the reason is not that you are returning only for your own sake, you should not do this.

And then, for the first time that evening, and indeed, probably for the first time in my memory, Michael looked at me as a wise man. He said:

- There are no other reasons. I want to come back for myself. I love to swim. I want to swim. ”He paused for a second. - I still have something to strive for.

At that moment, I realized that he was not joking, and most importantly, that character that was brought up by many years of my training speaks in him. In just a few minutes, my life became dramatically complicated. I knew that with Michael, anxiety and stress would return. However, it's okay, because I'm back in business: I will work with a person who is capable of great at her dream and knows what efforts it takes to make it come true.

Michael didn't come back for medals. He wanted something achieve. And, as many times in the past, we will do it together. Together we will strive for excellence.

Gold every day

As is often the case in sports, business, science, music, careers and life in general, Michael Phelps and I worked together to set goals to achieve, and then worked hard on the task. Someone does the same in the laboratory, in their garage, in the offices of skyscrapers and small shops on the streets of ordinary towns. It so happens that we work mainly on fifty meter tracks in the pool on the outskirts business center Baltimore.

In some ways, one more thing made us unique: in our work we were guided by the rules, which I call simply method... This is a ten-point plan that I started putting into practice when Michael was not even a teenager, but you can probably agree that it worked out well. I am sure that the plan will manifest itself in the conference room of the business center, in the store, and in the kitchen, and no worse than in our pool. The method will help in any area where you strive for achievement and ideal.

You might argue that the method only works because a guy named Bowman is coaching the greatest natural born swimmer. Michael is undoubtedly an incredibly talented athlete, perhaps the most outstanding person I have worked with. But come and visit me in Tempe, where I teach a swimming program at the University of Arizona, or the Meadowbrook Aquatics and Fitness Center — my pool in Baltimore. You will see pictures of many other Olympic medal winners who also worked on my program. My system is not designed to simply transform good swimmer into a champion. Its meaning is to motivate a person to become great, to win gold every day. In the pages of this book, I will outline my method and explain how it can help you.

Quite frankly, the method is based on simple principles. Together with the athlete or one of the employees, I break everything into pieces and see how they can be improved. We make plans for the day, week, month, year to reach desired results... We argue violently. If you only knew how we argue. There is a lot of gossip about how Michael and I screamed, just yelled at each other while he won his medals. You know, some of them are not so far from the truth, and I will share them soon, but first of all, we focus on the goal and never lose sight of it.

Michael had to explain that he could become not just a good swimmer, but a world-class athlete. And I myself had to understand that I would have to work even harder and transfer him from a decent level to an outstanding one. Neither he nor I can look for easy ways.

A prime example of this is the story of how I helped him transform his sloppy butterfly into the greatest ever. We will not delve into the tactics, the "seamy side" of swimming. I just want to show you how a carefully thought out yet flexible plan can lead to success - as a swimmer, a potential star of the Olympic Games, and someone who strives for the ideal in Everyday life... This is a story about how to stay on track.

It all started in the spring of 1997. Michael was then eleven, and he studied in a peer group. One morning I noticed that he was swimming the butterfly incorrectly. It was in breathing, or rather in the moment when he inhaled. Of course, in terms of physique, Michael is simply an amazing athlete, but even his body needs air to swim fifty, one hundred or two hundred meters with a butterfly. This is probably the most strenuous swimming style in general. When Michael took a breath, he began to have a kind of hiccups. He raised his head too high above the water, so I kept repeating: “Don't come up until your hands are under your belt! Then don't stick your head out too early! "

Think about it for a second. Seems simple, right? And you go to the pool and try it.

Here's another piece of advice I gave him: "Michael, when you are about to inhale, lift your head up to your chin and immediately submerge it."

These are such small nuances that ordinary viewers are unlikely to notice anything, but in fact, they completely change the style. It took weeks and months of training to fix everything and bring it to perfection. I applied my method and just tortured Michael with the same commands. As soon as I noticed that he was raising his head too high, I shouted: “No! Michael! Only up to the chin! "

Like any eleven-year-old boy, he lost his temper and beat his fist in the water: "Yes, yes, I understand!"

I pressed, Michael fought back. I made comments, Michael trained. Thanks to constant commands and repetition of the same thing, success, and then fame, came.

Four years later, Michael turned fifteen, and he set the world record in butterfly swimming at a distance of two hundred meters. Think about it: for decades they set records in swimming, for many years such stars as Johnny Weissmuller and Mark Spitz shone. And during all this time, no one managed to swim two hundred meters butterfly faster than this fifteen-year-old guy. How is this possible? The fact is that the athlete had a plan and he worked according to it.

I believe in the power of a method that makes you strive for excellence every day.

However, the wrong day made Michael the world champion. A lot of athletes, performers, and just people think that they really shine in front of the jury, on stage, in front of the head. However, in reality, the most important thing happens away from the crowd, the ramp and the eyes of the fans. Michael set his first world record (the first of thirty-nine) thanks to daily training - morning classes swimming in the most ordinary pool. We studied twice a day: at seven in the morning before school and at three in the afternoon after school. The only thing to focus on in the pool is the black dividing line between the lanes. Swimming is not like baseball and golf, where you can enjoy the views and sunbathe beautifully. No. Swimmers are constantly in the water, they need a lot of clean water muscle strength... Any improvements are measured not in minutes, but in milliseconds. Sounds familiar? Anyone who has pored over presentations in the office and made monthly sales forecasts will understand what it is like for swimmers.

Michael went through a lot of these trainings. I know this because I was almost always there. I saw how one day he breathes correctly, and the next he starts to get lost. I reminded him, bored him, he looked at me with disgust. But he never stopped listening, trying, striving for the ideal.

And in the end he mastered the style, and his breathing became almost correct. Then I said, "Michael, now you can't unlearn it."

I was right. During the first four Olympic Games, he took part in sixteen butterfly competitions. And fourteen times he won medals.

Nevertheless, I will not tire of repeating: we are not hunting for medals. They are just a tangible reward. We seek perfection, we achieve it, and in the process we gain something more - respect for each other, which will continue after his career as a swimmer ends.

Before his last swim in London - at the time we thought it would be his last Olympic swim - I watched Michael warm up and tune in. training pool... He understood that O he is going to. Me too. I went to the side. Through his glasses he must have noticed that I was going to him. I bent down, but before I could say a word, Michael quietly, over the hum of the pool, said:

- Bob, I wanted to be Michael Jordan sailing. I wanted to change this sport. Bob, I wanted people to hear about swimming. We have achieved this. We have become the best in history. We have achieved this together. Bob, thanks a lot.

He took me by surprise, and I was overwhelmed with emotion.

“That’s not fair,” I said after a second.

“I understand,” he replied, “that you don’t see my tears, but your own tears are running down your cheeks.

This achievement will always be with us without any medals.

About the book

From a foreword by Michael Phelps
There are many reasons that could make you take this book off the shelf ....

Read completely

About the book
The coach of the most titled athlete in the history of the Olympics talks about the rules that allow you to achieve extra goals.

Bob Bowman is one of the most successful coaches in Olympic history. First of all, he is known as the coach of Michael Phelps - the record holder for the number of awards in the history of games. Its swimmers have set 43 world records and over 50 US national records.

In his book, Bob shares 10 rules to help you set high goals, find motivation, and achieve heights - in any area of life, not just sports.

Bowman's method has worked not with just Michael Phelps, but with many Olympic medal winners. His system is not only suitable for turning a good swimmer into a champion. Its meaning is to motivate a person to become great, to win "gold medals" every day - whatever he does.

From a foreword by Michael Phelps
There are many reasons that could lead you to take this book off the shelf. Maybe you, like me once, dream of participating in the Olympic Games. Or want to become the best cardiac surgeon of all time. Or you need advice on how to become a top executive, an outstanding pianist, or simply the best parent in the world. I, of course, do not know what you are striving for, but I am sure that you are on the right path. Because if you have a dream and desire to become the best, the Bob Bowman method will help you. Believe me.

Who is this book for
For everyone who wants to set ambitious goals and achieve them.

For fans of Michael Phelps and anyone interested or in swimming.

about the author
Bob Bowman is a swimming coach who served as the head coach of the US men's team. aquatic species sports and trained Michael Phelps - the most titled athlete in the history of the Olympic Games. Included in the world swimming hall of fame. Under Bowman's leadership, his swimmers have set forty-three world records and over fifty US records.

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