Bob-Sled Olympian Christian Farstad’s Advice on Life

1) Make a plan but be willing to change it with changing circumstances. The 6 step action plan: be accountable, evaluate results often, and change course as necessary.

2) Have a mentor. Learning from people ‘who have done it’ is powerful! Remember the Chinese proverb: ‘The wise man learns from his mistakes but the brilliant man learns from other people’s mistakes’.

3) Keep looking forward and don’t dwell on past mistakes. The guy driving the bobsled has to keep his full concentration on the turns ahead. He can’t afford to think about any mistakes he just made. As we move forward in life we are likely to make mistakes. The important thing is to ‘keep looking forward’ and avoid mistakes on the next thing ahead.

4) Hang out with successful people. The Canadian Olympic Committee set up symposiums where Canadian medal winners met with the current athletes. The result was that the athletes improved their performance dramatically by learning from the ones who had succeeded. If we want to gain more success and confidence in life we need to talk to people who have done what we are trying to do!

Enjoy the Olympics everyone! Soak up the enthusiasm and dedication of our athletes!