Trading on Target: How to Cultivate a Winner's State of Mind

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Recently, I attended a party at which the host announced that his children wanted to entertain me on the piano.

The first child to perform was the eldest girl of the family. She sat down at the keyboard with a tremendous amount of confidence, which prompted me to expect that I was about to hear something quite extraordinary. When she began to play, my expectations were immediately realized. Upon concluding her sterling performance, she closed with a simple bow. We applauded her performance enthusiastically because it was truly amazing. After her bow, she identified the title of the piece that she had just played.

The next child to perform was her younger brother. Prior to playing, he approached the bench with equal confidence. Modeling his older sister, the boy settled himself confidently on the seat. While his performance showed that he had a ways to go before he would match his sister’s artistic mastery, the simplicity of his performance was equally entertaining. I could see from his parents’ reactions that their son had played the best that he could at his present level of mastery. For that, they were equally supportive and pleased. After his performance, the younger brother also bowed and announced the title of his piece.

The third child to entertain us was another girl, who was only four years old. She approached the bench with the same confidence as her older brother and sister. She paused before her performance and with focus that was equal to her older ...