Hamilton College alumnus Garret Kramer '84 is the author of a new book, Stillpower: The Inner Source of Athletic Excellence, scheduled to be released on June 1, 2011.
For decades, athletes, coaches, parents, and organizations have searched in vain for the secrets to maximize mental performance in sports. Despite the myriad of tools, techniques, research, and theoretical models used today, achieving success and happiness on the field is elusive. Garret Kramer's Stillpower provides a revolutionary, simple explanation for understanding and mastering one’s own state of mind in order to achieve consistent performance and contentment.
According to Amazon, "Stillpower uses real-life examples to explore such questions as: What is 'the zone' and what must we do (or not do) to get there? Why does an athlete need to understand the difference between insight and intellect? Is goal setting really useful? Why doesn't willpower work? Why do the best mentors focus on a person's state of mind and not behavior? What is the connection between the qualities of compassion, competitiveness, and resiliency, and one's thoughts and level of well-being?
Virtually all of us—athletes and nonathletes alike—are looking outside of ourselves, hoping to un-lock the keys to happiness and success. In Stillpower, Kramer encourages us to look within to finally find the answers."
Garret Kramer earned a bachelor's degree in history from Hamilton College. To Kramer, the catalyst for his success was not the actual knowledge he gained at Hamilton, but it was the way Hamilton shaped how he viewed the process of learning. Kramer credits his time on the hill for his ability to think outside the box and stimulating his enjoyment of both learning and the learning process. Kramer says, he did "not realize that was what I was learning" until he left the college. After college, he founded Inner Sports, LLC. He provides consulting services to hundreds of athletes and coaches, from well-known professionals to collegiate players and high school athletes. Thanks to his experience at Hamilton, Kramer has created a new outlook on performance which can change the way coaches, athletes, and parents view the overall athletic experience.
Kramer lectures on the importance of utilizing one's mental faculties to the fullest in order to achieve more than we believe is possible, in sports, finance, or life. He emphasizes the importance of the journey and not immediate results. His thought-provoking approach has provided people with unique perspectives on achieving consistent performance and success throughout their lives. Kramer highlights the misalignment that occurs between the experiences of athletes and their coaches, psychologists, and performance experts who are trying to help them. These "mentors" ultimately fall short of the goal because they are not undergoing the same experience as the athletes. Kramer does not attempt to change the way athletes play their game or race their race. He enables them to realize their highest capability through recognition of their own thoughts. He suggests that only through inner peace and a clear, calm, mind-set can we transform our attitudes to generate happier day-to-day existence on and off the field.
Kramer often appears as a guest lecturer, and his work has garnered him much recognition, including segments on ESPN, WFAN, FOX and CTV, and articles in national publications such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Sports Illustrated.
