Finding Balance

“I used to be the kind of person who put so much pressure on himself; which definitely worked in big parts of my career. I mean I was able to get to the top of the rankings at 23 this way. But I felt that if I wanted to have a long career, I couldn’t do that for a long time because it takes so much out of you mentally.”

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“That’s why a lot of athletes who lose their Number 1 spot struggle to get back again, because it’s not easy to accept that someone has raised the bar over you. And that’s the toughest part, is knowing that the level you played at when you were World Number 1 is not acceptable anymore.”

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“But when I said I only accept being number 1, I didn’t mean world number 1, I meant playing as a winner. I don’t mind losing, but the way I was losing that season I wasn’t playing as a winner.”

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“I fought this way for myself; because I don’t want to have regrets. When I lose this way I’m not ever going to have regrets. But if I lost because I haven’t trained hard or I was not motivated, then I will remember this for the rest of my career.”

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“Being the best is not about getting everything right every time you go on court. It’s about finding a way to win when you’re not playing your best.”

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“The mind is everything. The reason I got back last season was not because I trained harder than everyone else, it’s because I believed that I was going to come back there again.”

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Recommended Books:

Relentless by Tim Grover - www.amazon.co.uk/Relentless-Unsto…er/dp/1476714207

“I believe in total squash; I think some coaches are obsessed with making you hit the ball cleanly or having the perfect hitting technique, but hitting is only a small part of the game.”

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“When I retired in June 2016 I was just really happy to stay at home, to be in one place for a long time. Retirement felt like a warm bath!”

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“I discovered this almost by accident during my career, that some of my best results were not the times when I was most disciplined, but actually the times when I just let go.”

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“I think this is great about being a writer, now it’s not about me. Suddenly I’m a fly on the wall.”

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“If something gives you great satisfaction, then you should do everything to take all of the obstacles out of the way; and often the obstacles are in your mind.”

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LJ's Book Recommendation: 

Fi has been at the top level of professional squash from a playing perspective and a coaching perspective. She is a former National Champion and Commonwealth Games Bronze Medallist, and was in the top 20 in the world for 19 years, reaching a high of number 5. She has also coached for England Squash at the top level and was based in New York for 4 years running a squash programme as the Head Pro.

In this conversation we talk about both sides of her life as a player and a coach, and how she found them to compliment each other. She talks about the benefit of rivalry, her most challenging moments, and also shares an incredible story about how she made the semi-finals of the World Championships under far from perfect circumstances.

But what this conversation is really about, underneath it all, is being who you truly are. Being unafraid to show up as you are, and the enormous benefit and freedom this has on your daily life as well as your craft. The way that Fi articulates her story is inspiring, and one that I hope gives permission and confidence for us all to show up and express ourselves more as we truly are.

Book Recommendation:

· We talk about my early years playing and the biggest influence on my squash.

· We talk about my experiences as a young boy and how squash very quickly became a huge focus of my life.

· We discuss the transition into training as a professional. I share a story about already trying to train more seriously when at sixth form / high school.

· I talk about the relationship I had with England Squash during my transition into playing pro and share a story of how influential Peter Nicol was in my decision surrounding university.

· We talk about my early years on the PSA and how I ended up working with Hadrian in Bristol.

· I share the reasons why I was hating being a professional at the beginning.

· We discuss my years on the tour culminating in my most successful month on the tour, shortly before I decide to stop playing. I share the reasons why and the events that led to that decision.

· We discuss the fatigue / burnout that I was experiencing at the time. What does it feel like? Is it similar to depression? What does my day to day look like?

· We close by discussing my hopes for the future.

RESOURCES:

· Follow me on social media! @tomfordsquash

SHOW NOTES:

I open the conversation by talking about Saurav’s recent run of form. He shares some of the reasons why he feels he has made progress.

We talk about India. Why he has decided to stay there and his thoughts on it.

He shares how squash made its way into his life and how he used to avoid any hard work until he moved to Chennai when he was 15. This was a seminal moment in his life which lead to him winning the Under 19 British Junior Open.

He talks about seeing James Willstrop winning the World Junior Championships in Chennai and being inspired to train with him after his junior career. He shares stories of the early days when that actually became a reality and the impact of having so many players training at Pontefract at that time.

He talks about his early years on the tour and how going to an English university challenged his way of thinking.

He reflects on what he’s learnt on and off court from 10 years of playing the tour. He talks about flowing with life and how that represents when he’s playing his best. He shares some of the habits and mental skills he’s developed, and what keeps him motivated after all these years.

RESOURCES:

Follow Saurav on social Media! @sauravghosal

Show Notes: 

I introduce Marsh with a brief history of his achievements and what he continues to do now. 

He reflects on what stands out the most and we take a deep dive into retirement from professional sport. What the transition is like, ways to manage it, and thoughts on preparing in advance. (00:00 – 17:50)

Marsh talks about his early life growing up and the influence that Jonah Barrington had on him. Despite achieving an incredible amount, he shares how his love for the game outweighed everything else and expresses his concern of too much focus on outcome at an early age. (17:51 – 30:12)

He shares his path to reaching his highest world ranking of World Number 2. He emphasises the importance of playing better players, taking ownership of your own development and how another focus can benefit your craft and overall wellbeing. (30:13 – 42:29)

We talk about how he felt when reaching World Number 2 and how his training became purely based on beating Jansher. Marsh reflects on his memories of the 2 great Khan’s. (42:30 – 50:02)

Marsh talks about the build up to getting diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and the impact it had on him mentally as well as physically. He shares the times he returned to the tour after considerable breaks and how his outlook was different. (50:03 – 1:07:25)

· Can you capture your mindset when you’re at your best? (1:07:26 – 1:10:39)

· Is there a moment or period in your career that gives you the most joy to think about? (1:10:40 – 1:12:01)

· Of all the mental skills, which do you believe to be the most important? (1:12:02 – 1:13:49)

· Do you have a daily practice or set of habits that keep you balanced? (1:13:50 – 1:14:51)

· What’s the lesson that took you the longest to learn? (1:14:52 – 1:16:32)

· What’s a book you’d recommend? (1:16:33 – 1:17:57)

· What advice would you give to your younger self? (1:17:58 – 1:19:27)

Best way to connect with Peter if you have any further questions (1:19:28 – 1:21:01)

· What is the one thing you know to be true about success? (1:21:04 – 1:22:38)

· What is the one thing you know to be true about failure? (1:22:39 – 1:23:13)

· When you think of success, who is the first person that comes to mind? (1:23:14 – 1:23:43)

Resources:

“The day I finally stopped singing, when I had to say I can’t do this anymore; I knew that whether I made that decision or not, the issues that contributed to them wouldn’t go away. And oddly, I then chose probably the most extreme sport to expose all of those things!”

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“It’s given me the opportunities to work on the things I want to work on – not just physically, but mentally and emotionally, which cannot have anything other than a benefit to the rest of my life.”

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Book Recommendations:

How will you measure your life by Clayton Christensen 

Don Juan by Carlos Castaneda 

Surely you must be joking Mr Feynman

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