Discover the mental skills that elite athletes use to achieve peak performance in any arena
Your mindset and not your circumstances determines your outcomes. Win Today: Six Steps to Mental Resilience, Peak Performance, and a Thriving Life is a proven mental conditioning framework built by Joshua Lifrak, M.S., when he directed the Chicago Cubs' mental skills program during their historic 2016 World Series victory.
Win Today presents six core principles: See Your Story, Build Bonds, You Are Here, Stop the Storm, Choose Growth, and Mile Zero. Lifrak, along with David Lepeska, discusses each one, combining psychological insights with real-world stories from professional sports and corporate consulting, including the Cubs' dramatic transformation from century-long losers to world champions.
Youll find:
A complete six-step framework for developing mental resilience that works for business professionals, students, and athletes facing high-pressure situations Practical daily mental training routines and meditation techniques for maintaining focus and managing stress in any environment The KAN-do formula and After Action Review process for continuous improvement and consistent peak performance Behind-the-scenes stories from the Cubs' World Series championship and insights from working with Super Bowl-winning quarterback Russell Wilson Proven strategies for overcoming negativity, finding neutral ground during adversity, and building the championship mindset required for sustained excellence
Perfect for business professionals, executives, students, athletes, and anyone seeking to maximize their potential, Win Today makes elite mental conditioning accessible to all of us. This is your foundation for building mental strength, performing under pressure, and designing a life that isnt based on compromise.
INTRODUCTION 3
CHAPTER 1: THE GREAT VALUE OF A GOOD BEATDOWN 6
CHAPTER 2: DEFINE YOUR STORY 13
CHAPTER 3: BUILD BONDS 22
CHAPTER 4: YOU ARE HERE 31
CHAPTER 5: STOP THE STORM 43
CHAPTER 6: CHOOSE GROWTH 53
CHAPTER 7: MILE ZERO 60
CHAPTER 8: USING URGENCY 69
CHAPTER 9: AFTER YOUVE WON, START WINNING 80
CHAPTER 10: WIN TODAY AND EVERY DAY 88
JOSHUA LIFRAK, M.S., is the Director of Coaching and Performance at Limitless Minds, a mental conditioning consultancy co-founded by Super Bowl-winning quarterback Russell Wilson. He is also the president of Lift Up Consulting. Previously, he served in the front office of the Chicago Cubs as the Director of the Mental Skills Program from 2014-2019, overseeing mental conditioning for 300 players across all organizational levels. He has also consulted and advised MLB, NBA, and NFL players, WPGA golfers, ATP players, Indy Car Racing teams, the U.S. Soccer U-17 Mens National Team and college programs, including the Florida State football and basketball teams, and the University of Southern California football and 5-time NCAA champion mens tennis team. In addition, he spent 2 years as the New York Mets MLB Mental Conditioning coach. His corporate clients include Johnson & Johnson, McDonalds, Workday, AbbVie, KPMG, Bristol Myers Squibb, Amazon and Sherwin-Williams.
DAVID LEPESKA is Editor-in-Chief of The Monitor. He has written for The New York Times, The Atlantic, Monocle, Bloomberg, The Guardian, and New Lines, and previously worked at the World Bank and United Nations. His first book, Desiccated Land, reached #1 in multiple Amazon categories in mid-2023. He has lived on five continents and been expelled from a major country for his journalism.
