36-Christine Sinclair-On how to be a leader and her recovery from perfectionism

In today’s episode, I interview the captain of the women’s Canadian national soccer team and Portland Thorns FC striker Christine Sinclair. Christine is a Legend with a capital L. She attended University of Portland (Go Pilots!) While there she was a Mac Hermann trophy recipient and a  2x NCAA champion.  She has received countless other accolades throughout her career including being the a 12x recipient of Canada’s Soccer Player of the Year, 2x bronze Olympic medalist, she’s been short listed for fifa player of the year 7 times, and is the second leading goal scorer in the world, just behind Abby Wambach. But even more admirable than her accolades, is who Christine is as a human. Despite being one of the top players in the world, she is incredibly down to earth. Christine despises being in the spotlight and is a private person in general, but in our discussion she opens up and explains in her own words, she’s actually not a “hermit.”  You’ll see that she’s a little bit weird and quite funny. In our conversation we talk about   How everyone can be a leader, and what it takes to become one what it was like surpassing her idol Mia Hamm in all-time goals-scored -The impromptu speech she gave in the locker room to her distraught teammates during the Olympics -How the loss of multiple family members completely change her perspective on soccer, and allowed her to take her game to the next level -Why she slurps mustard before and during the half-time of games with Emily Menges  (Emily also makes a guest appearance!) -The method she uses to become a world-class finisher -Why she named her achilles tendon “Clarence”   I’d love to hear what you learned from this episode. Please leave a message in the comments!   PODCAST HERE Show Notes :57 Who is Christine Sinclair? 3:45 Charlie, the love of her life! 5:15 How did Christine choose University of Portland 9:00 How was winning the NCAA women’s soccer championships? 10:05 What is Sinc’s top moment in her career? 11:15 Other sports played by Christine 11:45 When did she know soccer was her main sport? 13:25 Was she always a standout player? 14:04 Did she have goals from the beginning of her career? 14:35 What players did she idolize? 15:32 When did she know she would play in a world cup? 15:44 What did it feel like to surpass Mia Hamm’s goal scoring record? 18:02 Why is Christine so well liked by teammates? 19:45 Does Sinc like being a leader? 21:05 Can everyone be a leader? 22:32 What is Christine’s memories of the 2012 London Olympics 26:57 Why doesn’t Christine like being in the spotlight? 28:15   Her perspective on social media 30:28 How does she deal with her competitiveness? 31:40 The importance of team bonding 36:29 Her battle with being a recovering perfectionist 37:55 How has Sinc learned to play more freely? 40:10 What would she tell her 18 year old self? 42:14 Sinc’s favorite coffee shop 43:42 Favorite restaurant 44:38 How has she dealt with body pain? 50:40 Christine’s stats & records 55:03 What does Sinc like about Portland, Oregon 56:31 Her morning routine 58:34 What is the biggest misconception about Christine? 59:31 What one belief does Christine have that others think is crazy? 1:00:20 Favorite failure 1:02:21 Greatest accomplishment 1:04:32 How has she developed her amazing finishing skills? 1:06:00 What is Sinc’s one simple tip for female athletes 1:07:30 Favorite downtime activity 1:08:15 What does Christine enjoy most about scoring goals 1:08:45 pregame rituals & superstitions 1:09:57 What 3 Thorns players would she choose to be with on a deserted island? 1:10:24 Has there ever been a moment when she wanted to quit soccer?   Share the love If you haven’t already, I would be so very grateful if you rated and left me a review of the podcast. It takes two minutes! Here’s what to do. Click HERE Click “view in itunes” Click the “ratings and reviews” tab Click “write a review” and show me love <3 Resources Click HERE to become a part of Friday Feelz Click HERE for a list of the 10 books I believe ever female athlete MUST read. Click HERE  to be the first to know when a new podcast or article drops, and receive other exclusive content