From WeAreTheCity’s Future Leader’s Blog
I’m met this morning by the latest news reports from Brazil about medals won and lost
overnight in the Olympics.
I see overjoyed faces and all sorts of expressions of elation mixed with the disappointed look of knowing that you didn’t quite get there.
There’s something very immediate about sports, it’s then and there, it’s in the moment – years and year of hard work comes together in that one moment – the moment of truth – will my hard work pay off?
And if I don’t win, it will be so disappointing of course. Just like anywhere else in life. You’ve probably experienced the same at some point – in school, in sports, at work. It’s OK – disappointing results, as painful as they can be, are also the source of great success.
Just look at the Olympics again!
The real champions are extremely focused on what they want to achieve and at the same time they are able to let go of that expectation (and not let it become something that they start worrying about NOT achieving) and just give it their all. They are also strong enough to brush themselves off if they don’t win, because they know they did their best then and there, and look for what they can tweak in their performance for next time. They are very well aware that they will lose at times, but they don’t let it get them down, they use it to propel themselves into greatness. They use the moment of truth to think:
Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn
I mean, how cool is that thinking!
Success = getting up more times than you fall down.
Just like how it was when we learnt to walk as kids.
Imagine if we had given up and thought “nah, I’ll never make it”….
So does it matter is you win or lose?
Not really, you win either way – either in that precise moment or over time. It’s all a mind’s game – your mind – how you choose to look at your results.
So, let’s promise each other something – if it’s important enough to us, then let’s take every result as useful feedback, and try again. When we do that, that’s when every moment becomes important. What do you say? Make a promise?
About the authors
Mandy Flint & Elisabet Vinberg Hearn, award-winning authors of ”The Team Formula”.
Their new book ”Leading Teams – 10 Challenges: 10 Solutions” is out now, published by Financial Times International.
Praise for ”Leading Teams: ”This book is a 21st-century guide on how to build a world-class team. I highly recommend it” Steve Siebold, Founder, Mental Toughness University, Florida USA.
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