Well, that sucked. But we're okay. Wanna know why?
Bear with me as I treat this one a bit like a therapy session. Yeah, I know, I’m throwing this at you early on in the gig. But damn, life’s timing is sometimes comical.
I like to think one of my strengths is my ability to juggle multiple things at once and still be able to execute. Our lives are a series of multitasks, but I was taught and raised to just do my job and do it well. Nothing fancy, no secret sauce, and definitely no need to try and impress.
My homework and studying was done while my parents drove me to and from practice. I declutter my inbox and respond to emails on my way to class. I call the ones I love when I’m on a long drive.
This blog post was written while I replayed every mistake I made in the semifinal and bronze-medal-matches of the Pan American Cup in my head for the 9274871264th time. (Please… just let a girl take her rage out on her number keys.)
However simple or complicated the undertaking, we all do a LOT more multitasking than we realize.
Sports serve as a series of multitasks as well. Mark your man while aligning your teammate in the right pressing line. Know what you’re going to do by the time you get the ball, but don’t get ahead of yourself and risk a poor reception or first touch. Reflect on a mistake without dwelling and thus, spiraling.
All of the thinking and talking with everyone over the past couple of days has made me realize another example: the ability to not only compete at the highest level and be proud of your team’s capabilities but also learn from failure.
Multitasking, my friends. And a substantial one at that.
Yes, you can always learn from winning. That’s the preferred way, right? Some people choose not to, but they’ll never be great. However, the learning that comes from losing is unavoidable - as it should be.
Going out there and “just competing” isn’t an option. Players, teams, organizations - anyone - can only even think of sustained success if they want to continue to learn too - which means also facing failure throughout the process.
If you go out and ask successful athletes what some of their favorite memories their sport has given them, I guarantee none will say “getting an automatic bid” or “winning this game because the other team forfeited” or “this really easy game that we won by a landslide.”
What you’ll hear are stories about battling day-in and day-out with their teammates to deserve a spot in the tournament. Maybe it’s when they lost to a team prior, put in the work over time, and eventually felt the reward of a victory that was earned. Or how about scoring a team-goal in OT to put them at the bottom of a celebratory dog pile while their home crowd roared.
What would the point of anything be if it weren’t for the challenges and obstacles to make the triumphs that much more special and rewarding? But it doesn't just happen.
“Just competing” doesn’t get you very far - in fact, anywhere. That’s not even half the battle. Everyone’s experienced a time they’ve failed, some smaller or bigger than others. But what will set you apart regardless is when you first, choose to respond and then, manage that response.
What will set you apart, is if you learn from it.
I’ll say it again: failure is inevitable. So stop being afraid of it. Embrace it. We can prepare and try to avoid it as much as we want - which, trust me, is also needed in order to be successful. But be a student when you encounter it - because you will.
Easier said than done, I know. If it helps, think of how there would be nothing to work towards if all anyone did was win - DJ Khalid, I gotta disagree with you on this one, my dude.
It’s not supposed to be easy. And it’s a whole different form of pain and hurt, especially when you know you could’ve succeeded.
But say thank you to failure for giving you that feeling that you’ll never forget. It’ll propel you.
Hold on tight to those next to you, despite wanting to curl up into a ball. You need them, and they need you.
Look into their eyes and say, “We will do amazing things together. We will make history one day.” Believe it in your hearts.
And then most importantly, act on it. It may take months; it may take years. But nothing will be accomplished if you don’t take the necessary steps to learn from it together.
"It is impossible to live without failing at something unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all, in which case you have failed by default." ― J.K. Rowling
Comments