Martin Luther King once said, “The measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”
Another great leader, the Apostle Paul, in the Book of Hebrews, challenges us to metaphorically run the race of life. To do this successfully he encourages us to strip off every weight that slows us down and keep our eyes on Jesus. This is very applicable as a competitor. To be your best, you have the responsibility to keep your actions focused on what you can control. The discipline to do this is also known as “mental toughness”. In short, we can’t afford to major in minor problems. Seldom do we have any control over these minor problems (bad call, hostile crowd, playing conditions, etc). Strip them off like Paul suggests!
By eliminating what we cannot control we are freed up to concentrate on what we can. Focus on What's Important Now (W.I.N.) is another way to look at it. Basketball players compete best when they focus on the task of the moment. Not the play that just happened, nor the end result. Bruce Brown says, “To lose your concentration and give up control of the moment is to sacrifice your control and stop competing. That moment passes and cannot be retrieved”. Let’s not do this. We are overcomers!
Brown goes on and says, “If you find yourself worrying about mistakes, you are living in the past. If you catch yourself fretting over the future, you are not focused on the task of the moment and will probably make a mistake.” We like to adhere to the acronym RALF: Recognize, Admit, Learn and Forget (Play forward, flush-it, whatever it takes to move on immediately!) This is a mental discipline we have to practice daily, year round. Play present!
Regardless if you're a Seahawks' fan or not, this video "Greater Is Coming" sums up the mindset of a champion. Enjoy the highlights, but listen closely to the message!
In closing, Chuck Swindoll echoes these sentiments by saying:
“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a team. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it.”