This isn’t the right advice for everyone — but it might just be for you.
Care less.
Let go of the outcome.
Don’t worry about the result.
The goal is to win the game. Winning and losing is at the heart of any competition. I’m not an advocate for not keeping score. It’s a big part of what makes it meaningful. But as a competitor (in anything), divorce yourself from the outcome. It doesn’t define you, and you don’t have control over it.
You have influence, but not control.
I once had a game the day after receiving the scariest news of my life. I didn’t sleep. My mind was elsewhere. I was a wreck. When I stepped onto the court, I didn’t care about the game…I ended up going 9/10 from 3’s, and we came up with a big win. I broke down on the bench after subbing out. I had the perfect combination of focus, controlled anger, and a ‘screw it’ mentality!
I don’t know exactly how to recreate the emotions and attitude that went into that moment, and I wouldn’t want to revisit the circumstances. But never were my priorities or focus more on point. They were formed from a mindset that had neither fear nor concern for the final result.
Sooner or later, life will throw us something that shakes us into focus. I hope this message can be a reminder to approach your game (or work) with a healthier perspective.
Let go of the outcome. And I bet you’ll experience better outcomes.
I talked about this some on the Big Ten Network’s B1G Today Show last week. 👇🏼