By so doing, you embrace victory as a path without a destination, and, as stated by Cervantes’ Don Quixote, the journey is better than the inn.
Can you remember a time when you were a winner, even if the results didn’t acknowledge it? I finished 143 rd out of 310 runners at the Stanford Invitational cross-country race. By most participants’ standards, this was not considered a winning performance. For me, however, it was a major victory because I ran my fastest time for the distance and did it against some of the best collegiate athletes in the United States—all of whom were twenty or more years younger than I. It was an inner, personal triumph, one most could not see. When the process itself is fulfilling and you win in the moment, victory is always the experience; external results are ephemeral, while internal victories last a lifetime.
We are a society obsessed with winning. This obsession has led us to forget about the important inner values and virtues of partaking in the activity. Although winning is important for many reasons, it should not be an end in itself. If you believe “you don’t win silver, you lose gold,” you will create layers of tension, anxiety, and stress that will contribute unfavorably to the outcome. When stressed about the outcomes, your body is unable to move with the fluidity or flow that’s so necessary for a winning performance. But as you probably know, even confirmed champions can perform like non-champions. It’s easy to get distracted from the important reasons for competing and get off track, but the true champion finds the way back. Olympian and world champion Regina Jacobs is able to find her way back by using an affirmation prior to her 1500 -meter races. To relax and focus on the process, Regina reminds herself: “I may or may not win, but I am a world champion and choose to run like one.” She takes a few minutes before the race to motivate herself, visualize her performance, and feel relaxed, smooth, and strong as she chooses to compete like a champion.
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