Relinquishing conditionals like “If I mess XYZ up then I won’t be able to do ABC” can allow one to optimize performances more often by reducing the mental and physical impact of emotions generated from imagined undesirable outcomes and protecting one’s optimism…..Thought experiment: Has society seen a human that’s predicted things with 100% accuracy?
An example: Falcons vs Patriots in Super Bowl LI (2017)
The Falcons vs Patriots Super Bowl game where the Patriots overcame a 28-3 deficit with 17 minutes left in the game is an example of this way of thinking at work. Some people–myself included–thought the Falcons were going to win but I suspect there were a number of players on the Patriot’s side that had and held on to the possibility that they could win despite the mistakes they made and the low odds of overcoming the 21-point deficit.
The ability to relinquish certainty and mentally focus on desired outcomes despite old and new evidence that others may use to suggest your goals aren’t achievable is a phenomenon I find fascinating. I think a lot of people call this confidence but where does that confidence come from? There are times when two people are in the same situation with the same goal but one person genuinely thinks they’ll be able to achieve the goal while the other person deep down doesn’t think it’s possible. Where does that belief come from? And perhaps most importantly, how do we build that belief for ourselves? I’m not talking about verbally proclaiming that one thinks something is possible. I’m talking about having an inner knowing that something can be done and despite outside evidence to the contrary, that it’ll likely happen.
Understanding where this belief comes from and helping others build this self-belief is one of driving forces behind my work.
This is a 41 min theatrical recap and documentary of the game with player and coach interviews, and sideline audio sounds from players. This is a shorter ~5min video of pure highlights of the game.
