Organized athletics have been a part of my life since I was 11 years old. So I understand how competitive interactions can help us shift the way we think and perform by teaching us lifelong lessons. Along the way, we meet people who help us become better, and whose success we can contribute to.
I was blessed to initially meet Doug by playing tennis against him. Later, Doug and I became tennis partners for several years. Doug is an uber competitor – he wants to win all the time at everything he does. His nature is infectious and it had a great effect on me.
I can recall many strategic conversations during our Saturday morning ALTA (Atlanta Lawn Tennis Association) doubles matches when we discussed how good one person on the opposing team appeared to be, or how tough the team seemed to be as we warmed up. We would typically focus on the “weak link” of the team based upon the tendencies we noticed. Occasionally, we’d come across individuals we called “warm up wonders”. Warm up wonders is the code name we gave to those who impress you during the warm ups, and heighten your level of expectation that they’re the “ones to beat” during the actual competition. When the light of competition shines, these people don’t perform up to the level of expectation they seemed to earn as they warmed up! It was these mornings when Doug and I were on even higher alert with a greater focus on how to win that particular match.
I’ve moved on to playing golf and retired my tennis racket. Occasionally, Doug and I see each other on the golf course and reminisce about what we learned on those Saturday mornings, and how we helped make each other better. Here are three of the things I learned from our Saturday morning tennis matches that served me well during my business career.
1) Never compare the worse in yourself against the best in others. There were many occasions when our opponents looked unbeatable in warm-ups, and we saw them wilt in the heat of battle. I learned a lot during our first season. I learned that although we paid close attention to the strengths and weaknesses of our opponents, we were fully aware of what we did best. We were focused on pushing others to play into our areas of strength, so that we could win. For example, we knew our play at the net was strong because we were blessed with long arms and quick reflexes. We also knew that most attempts to go over us would be futile because of our ability to hit overheads. What’s your advantage? Are you a strategic thinker, do people consistently seek your advice, are you a polished presenter? Are you empathetic; are you a closer, a natural salesperson? Identify your advantages, and remain confident in your ability to produce because you realize it’s your gift. If you’re going to compare yourself to anything, compare the best in yourself to the best in others. Not only will you prepare yourself for continuous learning, you’ll always come out a winner!
2) Be prepared to go the distance! Many times we outlasted our opponents because we were better conditioned and mentally prepared to go five sets in order to win three. Whatever your field of endeavor, be physically and mentally prepared to give your best all the way to the end. For us to do this, Doug and I believed our best was always better than our opponents, and that we would eventually outperform them and outlast them. We developed this mindset muscle by strengthening our work ethic. Our preparation was sound because we consciously focused on ensuring our practices were always more difficult than any match. We felt prepared to make the necessary adjustments to win during our match, because we were observant, we communicated and we adjusted. Tennis isn’t a timed competition, so we had to be prepared to go the distance.
3) Align yourself with a winner. I recall playing with many doubles partners and each one was a standout in his or her own way. The difference between my previous partners and Doug was that he always played to win! Doug was never concerned with picture-perfect strokes, fancy clothes or the latest tennis racket. There was never time for negative conversations, because we were focused on the high expectation of winning. We talked about it as we practiced, and I recall many competitive practices with the rest of our teammates. If you want to learn how to be successful in anything, emulate the winners. They aren’t hard to find, but many of us shy away from them because we don’t classify ourselves as winners. Invite a winner to coffee or lunch and explain to them what you’re trying to accomplish, and that you’d value their mentorship or coaching. When you align yourself with winners you’ll notice they they like to help others win, because winners like pouring into the success of others.
Question: What have the competitive interactions of organized sports taught you? Who comes to mind as you read this story? Which winner will you reach out to for mentorship?
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Previously Published on LinkedIn
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