Over the last few weeks, the Winter Olympics have drawn the attention of people across the globe. Many have had eyes glued to the television as their favorite Olympic athlete competed for the Gold. As I watched the Winter Olympic Games, I could not help but wonder what made them different from the average person. I sat, watched, and wondered if it was their physical ability that made them unique, the power of their mind, use of emotional control, focus and perseverance;Â what made them succeed? How did they overcome the pain of injury, maneuvering an entire mountain at speeds I would not drive my car. What kept them focused and in control when their peers crashed one after the next just before crossing the finish line?
For three weeks, I observed sport after sport awe struck by the mental stability, focus, and control of the Olympic athletes. I could not help but wonder whether others could be inspired toward exceptional performance. I wanted to know what these Olympians understood about success that I might be missing. I started to research the experience, knowledge and passion Olympic athletes possess that others may not. I wanted to understand why these elite athletes achieved success again and again.
As I watched the athletes winning medal after medal, I felt inspired and wanted to understand the core of their enthusiasm and positive attitude, as I found it to be contagious. I began to observe behaviors that made me believe these people were on a mission, thinking differently than most, taking action, and producing results. My research uncovered some basic and familiar principles that Olympians live by resulting is amazing success.
Courage, it is courage that separates the winners from the losers. Olympians have the courage to act and endure. Past, present, and future success all depends upon their courage. Courage is demonstrated through action. So what is it that inspires courage in the elite? Challenges. They continuously take on challenges knowing that is what will make them great.
Self-belief, a person will never accomplish anything great in life until they can believe there is something inside of them bigger than the surrounding circumstance. Self-belief comes from within, but is also inspired by those around you. Each Olympian surrounds themselves with a support system of people who believe in them.
Perseverance is the drive to never quit. I believe that if you don’t give up you still have a chance to achieve your goals. Knowing that if you persevere you still have a chance gives you knowledge and power to continue boldly pursuing what you aspire to achieve. The Olympic athletes I watched persevered pain, defeat, and the competition.
Goal setting, I have often stated that if you don’t know where you are going how will you know when you have arrived? Olympic athletes have dreams defining their success. Goals help to define and appreciate dreams. It is important to set goals but more important to achieve them.
Visualization, you have to be able to see yourself succeed. Watching the woman’s downhill demonstrated the power of visualization. Each athlete, in preparation for her run would sit, eyes closed and move her body as if to be taking the run. Each concentrated on turns, jumps, and the moves they would make winning them the Gold.
Self-talk, we all have that tiny voice in your head, you know the one we either listen to or quickly try to quiet, well Olympians listen. They understand wholeheartedly that what they say influences what they think and what they think effects how they perform. What we do and say, our self-talk, becomes habit. Habits determine our results. When you are not satisfied with your results simply changing your actions will not lead to success, because we easily revert to old habits. Old habits can only be positively influenced with effective self-talk.
Being inspired by these amazing elite athletes made me reconsider how I approach my personal drive to succeed. As I observed the elite, I began to think what might happen if I sought after my personal goals like an Olympic athlete. What if I trained for what I desired to achieve so I could win the Gold. The seven basic principles resulting in success are not unfamiliar, so my training has started. I plan to win the Gold!
- Dr. Dionne Kress, DM
one of my favorite pictures….