AVOID THE EXTREMES
The pursuit of success in any important area of life is a roller coaster ride filled with all kinds of twists and turns, ups and downs, and highs and lows. It seems just as quickly as things start to fall in line, they have a tendency to fall apart - and vice versa. It’s one of the hardest parts of performance. You just never quite know where today will take you.
That ride can be just as fun as it is frustrating, just as exciting as it is infuriating. But in some ways, the unpredictable nature of this pursuit can be dangerous, too, especially if you allow your thoughts and behaviors to be dictated by the extremes of your experience. The voice of your inner loser is amplified there in the extremes - in the margins of your mindset and on the edges of your emotion. The extremes can distort reality and cloud the truth, and can keep you from being your best.
Consider the messages we hear at our low points. Maybe it’s after an unexpected loss or a poor performance. Maybe nothing’s gone according to plan, or you find yourself experiencing new levels of criticism or condemnation. When you’re there at the bottom, it’s easy for feelings of embarrassment or inferiority to creep in. Suddenly, you’re losing confidence and doubting yourself. You start wondering if maybe this whole thing just wasn’t meant to be. The winning mindset it takes to get you out of this tough spot can be hard to find down here in the depths.
In some ways, it’s just as easy for us to get caught up thinking in extremes at our high points, too. Maybe it’s after a big win or on the heels of a high level performance. Maybe you’re experiencing new levels of praise and recognition. When you find yourself on top, it’s easy for feelings of arrogance and entitlement to creep in. Suddenly you start thinking you’re a little better than you actually are, that you’re owed success or that it should all come easy. The winning mindset that got you to the top can easily be replaced by something much more dangerous and much less productive.
More often than not, those messages we hear out there at the extremes of our experience are lies. The truth usually resides somewhere closer to the middle. That’s where our winning mindset is found. The truth is, things are probably never quite as good or never quite as bad as we have a tendency to think they are out on the edges. The truth is, the ups and downs we experience are part of the pursuit for everyone, even those we consider the best at what they do. The truth is, every part of the journey has something important to teach us, if we have the discipline and awareness to recognize it. There’s balance and perspective in that mindset, and strength for moving forward toward success.
I want to challenge and encourage you today to do what champions do, to manage your mindset and fight to stay off that roller coaster. Avoid the extremes. Don’t allow yourself to get too high, and don’t allow yourself to get too low. Instead work on responding to what happens today from a place of balance and perspective.
When you find yourself there, in the margins of your mindset or on the edges of your emotion, remember that things are probably not as good or as bad as they appear. Bring yourself back toward the middle, so you can focus more effectively on whatever it is today has to teach you. That guarantees you're using it to keep moving in the right direction. Not up or down…but forward.