We all have small doubts creeping through our mind. They're like ants that grow into big doubts. To beat the big doubts, you gotta fight the small ones.
No shortcuts in this fight. You gotta wake up everyday prepared to put in the honest hard work that your mind needs that your body needs. It all comes down to committing to 3 things
1. Earn the respect of those who deserve your respect
The great bullfighter Juan Belmonte was known for saying, “No life worthy of the name consists of anything more than the continual series of struggles to develop one's character through the medium of whatever one has chosen as a career."
When you get up everyday ready to put in the work to be better at your sport, you’re committing to a struggle. An often fun, exhilarating struggle. But a struggle nonetheless
In every struggle you get to ask yourself, who am I doing this for? Hopefully the answer is “me and those who deserve my respect.”
When this is your north star, your struggle is going to develop your character.
2. Think slow to move fast. Go hard but stay strong
If you let your mind go on auto-pilot, research shows that more often than not, your thoughts will steer towards negativity. Doubt has an insidious way of creating a lot of noise in your mind. Hurricanes of questions you can’t answer. Take a breath. Slow down those thought processes. Don’t let them take root. Let them fly away in the wind. When you’re clear headed and you know what you really need to do, you’ll be ready to move fast.
The competitor in you says, “when in doubt go hard.” And often times, this voice is right. But let's not forget that you also need to stay strong, whether it be to finish a match well or make it through the grind of training day in day out. Find balance between the two.
3. Celebrate the ups, learn from the downs, then get back after it.
I once asked a Hall of Fame Wrestling Coach from Ukraine, “What 3 things should every coach teach their athletes?”
He said, “First you ask them to share what they thought went well. Then you ask them what they could do better next time.”
“What are the other two things?
“There are no other two things.”
Enough said?
There it is. 3 steps to beating doubt
1. Earn the respect of those who deserve your respect
2. Think slow to move fast. Go hard but stay strong
3. Celebrate the ups, learn from the downs, then get back after it.
When we beat doubt we build willpower. When we make willpower our way of life, we leave no room for doubt.
