Lebron James – when you mention his name – is not synonymous with losing. However, his first season back with the Cleveland Cavaliers, James faced a harsh reality. That reality was that although he has multiple championship rings, each year will not be a winning season for him. Lebron James recently sat down with Sports Center and expressed how he hates losing. James, along with many other athletes or career-driven individuals, struggle with fear of not doing well. For James, he says that he has nightmares about his games and that a loss oftentimes haunts him. “Losing haunts me. I don’t like to lose. I haven’t seen any of the Warriors players in my nightmares at all. It’s just the simple fact of not being victorious.“ The idea of being a perfectionist or a “winner” comes with lots of mental agitation. Athletes, for instance, suffer from this a lot because of the the expectations of the team and fans. They place the importance of being the best on their game performance and how everyone else sees their performance. With this stress, many athletes suffer from anxiety and depression. In James’ case, he doesn’t seem to suffer from depression or anxiety. However, you can easily tell that he is a perfectionist. According to a sports psychology consulting firm, perfectionist oftentimes do not perform at their full potential because of their fear of failure. Athletes lose sight of the fun, competitiveness of the game because they’re so bogged down with training and practice. All of this work spent perfecting their technique is deemed as a failure if they lose the game or score low. So, how can athletes cop with this fear? Here are a few tips: Focus on Success or what you want to happen instead of failure. Never set goals to avoid mistakes or failure such as to “not strike out.” Always set positive goals, such as to have a quality at-bat and strive for success. Don’t be obsessed with avoiding failure, pain, or embarrassment. Focus on execution, instead of fearing negative results. Fear of failure causes an athlete to focus on outcomes and negative consequences. So your task is to stay grounded in execution in the present moment. Embrace the challenges of competition instead of fearing the consequences of failure. Love the challenges that come with sports such as playing a tight match. Set simple achievable objectives that are positive, such as “play with trust and confidence for 60 minutes.” Simplify your performance, instead of over think your game. Use simple images and performance cues to perform and trust you athletic reactions in competition. Let go of verbal instructions, over-coaching yourself, or over thinking your performance. Perform freer with a less serious mindset. Let go of mistakes quickly. Try less and reduce the stress and mind chatter. Don’t dwell on mistakes or errors. Know that mistakes are a natural part of the leaning process. Learn from your mistakes after the game; don’t analyze them in the middle of the game. Being a perfectionist is fine. But, it’s levels to it and sometimes it can cause serious mental harm. So, if you are an athlete or ambitious entrepreneur, learn to take success with stride. Strive for the best, but maintain an even balance of confidence and mental strength.
