The 10 Essentials: Essential #7
The seventh Essential is learning to Handle Adversity. Adversity is actually one of the things that makes us love sport! It’s always thrilling to watch or be the athlete that overcomes adversity, or makes a comeback. It’s why we always cheer on the Cinderella story in sport.
Adversity is an unavoidable part of sport. As an elite athlete, you will face some degree of adversity throughout your athletic career. Maybe it’s something small, like an error or a loss. Or maybe it’s something that’s big, like a season-ending injury or being cut from a team. Adversity hurts, no matter the size. So the first step is to manage the emotions that come with that failure. This will set you up to be ready for the next step. Need a reminder? Check out our blog on the fifth Essential, Manage Emotions.
The next step: RECOVER.
The greatest athletes are not the ones that never fail,
they are the ones that recover the fastest.
When learning to Handle Adversity, it’s not about avoiding it or setting yourself up to never fail. It’s about developing a specific recovery strategy so you can move beyond that adversity. This is too often where coaches fall short and you hear the phrases: “just get over it,” “next play,” or “stop thinking about it.” These may be well intentioned, but they lack any direction as to HOW to recover so that you can focus on the next play. Enter our 3R Recovery system:
Recognize. Release. Refocus.
Step 1: You need to recognize what went wrong and what you need to do differently.
Step 2: Release the mistake or adversity by incorporating an intentional physical action to put the mistake in the past (e.g., clap your hands or take a deep breath)
Step 3: Refocus by asking yourself “What’s the ONE thing I need to focus on RIGHT NOW?”
Now you have a simple three step recovery process to move you beyond the adversity so you can get back to playing at your best. Adversity will happen. This seventh Essential focuses on giving you the skills to recover so that you aren’t getting stuck in the adversity.