A common saying is that achieving success involves a lot of hard work and sweat since there is no gain without pain. Nothing comes easy hence the need to perfect one’s skills and knowledge to achieve the best outcome. Practice makes perfect, is another commonly used phrase to encourage people to work continuously hard. From solving mathematical problems to preparing for any game competition, the phrase comes in handy to emphasize the importance of making what seems better become the best. Exercise is the word used to describe the process of working towards achieving the desired objective but is it the only ingredient to reaching the key goal? Are the winning stakes of a game higher when the players have carried out a lot of physical exercises? Is there more to the preparations than practice? These are some of the questions that this paper seeks to answer.
Actions are determined by our thoughts; it all starts in the mind (Burge, 2014). People attend conferences to learn how to make their businesses attract investors and how to increase their profits. Workshops and seminars are also organized for achieving the very same purpose, but all acquired knowledge without a positive mind results to nothing. For a plan to manifest outside, it starts in the mind. The life an individual creates for himself or herself is as a consequence of the actions they choose which is determined by their thoughts. From a Christianity point of view, the Bible also sheds some light on the same by stating that whatever a man thinks that he engages in, and this goes to show there is more to achieving the set objectives than just practicing and perfecting one’s skills and knowledge. It is true that success requires a lot of hard work, exercise and preparations but it a strong mind is what helps people remain focused on the ultimate goal.
Passion and focus are some of the essential elements that drive an individual towards being successful because it comes from the mind. It then shows that the mind is a powerful tool towards winning in the case of sports and success when considering businesses. A weak mind is full of negativity blaming everything on the family background and the government’s failure in them not achieving their goals. Pessimism is a character trait that such a person poses. A better description is that of people who always see the glass as half empty instead of half full (Goodhart, 1986). If success were based on the family background, then people like Oprah Winfrey would not have achieved what they have today.
It is a personal decision, and that is why most psychologists encourage their patients to decide for themselves whether or not they want for the better because by doing so they will be responsible for their actions as opposed to having someone else decide for them and later blame them when the outcome is not desirable. By changing the mind towards positive thinking then the road to winning or success becomes easy because then, the person becomes optimistic, overcomes their self-doubt and gains confidence to pursue any undertaking which pushes them to achieve the best. (Scheier and Carver, 1993)
An athlete requires to train and add in extra effort to ensure they are well prepared for the competition. However, all these preparations with self-doubt will cost the individual the win. Self-doubt makes the athlete feel that though he or she has exercised well for the competition, it cannot be won because he simply cannot do it. Such weak minds hinder success, and this affects their prowess in the sport (Curry et al., 1997). To enhance the physical performance of an athlete calls for the input of a strength and conditioning coach. The coaches are commonly employed in higher education institutions to work with sports teams, but individuals can also seek their help. Most of the activities they engage in include medical consultation of players, prescribing stretching routines, aerobic and resistance exercises. The particular coaches are essential in that they help to avoid any decrements to performance that are a result of incorrect training. An S&C coach emphasizes on performance training type and philosophy but can he or she be of help to an athlete who needs to be empowered to think success. (Kellett, 1999)
It is true that an S&C coach will help an athlete improve himself or herself but questions to whether he or she will empower the person to think success is a debatable topic. Some points can be used to explain the support for the move such as the coach has a better understanding of the individual hence he or she can encourage the athlete to develop a positive mind towards achieving success (Vella, Oades and Crowe 2011). Also, an S&C coach knows the strengths and weaknesses of his or her players and thus is better placed to help athletes realize them which will result to them appreciating their talents and skills and eventually develop a strong mind (Nicholls, Jones and Jenkins, 2013). However, the coach may also not be of help to the athlete because empowering the mind to think success is not in his or her job description but that of mental strength and training coach. The role of an S&C coach is centered on fitness and performance of the athlete while that of mental strength and training coach is focused on conditioning the thoughts of a person to aid them to think in a more empowering manner. (Dixon, Lee and Ghaye, 2013)
In conclusion, success is centered in the mind, and that is why there are professionals who teach people how to develop positive thinking. An athlete with a weak mind is bound to fail and the input from an S&C coach will help in making the person fitter and performance ready but will not improve on the self-doubt which affects the confidence. Therefore, an athlete needs both the empowering of the mind and the physical body to achieve success.
