Compete with emotion, not because of emotion. Emotion is a great fire starter, but it is not sustainable fuel. If you allow yourself to get out of control emotionally, then your coaches, teammates, and opponents will see your struggle and inconsistency as a weakness.
If you want to be trusted when the game is on the line, you must be able to capture negative emotions and use it to generate the energy you need to give maximum effort with a clear mind. The adverse physiological effects of out of control emotion include increased heart rate, erratic breathing, and loss of fine motor skills. Your performance will be negatively impacted.
Be honest with yourself. If your ego drives your emotional outbursts or it's immature attention-seeking, its time for you to grow and develop as a person. If your feelings are going to get the best of you, then don’t lose it on the field or court. Go to the locker room or someplace where you are alone and then let it go. Your coaches and teammates need to stay present, task conscious, not distracted. Buy the solution, not the emotion. When your anger or frustration get the best of you, it will bring out the worst in you.
The critical question here is who is in control, you or your emotions? Before you can control your performance, you must be in control and intentional with your emotions. Do the personal development work to develop a strategy and create some mindset tools so you can consistently compete with emotion, not because of emotion.
With Strength and Honor
Jim Hensel
