Control Your Emotions. Control Your Performance.

There were a handful of times in my wrestling career where I totally lost control. I can remember one, in particular, that sent me flying across the mat toward my opponent. I had lost, and he had mocked me. I lost it. Thankfully, my dad caught me before I made the regrettable mistake of letting my emotions dictate actions that would have repercussions.

In professional fighting, I can recount one time, specifically, where I lost it. It was in training. My partner was a traditional martial artist and was taking pleasure in delivering spinning kicks and punches, in my opinion, outside of the safety spectrum of training. He was not from my gym. He had no stake in my health, and, imo, was freewheeling with my livelihood. Punch came to shove, and he was against the wall. I was angry and shouting.

I’m not proud, but it happened. I took them both as a learning lesson and got better from it. In today’s reading, John Wooden talks about the importance of controlling your emotions, and the dramatic impact it has on your consistency in performance. Emotional highs and lows result in inconsistent performance.

To each his own, but I favor a steady, systematic approach to performance. A steady “hummmm” as I gather myself to perform. I don’t need/want a rah rah talk.

As the leader, consider this approach and the impact it has on your followers. One of Wooden’s players remarked, “He was cool when it counted; his confidence and strength become ours.”

Allow your confidence and strength to become that of your “team.”

Control your emotions. Control your performance.

Life’s a Fight. Carpe Diem. Fight Well!

Spaniard