Video transcript:
Not only is perfection not possible, it’s not even real. It doesn’t exist. Whenever I’ve heard the phrase “perfection isn’t possible” or “nobody’s perfect” I still always imagined this bar that nobody could reach, that nobody can get to, not just to on a consistent basis but at all. And, the thing is, is that the bar doesn’t even exist.
One can actually define what perfection looks like in competition. We have performances that we can go back and point to that we deem perfect, but this is only after the fact.We would have never been able to predict it beforehand.
And most of us know that chasing perfection really only leads to problems. We tighten up. We try to control every outcome. We don’t handle setbacks well. But what most of us don’t know is that chasing our really high expectations has the same exact effect.
Your expectations are just as made up as perfection is. They are nothing more than your mind’s inaccurate predictions for how you think things should go. We think that because we work hard and that we’ve poured a ton of energy and effort into our sport that we are owed success, and we really really struggle to come to grips with the fact that one, we can’t control what’s going to happen and we also have no idea what’s going to happen.
This is why you see hitters get upset after hitting a single because they didn’t barrel a ball or why a golfer might be upset after, even on a day scoring well, maybe they didn’t have a good ball striking day. But really ask yourself, when was the last time a game or a competition went exactly the way you thought it would? How often does that truly happen?
It’s great to hold yourself to a high standard but make sure it’s for things within your control. Your preparation, your effort, your focus. Because you have no idea what’s going to happen. Even on the next rep. So make the choice to dominate what’s in your control, what’s right in front of you. Free yourself from your expectations.