What You See is What You Get

I am not exactly a sports fan as many deem themselves. I don’t have favorite teams, players, or really even sports. I normally do not know the difference between the tournament or regular season play or the history of a rivalry that may be taking place. However, I love witnessing spectacles of athleticism. There is not a single sport on this planet that I am unable to get excited about. I’ve caught myself yelling at the TV watching a beginners Curling tournament, not even professional. I love watching those strokes of luck or passion or ingenuity that result in an amazing play. The play doesn’t even have to be successful by any means, but simply the moment at which it is performed makes a part of me light up with energy. I guess it really comes down to a mixture of showmanship and skill. There has to be a good balance of both or it doesn’t work. This is why I love watching basketball so much. Of all the sports in the world, I believe basketball embodies that mixture best. Seriously next time you watch it observe the players on and off court. They are the ultimate actors because they not only make you believe their story, but they have convinced themselves of the validity of their story.

The Story

Now I am not saying in the least that anything is staged or that games are fake. What I am saying is that nearly every single player on the  court thinks they are the best one out there. They have woven this complex web of a story about who they are and what they do. They see themselves as an integral part of the team, which would fail without them. I can already picture some of you wincing at the praise of this mentality but bear with me while I try to prove a point. Let’s say in the first quarter of the game Steph Curry dribbles down the court and pulls up for 10 three point shots, he makes 5 and misses 5. The second half he does the same thing. Do you think at any point during the half he thinks, “well this is probably going to be one of the 50% that I miss but I’m just going to shoot it anyways.” NO! In his head he has crafted a story that every time he goes to shoot he is going to make every single shot for the rest of the game. He has convinced himself that he is the best player on the court, and that he will make the shot every time he shoots. It doesn’t end here though. 

The Momentum

Once he crafts this story, he sees everything as a fulfillment of his prophecy. Every time he makes a basket he believes that this will be the start of the streak. Then he makes the second and is nearly certain it is. Then he makes a third without missing, and he is sure that from this point on he will not miss a single shot. By this point the announcers will say something like, “He’s on fire.” The crowd is yelling at the tops of their lungs, and a phenomenal thing takes place: He makes basket after basket without missing. He catches a foul and makes his free throws. He crafted a story, and willed it into existence, despite how many times he proves the theory wrong. This is momentum, positive thinking, and assurance over doubt. It is unstoppable!

The Mentality 

Obviously this mentality can also be found in cult leaders and end times lunatics, but it is also able to permeate your life in so many other ways, one of which I experienced so subtly but so elegantly too. Where I am staying in Spain we take turns making meals, sometimes we have a smorgasbord of groceries to choose from, sometimes, well, we don’t. One of these times it was like hot dogs mixed with vegetables with some sort of vinaigrette over a bed of couscous. I remember a group of us waiting outside for the meal to be finished. It was 3:00 pm and we were just now about to eat lunch. We were speculating on how well it would taste and grossing each other out, half kidding but also half annoyed because we had worked really hard and were going to get such an odd meal. In the midst of this one of my fellow workawayers, an Italian by the name of Loris looked at us and said, “I think it will be good.” Now this is coming from a guy who has made some of the best meals this house has ever seen was kind of shocking. My mind raced with thoughts of “Maybe this is a super special traditional meal somewhere,” “Maybe they made it upon his request and through his instructions and it is going to be awesome,” or “Maybe I should shut my mouth and trust the Italian on this one.” After we all gave each other a kind of side eye look we turned back to Loris, and asked, “Why do you say that.” His response was so elegant, so impactful, so wise that I felt like I was sitting at the feet of Socrates. He said, “It is all that we have, so why say that it is anything else.” We shut up, ate our food with smiles, gave compliments to the chefs, and washed dishes in near silence. He was right, if it is all that we have why should we build this negative expectation that might not even be true when we could build this positive expectation and will it into existence.

Me and Loris. My eyes are basically closed.

Why It Matters

This mentality that Loris had is rooted straight into the mentality of a basketball player. In both situations it is choosing to accept a positive reality rather than a negative one. Instead of focusing on baskets missed the focus is on those made. Instead of focusing on what we didn’t have we focused on what we did.

As athletes, professionals, travelers, and people of all walks of life we can use this.

• Athletes- In your training and races stop thinking you aren’t as good as “Billy or Sue,” believe you are the best out there. Convince yourself that this will be the race you hit that PR, this will be the time you beast mode the long runs that have been destroying you.
• Professionals- realize that you can spend all day complaining about what is wrong, or you can will yourself to believe you have the greatest job, and you can do that thing that no-one else can for your employer. You can take on the jobs that aren't super pleasant, accept them willingly with the mindset that you will dominate.
• Travelers- choose to see the beauty of each moment. The long train ride from one city to the next can be an exciting adventure to meet someone with an incredible story. Choose to see that unexpected rain that will leave you soaked for the rest of the day as a great chance to cool off, get a coffee, and maybe get that perfect rainbow pic. See the 10 Euros the train ticket machine stole from you as the opportunity to impact another weary traveler's life with an unexpected free ticket.

With everything in life choose to see it as good because “it is all you have, so why say that it is anything else.” It is the last miss before the hot streak.