For those who missed PWN Networking Aperitivo | Resilience & Sport | 15 May 2019

18 May 2019

During our great interactive evening, hosted by the cosmetic brand Lierac headquarter, the running coach Julia Jones and the executive coach Hooda Soodi discussed and clarified how skills such as tenacity and resilience are key to overcoming difficult moments and new challenges, both in sports and in life. 

The pressures faced by athletes who compete in sport around the world are extensive and can originate from a variety of sources. These “elements of stress” may be associated with an athlete’s competitive performance or an organizational environment.

It is common for researchers as well as coaches, performance directors and sports organizations to study the difference between athletes and teams who thrive under pressure and achieve peak performances and those who yield to pressure and underperform. These differences are often attributed to the concept of resilience which researchers indicate as a pre-requisite for sporting success.

Over the past couple of decades, our understanding of human behavior in demanding situations has developed rapidly, with resilience being examined across a range of contexts, including business organizations, education, health care settings and communities. This research has been instrumental in developing our understanding of resilience and in creating successful intervention programs to develop resilience in some of these domains. 

Recent evidence, in fact, suggests that problems may occur when applying key findings of resilience research to athletes. That is, the voluntary nature of sport sets it apart from many other domains because athletes often intentionally immerse themselves in challenging and stressful situations to develop and deliver their performance. 

Recently, due to increasing popularity, a growing body of work has emerged exploring resilience specifically in athletes. Further, a recent review of the literature has helped to clarify our understanding of resilience in these populations by evaluating current conceptualizations of resilience research in sport and offering areas of future research development. 

But what is resilience?  

The term resilience refers to the ability of a substance to regain its shape following deformation. 

When associated to humans, resilience means a psychological mental condition that pushes the ability to bounce back from a poor performance or a mistake or simply from a “down moment” of life, and succeed.  

Literature across various domains of psychology has provided several definitions which vary significantly and depend on the context of activities investigated and conceptualization of resilience as a trait or a process. 

Athletes (as much as us in our daily messy lives) need to remain in the present moment and focus on the task at hand. It is difficult to focus on the present when the mind is occupied with an error that occurred three plays ago.

Performance errors may cause an athlete (and even a person against work environment) to lose control of their emotions as well as diminish their confidence. The whirlwind of negative emotions coupled with reduced confidence only leads to more errors and further deterioration of performance.

Developing “mental toughness” or resilience will help an athlete (and a person) perform well in the face of adversity. A resilient athlete is one who is able to overcome setbacks, remain confident, and focus on the present. 

How to do that? By exercising, by being focused, by being determined and present.

The saying “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” applies perfectly to this concept.

It is the way we concentrate on our energies and, first of all, on us by putting ourselves and our needs at the center of our thoughts. 

The ability to let go of mistakes is vital to a successful performance. The better you can do this, the better equipped it will be to cope with trying situations both in sport and both in life.  

So ladies, be strong, be present, overcome your limits and put the past mistakes aside

Concentrate on the next goal and go on. Go on for your success, for yourself and for your personal, intimate, satisfaction. 

And, take care of yourself! Start now, run of swim, but start moving your body, start immediately and happiness will come to you. 

Text edited by Alissia Molteni

We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Find out more here.

I accept cookies from this site