Category → P.I.M.P
Keeping a still hand: part two
In most situations, staying calm is a huge advantage. It allows you to properly assess a situation and make corresponding decisions. It anchors you to reality. Which is why people who can stay calm under pressure often make great leaders.
It’s easy to talk about staying calm. Especially from a position of hindsight or a comfy chair. Which is why sports fans across the world are slow to forgive the missed buzzer beater or crucial penalty.
To stay calm under pressure, you must train yourself, under pressure, to be calm. Anything short of that and it’s hard to predict how you’ll react to a highly pressurised situation. The reason is simple: under intense pressure performance slips. Players who swish jump shots in training, throw bricks at the buzzer, because the adrenalin rushing through their body essentially makes them malfunction.
Allen Iverson famously derided practice, but for most people practice makes all the difference. It’s impossible to completely simulate a high-pressure situation, but good practice makes certain actions and reactions automatic, which reduces errors come game time.
What does this mean for us mere mortals?
- Do what you can to create situations in which you must perform to a high standard to achieve a specific goal
- Meditate – it will help you recognise what calm feels like, and train your mind to control itself
- Detach yourself from your fears and stay focused on your goal. If you find yourself losing your cool during an argument, remember that putting your point across simply and clearly is your goal
- Don’t pay too much attention to the crowd. Whether they are for you or against you, they are usually not as calm as you should be. You can react however you want once you see the net ripple
ps: Calm doesn’t mean comatose. Don’t confuse avoidance with peace. Ostriches don’t bury their heads in the sand, and neither should we.