Last weekend, as I watched the finish of the 2020 Women’s Olympic Marathon in Tokyo, Japan, I took out my camera to record the interview with Molly Seidel, who won the bronze medal, becoming only the third woman in U.S. history to medal in the event.
“Oh my God, I can’t believe it,” Molly said after the race. “Just getting here was already a dream come true. And to be able to come out today against a field like this and to be able to come away with a medal, a bronze, for the U.S., uh, I’m in shock. I’m in disbelief right now.”
I sent the video clip I shot to Jack, a client, with the following line: “See what I mean? Here’s even more proof you don’t need to believe you can do something in advance to make it happen. Picture the goal. Picture it daily. Picture it with enthusiasm. Picture it BIG. Then get to work. And after you walk through your goal, the reality is you still might not truly believe that you did it, even though you know you did. Achieving a goal can be a surreal experience.”
Jack replied: “So even at the Olympic level, athletes don’t fully believe in themselves.”
“Correct. At every level this is the truth you’re not being told. Athletes battle fear, worry, self-doubt and the doldrums that often accompany defeat.”
“So the idea of an athlete entering the ring without any fear whatsoever…”
“Is pure bunk,” I interjected. “30 minutes before I stepped out on the mat in the world championships, I was more than just a wee bit nervous. But then I calmed my emotions and cleared my mind. I gave myself a blank slate, so I could go out there and perform without unnecessary tension.”
“Did you believe it after you won?”
“I believed that one – but other victories still astound me. The thing they all have in common is picturing a result and then going after it without thinking too much about it. Picture and go.”
“What you’re telling me reminds me of the long jumper in the Olympics,” Jack mentioned. “I think it was the 1968 Olympics.”
“Yes, you’re talking about Bob Beamon. He leaped so far in his first attempt that he broke the Olympic record by 55 centimeters. And get this, he physically collapsed after the feat, not from exhaustion, but out of disbelief. He couldn’t believe he did what he did. So Beamon didn’t leap as far as he did because he believed he would. It’s the same as the little ole lady who lifts the car off her loved one. She doesn’t lift the car due to her belief, but due to her mental imagery and the adrenal surge the mental image created.”
“So I don’t need to spend all my time trying to override my existing limiting beliefs?”
“Correct. Picturing what you want is the key. And last time I checked, you don’t need to believe in order to picture.”
Here endeth the lesson.
Matt Furey
