Ego y deporte

OLLABORATING Good Team Players Leave Their Ego at the Door Paddy Upton Have you met anyone who has in equal parts talent, confidence, and humility? Sachin Tendulkar, former captain of the Indian cricket team and one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket, is one such example and has plenty of all three. It’s a fairly rare combination in sport. It’s uncommon, however, that humility is in balance with talent and the confidence it sprouts. Our ego—an opposing force to humility—is constantly competing for the attention that talent attracts. Ego wants to receive praise, take the credit, and is reluctant to give much of either. The ego is as self-serving as it is cunning, charming, and deceptive. It stalks in the shadows of our personality, waiting for the opportunity to flourish in the fertile environment provided by ignorance, unconsciousness, or lack of awareness. Ego wants to receive praise, take the credit, and is reluctant to give much of either. Every one of us has an ego, and it drives us to fight for four things: To look good To not look bad To be right To not be wrong Every time we behave, dress, and speak in a way that is driven by wanting to look good in the eyes of others, it’s our ego manifesting itself. Nobody likes to look bad or be wrong. When it does happen, the ego is pricked, and its natural reaction is to defend itself or attack others, with its favorite weapons being blame, justification, and explanation. When driven by the ego, it’s our own needs and agendas that receive the highest priority. As coaches and players, it is essential to be aware of that. During my time as Mental Conditioning coach and Strategic Leadership Coach of the India cricket team between 2008 and 2011, managing the ego was one of the most important factors in nurturing the growth and performance of the Indian cricket team, players, and coaches. We often had four or five day breaks between matches at the World Cup and head coach Gary Kirsten and I were constantly looking for ways to productively engage the team. So we came up with the idea of some informal learning sessions for the group. For the first one, we asked Sachin if he would take the hot seat and allow players to ask him whatever questions they wished. In his 21st year of international cricket, we knew he would have insights that could help most of the squad members, and they were asked to come prepared with questions for him. Midway through the session, one of the players asked Sachin what the most memorable event of his career was. His answer took many by surprise. He said it happened when he was sixteen years old and soon after he had become the world’s youngest ever player to make his country’s senior national team. However, it was not this milestone that he deemed most memorable, but rather an incident that happened afterwards. When he returned from the tour to rejoin his local Mumbai teammates, one of his close friends, another sixteen-year-old, pulled him aside and asked if he could speak freely about something he and many of the teammates had noticed. “We all recognize that you’re a better cricketer, but since you’ve played for India, you’re acting like you’re a more important person than us and we don’t like that.”. He also recalled advice that his father had given him as a young boy: “He said, who I am as a person in my true nature is permanent. My results on the field are temporary—they will go up and they will go down. It is more important that I am consistent as a person. This I can control, my results I cannot. People will criticize me for poor results or praise me for good ones, and they will soon forget these when the next result comes, but they will always remember the impact I have on them as a person. This impression will last forever.” These few words from his father and a teenage friend helped shape and ground Sachin Tendulkar to the extent that he considers it one of the most significant moments of his twenty-one year-long career. One of Sachin’s greatest achievements is his ability to remain humble amidst the God-like worship that has followed him for well over two decades. When is ego a good thing? Practically speaking, ego can be a huge asset. Specifically, for an athlete on the training ground or in the gym, it’s important because ego drives them to want to be stronger, better, fitter, to practice longer, look good, beat an opponent, and enjoy the spoils of victory. Ego drives all of us to prepare better, study more, work longer hours, to do whatever is required to avoid failure and to get recognition, acknowledgment, reward, and success. But the moment an athlete crosses the ropes and the game begins, their ego goes from being an asset to being a liability. Knowing when to be energized by the ego and when not to be is just as important as being aware of the ego’s existence. Recognize when to let your ego energize you and don’t let it become a liability. When (not) to be energized by ego Just as it is important to know of ego’s existence, it is important to know when to let it energize you and when not. A great example of this is when Faf du Plessis, captain of the South African national cricket team, was playing his debut test match against Australia in November 2012. He needed to bat for nearly 8 hours and see out 125 overs. With an attacking field in place, and at 98 runs, he continued to bat for 24 consecutive deliveries without attempting to score, what could have been his debut century. The need to play out time for the team prevailed the ego’s need to achieve the personal milestone. In a world where you have to constantly prove yourself at work, especially at the start of your career, young professionals are always looking for their first quick wins. That’s when their ego can work more against them than for them. Recognize when to let your ego energize you and don’t let it become a liability.