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“There is no doubt in a successful athlete’s mind. They say, ‘My training has been great. My coaching has been great. I expect to succeed.’ There is an assumption of success.”
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Watch the game winning shot. NOTE: The play call was not for Jenkins but actually the teammate who passed him the ball; this is a lesson in a team-first mindset, having trust in others and being able to be flexible and change in the moment
Watch the postgame interview. Jenkins. believes every shot he takes is going in. Arrogance or confidence? Consider this: why would he take a shot that he didn't think was going to go in and, in the process, hurt his team?
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The secret ingredient
While Jenkins’s response may seem surprising and possibly even arrogant, it isn’t to successful athletes and businessmen and businesswomen. Jenkins thinks all of his shots are going in. Otherwise, why would he take them? This mindset exemplifies what may be the single most important factor in determining a person’s success in athletics or their career: Self-confidence. “Confidence comes from what you’ve already done well,” says Bill Cole, a sports psychologist who has worked with thousands of clients over the past 30 years including Olympic athletes, college athletes and even professional fighters. “There is no doubt in a successful athlete’s mind. They say, ‘My training has been great. My coaching has been great. I expect to succeed.’ There is an assumption of success.” This mindset is not limited to sports. Cole has provided his services to hundreds of business executives as well. “Successful business leaders have a vision of what success looks like,” says Cole. “They set goals. They believe in themselves.” Cole noted that just like athletes, successful executives practice constantly, leverage performance data, and create what Cole calls “success memories” to build confidence. “Suits. Uniforms. It’s irrelevant,” he says. “Performance is performance.” Failure is an option In addition to having the “shoot-to-make mindset,” successful athletes have also learned to be comfortable with failure. Michael Jordan, Derek Jeter, Martina Navratilova, and countless other prominent sports figures have commented on how failing was an integral part of their success. Jenkins had the same perspective. “Even if it didn’t go in we would have just focused on the task at hand and got ready for overtime,” Jenkins said after his last-second game winner. “You go back, learn and reset.” “I don’t think you can have success until you have failure,” said Young. He emphasizes that it is critical to focus on team culture because without it there will be very little risk-taking. “Players can be driven by failure before,” Young said. “Without it there would be a lack of drive. Of passion.” A matter of trust Young noted that trust – coach to player, player to player, and even coach to coach – is one of the cornerstones of the Northeastern men’s basketball program’s success. “We bring our players in over Summer 2,” he says, referring to the second half of Northeastern's summer semester. “We bond and build chemistry. One year we did a military style boot camp. But it could be a barbeque at the coach’s house or bowling. It doesn’t really matter. It’s all about building trust.” Young explained how trust leads to confidence, confidence leads to risk-taking and risk-taking leads to being willing to take that big shot. While shooting a three-pointer in front of 74,000 screaming fans and 18 million more on television may seem daunting, Jenkins never viewed it that way. “You work and practice to perform at the highest level,” said Jenkins. “You have built trust with your coaches and teammates. You just have to be ready for the moment.” When asked what he was thinking when the ball left his hands, Jenkins didn’t hesitate. “Ballgame.” |
Copyright 2020 Rich Trombetta All Rights Reserved