Athletes know this more than anyone …
When it's time to battle, you don't just show up. You show up prepared to win.
No matter what the goal or the prize, preparation is absolutely critical to your success.
But that doesn’t mean just more training or more practice. Preparation is also a mindset. It means having the mental preparedness to know what you're up against (and how to overcome it). It means being able to adapt to different situations and have the confidence to succeed, every time.
NOT PREPARING IS PREPARING TO FAIL
Think about that for a second…
A lack of preparation isn't an accident. It's a choice.
If you aren't focused on upping your game, sizing up your competition or figuring out what you need to win, then you're setting yourself up for failure. You're making a decision to lose.
All of the negative habits that hold us back are rooted in a failure to prepare: procrastination, excuses, laziness. It's a vicious cycle that repeats itself and makes us put off preparation even more.
On the flipside, when you truly prepare and commit yourself to winning – in mind and body – you gain control over your fate. You build self-discipline. You become more focused and resilient. You persevere.
THE OPPORTUNITY IS NOW
So, what does preparation actually look like?
Consider the current situation we're all facing with the global pandemic. Times are challenging, but this is also a giant opportunity for all of us right now to prepare for when the pandemic subsides.
This isn't the time to be passively sitting back. It's time to be actively planning the next steps. So no matter where you're at now or how hard things are, you'll hit the ground running when it's go-time.
Finally, consider this: one of the biggest news stories from this month was that breaking has been officially added to the Olympic Games. This is huge – and it will bring a massive new global spotlight to the world of breaking and raise the stakes for everyone involved.
16 b-boys and 16 b-girls will compete in one-on-one battles. The Games are nearly 4 years away, but you can bet that not one dancer is sitting back and taking this for granted right now. They're preparing harder than ever.