Success is black and white in the world of sport. It’s easy to measure with statistics, you either win or you lose. An athlete’s day job is constantly on public display and is open to debate among fans and media alike.
This scrutiny can lead many athletes to believe their job defines who they are as a person. Their life rides the emotional rollercoaster that is their sporting results. Every thought is geared towards their performance especially in their downtime away from training and competing. Their minds tick over and over because they have nothing else to focus on, sport is No.1 and nothing else matters.
This is a very dangerous mindset which can lead to burnout, poor results and early retirement.
Athletes need to learn to separate the athlete from the person. The best way to do this is to find outside interests and passions they can focus on away from their sport. This can be anything from part time study, to learning a new language. Essentially what I’m talking about is achieving life balance. It’s no surprise that athletes struggle with self identity when they retire. Suddenly their super sports hero status is no longer and they feel lost.
Having worked with elite athletes I appreciate the critical need for this life balance in their careers. Encourage your athletes to chase outside interests, not only will they grow as a person and perform better but they will walk into retirement confident having separated the athlete from the person long ago.
[...] yet, every athlete should have life balance waaaay before they suffer a stint on the sidelines. Share this [...]