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"ARE DIAMONDS A PLAYER'S BEST FRIEND?"

Dr. Lorne Sawula

GBR Women's Team

How stable are you under pressure?

What kinds of pressures are you currently dealing with?

All of us are feeling the weight of volleyball pressures. The favorite cultural word for this is "stress". Often pressure or stress is really a fear. We are afraid of the negative or perceived negative consequences that may happen if we fail at something. However, for many athletes stress is really a lump of coal that needs shaping and refinement.

So how do top athletes deal with stress? Here are a few things they all do:

1. Athletes believe strongly that they are lucky and that things always work out for them in the end. Basically they are learned optimists and will often say that even the worst result will have some kind of silver lining. This doesn't mean that they are satisfied with their own performance or the team's result when they play badly.
2. They keep things in context. While being concerned about the issue causing the pressure/stress, they keep in mind all the good things that are happening as well. MOST REALIZE THAT STRESS IS THEIR OWN PERCEPTION OF A SITUATION AND IT MIGHT NOT BE THE SAME FOR EVERYONE ELSE.
3. They ask empowering questions like: How can this be bad or good for me? What am I learning here? How can I better deal with this situation? Will this be a major issue months from now? So if it is important, then how can I deal with it? These types of questions help you move from focusing on the problem, to focusing on solutions. THERE ARE NO PROBLEMS, THERE ARE ONLY SOLUTIONS!
4. Top athletes often write down the pressures/stresses and create a written plan of how to deal with them. Often, just the act of writing them down, reduces the feeling of pressure and stress. Another solution is to talk about it with a close friend, companion, coach, etc. THEY DON'T TRY TO HIDE FROM THEM OR HOPE THAT THEY WILL GO AWAY – THEY FACE THEM HEAD ON.

Last and most importantly, many top life performers look at pressure as a way of bringing out the best in themselves. Pressure is an incredible motivator, a sort of character and skill builder. Athletes use pressure to motivate themselves to play better. It is normal to be "excited" or "feel fear" before a match but top athletes use this as a motivator not as a distraction. Why because they want to 'change', to 'grow', to 'improve' and they measure this by their own self satisfaction and knowing that if they look at the process on how they develop then this will look after the final result. If I achieved my goal then how can I still get better, if I did not then 'what did I learn from all of this?' I CAN – I WILL – I DID!

Remember it is the incredible pressure of the earth's crust that turns almost worthless coal into valuable diamonds. ONE DAY, THE BEST ATHLETES ALL BELIEVE THAT THEY WILL BE THAT DIAMOND.

How well you perform, while under pressure/stress, is a defining moment for all leaders and players. It turns you into strong and valuable members of the team. These days, learning how to handle stress is what we call experience. THE CHALLENGE IS TO SHORTEN THE TIME IT TAKES TO DEVELOP EXPERIENCE AND KNOWING THAT ONE-DAY YOU WILL BE THAT 'DIAMOND' ON THE COURT!