I was lucky enough to be in London for the Olympics, and what a great success it was. Aside from the great athletes – the excitement, the glory, the tears – the one thing that has stood out above everything was the people.
Over the two weeks, Londoners, visitors, the UK as a whole and people watching all over the world united. People didn’t just cheer for their own country in selective events, but instead enjoyed cheering all the athletes, whether they come first, second or last.
The energy was incredible, and resonated throughout the world.
It had been such a long time since I’d seen people from my home country living so presently, and instead of worrying about what might happen if the economy dips further, really enjoying every throw, jump, dive, row, swim and run.
Everyone shook off living in fear and chose to live in the now.
Another reoccurring theme was the athletes speaking of their success. Many stated that a big part of their success was honing the ability to remain fully undistracted at the penultimate moment of competition; the training isn’t just about developing an ultra-fit body, but also about developing control over the mind.
I noticed that many athletes use body (head, eye, hand, foot) movements to centre the mind, block out noise, calm thoughts and emotions and ignore the distraction tactics of the competition. It’s almost real-time meditation.
So what can we take from the games going forward?
Well, being really present to enjoy the games in its every unfolding moment brought great happiness to all involved. If we carry this approach over into our lives going forward, it will naturally result in increased happiness and fulfilment. We will enjoy this moment more and worry less about the ones that haven’t happened yet.
If we take on the focus and dedication of the athletes, the world becomes our oyster. Learning to centre the mind to cultivate heightened focus, clarity and awareness has huge knock-on benefits in terms of newfound opportunity, health and wellbeing, positive relationship building and generally enjoying life.
I am in no doubt that the large majority of athletes use meditation, positive visualization, affirmations and law of attraction techniques to hone a winning mind-set. And you can do this too through mindfulness meditation.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Yes something that is often overlooked when we talk about sporting performance is the importance of the role of the mind. Hypnosis can really help sporting performance. It can help with training, with muscle memory, mental attitude, visualization, concentration and promote feelings of confidence and endurance.
Nice post, thank you.
During that fabulous opening ceremony, as each country entered the stadium, and then the torch, I’m wondering, worrying to myself, ‘where’s the cauldron, where are they hiding it?’
And I can feel my anxiety increasing. Worrying about where it is, what inventive way would they find to light it? Would it match previous Olympic Games Opening Ceremonies?
Anxiety had been the theme of the buildup to the games: worries about security, rain, transport problems, would we play the right national anthems, or show the right flags (as we’d failed to do for North Korea, in the football a couple of nights before!)
And all the time, as the ceremony draws to its conclusion, unbeknown to all but a few, the cauldron is gradually appearing, the Olympic spirit, made up of these 200 or more petals, these rings of ‘dandelion seeds’ that would rise up and form a cauldron.
If you check out the videos online of that beautiful moment, you can hear the sounds of awe and wonder as the cauldron forms.
Watching on TV, that was the moment that the anxiety dissipated.
We were in the moment.
I think that moment allowed all of us to watch the games in a non-judgmental way. Accepting it for what it was, a coming together of people from around the world to celebrate something bigger.
wow, such an amazing description, thank you for that. It really was a great coming together, and I’m so happy none of the security fears materialised and everyone could just enjoy watching wonderful athletes from all corners of the globe. I will get onto YouTube and watch those videos. Thanks again.
Excellent comparison! Would have loved to be there… Lucky you! Jenny