What would you cause more pressure, a shot to win or a shot to not lose? A great example of this is when
soccer players take penalty kicks to settle a tie. The odds of making a penalty kick are at 85%,
for professional soccer players. So there is a high expectation that the kick should be made.
Imagine taking the last penalty shot for a professional team.
Which situation would you prefer?
1-Your team is down by one, and
you have to make it to tie; if you miss, your team will lose.
2-Your team is tied, and you do
not have to make it, but if you do make it, you will win.
According to the
research of Geir Jordet and Ester Hartman, when missing the kick will cause the kicker’s team to lose,
professional kickers make on those shots only 62% of the time. But when
making the goal will result in a win, they find the net 92% of the time. It is the same kick, the same twelve yards
every time, but there is a 30% gap in the success rate. The difference between
the two kicks is the first is labeled as a threat (to not lose) and the second
is labeled as a challenge (to win). The
psychology behind the kick is huge.*
Let’s apply this
lesson to our spiritual lives. Is our mind set to not lose or to gain? Our regret
of the mistake or the chance of our success?
What should our attitude be? In Philippians 3:13-14 we read, “Brethren, I do not regard myself as having
laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and
reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the
prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus”. Paul want us not to focus
on our mistakes but keep looking forward to what lies ahead. This is an attitude
that is more likely to bring success. In Christ, the victory is already won! Instead of adopting the negative mindset fearing loss, let’s have one that
knows we win if we keep moving upward!
*Credit Matthew Modine "Musing On Spiritual Matters" for illustration
*Credit Matthew Modine "Musing On Spiritual Matters" for illustration
Comments
Post a Comment