3 Inspiring Lessons the 2024 Gymnasts Taught Me About Chasing Dreams
Happy First Of The Month
If you know me, you know sports really aren’t my thing. However, it was a treat to watch the 2024 Olympics in Paris a few moths ago. I still find myself researching interviews from the different athletes. I tried to watch most of the sports, but I found myself honed in on the gymnastics portion. I felt like it had me on the edge of my seat. I’m a Simone Biles fan, so I was excited to see her return and rooting for her every step of the way. I know the olympics were two months ago, but I’m still in awe at the talent the olympians showcased. The amount of time, energy and dedication that each athlete has to commit to make it to the olympics amazes me. Watching the Olympics inspired me to reach for the stars. Today, I want to share with you, three lessons that the gymnastics portion of the Olympics taught me. These lessons honestly stretch beyond the gymnastics portion, but I had the epiphany while watching that section.
- Healthy Competition Is Good
I always tell you that you’re your biggest competition, but it is good to have healthy competition with others as well. The key word here is HEALTHY! Healthy competition helps you reach your goals and brings out the best in you. While watching the Olympics, we could see Simone Biles being on her toes when she was watching Rebecca Andrade, (another gymnast.) I even watched a interview where Simone said that because she realized she was competing against Rebecca, she had to put her best foot forward. It’s something about having competition that forces you to go a little harder. Competition switches to unhealthy when you focus on the other person, rather than how to improve. I’m not telling you to be obsessive and compare yourself to others, but I’m saying to have a little competitive nature about yourself because it’ll take you far. Healthy competition comes when you have a growth mindset rather than a comparison mindset.
2. People Are Going To Talk
This isn’t just true for the Olympics, this is true for every sport. There are always going to be spectators; They cheer very loud for you when you win, but when things are tough, they talk the most about you. Simone’s career is a good example of this. People talk so much about her personal life, people spectate her every move. From who she married, to why she pulled out of the 2020 Olympics, the media always comments on Simone’s moves. If you search Simone Biles on Google or social media, you will see thousands of opinions about her. Simone is really good at ignoring the critics, because she rarely, if ever, responds to the negativity. The reality is people are going to talk, whether you’re doing good or bad, so you might as well give them something to talk about. No matter what anyone says, that fact remains the same; Simone biles is the greatest athlete of all time and the most decorated gymnast in history. The same is true for LeBron James, he is an incredible basketball player, but he is always criticized and compared to other people, when he should just be in a lane on his own. The point is, you can’t care about what people say. You have to know who you are, and what you can do. I’m not saying don’t accept the praises and compliments that come your way. I’m simply saying, don’t need them, because people won’t always cheer for you. Everyone has an opinion, when you’re on the road to greatness, you have to block out the noise and focus.
3. Resilience Is Key
When you look at the Gymnast Olympic podium, you’d see Simone Biles, Rebecca Andrade and Suni Lee. All three of them are women of color, which is just so inspiring for the next generation. Another thing that is key with this lineup is that all three of them have stories of resilience. Simone dropped out of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and had to leave due to mental health. Everybody was upset and talked so negativity about her for putting her mental first. For her to have this comeback story, is so inspiring and just attests to what’s meant for you will be yours. Rebecca tore her ACL three times in the last four years, coming back from that thru recovery and being able to flip the way she did was nothing but God. Suni Lee battled with kidney disease and fought her way back. No matter what sport, career path, or story, the greatest ones have a story of resilience. I know you may think that you are in the fight of your life, but on the other side of that, build up a resilience that will be a part of your story. The reality is, uncertainty is the only constant thing in life. You could plan all you want, and life will throw you something unexpectedly. Resilience is bouncing back despite the circumstances. You can look at your shortcomings or curveballs as obstacles or roadblocks. The choice is yours. You can’t become successful at anything without resilience.
Here’s the thing, chasing your dreams won’t always be easy, but the reward will be worth it. Despite what you may think, it’s still time for you to reach whatever dreams God placed on the inside of you. My paster preached last Thursday about finishing what you started. He said, “We’ve become a society of being serial starters, but never finishing. We’ve normalized incompletion.” He also shared what gives us the discipline to finish, the plan given by God. Don’t loose sight of Gods plan. It doesn’t matter what distractions or roadblocks may have slowed you down, you can still make your dreams a reality. You can and will win and reach whatever goal you placed, as long as you don’t quit. We still have eight weeks left in 2024, that’s 62 days. You have more than enough time to start or get back to it. You won’t reach your dreams by staying still, you have to chase them. You have to do all that you can, and let God do the rest.
