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Why suffering setbacks could make you more successful - BBC
The trauma of losing could actually do you more good than harm
In 2008 Annie Vernon rowed for Great Britain in the quad sculls at the Beijing Olympics. At 25, she was the youngest member of an experienced group that was set on becoming the first women’s rowing team to win Olympic gold. In a close finish, they were beaten to first place by the Chinese. Vernon was devastated, and remains mentally scarred by the loss. In an interview to promote her book on the psychology of elite sport, Mind Games, she called it “the defining feature of my career”.
For those of us who are not elite athletes, it is hard to understand quite how punishing the experience of a ‘near miss’ can be. Reaching the very top level of performance requires an immense mental effort, and when you care that much about winning, losing feels like cruel punishment.
But top athletes – and, it turns out, many others – have a way of turning pain into rocket fuel. The defeat becomes a reason to push themselves even further the next time.
The trauma of losing could actually do you more good than harm
In 2008 Annie Vernon rowed for Great Britain in the quad sculls at the Beijing Olympics. At 25, she was the youngest member of an experienced group that was set on becoming the first women’s rowing team to win Olympic gold. In a close finish, they were beaten to first place by the Chinese. Vernon was devastated, and remains mentally scarred by the loss. In an interview to promote her book on the psychology of elite sport, Mind Games, she called it “the defining feature of my career”.
For those of us who are not elite athletes, it is hard to understand quite how punishing the experience of a ‘near miss’ can be. Reaching the very top level of performance requires an immense mental effort, and when you care that much about winning, losing feels like cruel punishment.
But top athletes – and, it turns out, many others – have a way of turning pain into rocket fuel. The defeat becomes a reason to push themselves even further the next time.