How emotional intelligence helps us in sport

How emotional intelligence helps us in sport

Emotional intelligence teaches us to enjoy sport for the simple practice, without trying to outdo the others, only to be ourselves and better people.

Success and surpassing in sport do not only depend on physical conditions. Indeed, having a well-trained and fit body does not guarantee to achieve certain goals every time. Some mental and emotional factors can affect the outcome in a competition. Discover in this article how emotional intelligence helps us in sport!

Emotional intelligence is, without a doubt, an ability that will help us to overcome our most unsuspected thresholds. Additional input of emotional energy at a critical moment can determine the end of a match, race, etc. The influence of the mind on physical resistance is more than proven. Learn how to improve your mind.

What is emotional intelligence?

In 1995, American psychologist Daniel Goleman published a book entitled Emotional Intelligence. Emotional intelligence is defined for the first time as the ability to feel, understand, control and change one's own feelings and those of others.

If we apply this quality of the human being to the field of sport, we can maximize our performance. By understanding our mood and their influence on the results, we will have a broader view of the sport.

Emotional intelligence in sport

1. Learn to control frustration

Sport is an activity from which we can draw great lessons for other aspects of life. In this sense, the management of frustration is a characteristic that we must develop and control.

The discouragement after a defeat, an injury, a goal that we can not reach ... Any sports frustration will be a rewarding experience.

We must confront and understand sport failure as a challenge. Do not be downcast or disappointed. Mental strength and the ability to excel are the key to success in this fight.

Feelings of anger, violence, revenge or resentment are not healthy or sporting values in our lives. So try not to feed negative feelings and express your emotions with sportiness.

2. Strengthen motivation

On the path of personal or collective progress, motivation is necessary. Having a goal helps to stay alert, to fight for a goal. The positive emotions in the effort to achieve a goal invite us to win, to improve ourselves as people.

In sports, it is advisable to record and keep a small file of our progress. In this way we can make comparisons.

Having a schematic picture of our strengths and weaknesses places us in the real world and allows us to be aware of the situation. The athlete must know his assets and always have a positive attitude. In this way, he increases his threshold of resistance to pain and is able to withstand physical and mental fatigue.

3. Maintain perseverance

Emotional intelligence in sport is also needed when being consistent. Perseverance gives us a character of tenacity for any activity of our life. We must develop patience, because the achievements are generally progressive. Everything happens if you have a firm goal and perseverance.

We must not run. Although the wind is strong and the circumstances are unfavorable, we must fight beyond the limit of our forces. Through sport, one can acquire different values ​​such as the spirit of sacrifice. Few sensations are as pleasurable as reaching a difficult goal.

4. To know how to lose

Another big challenge is to accept defeat. Understand that the goal of sport is not to win, but to practice the sport itself. It is not the arrival that counts, but the path. To lose, after so much effort, also makes us more tolerant, more humble. With a dose of defeat, the ego and self-confidence fall back to decent levels.

The world of sport is filled with people who will never go down in history. They will never get medals, but they will still be happy to have tried. In fact, it is possible that personal improvement is the best reward. Emotional intelligence in sport is therefore a driving force to overcome failures and help us recover.

5. Do not forget about empathy and sportsmanship

Empathy makes us better people. It is a human value that invites us to put ourselves in the shoes of others and better understand their situation. In this way, we learn to control this type of positive emotions and we value more the teamwork in a sport.

Thanks to our emotional intelligence and sportsmanship, we understand the moods of other athletes. Some athletes have become more famous because of how they are good team members than their results.

Human values ​​are the most important. For this reason, you must develop an emotional intelligence in sport and in life.