Again, an amazing piece, Steve! As a runner, cyclist and adventure racer for over 25 years now, I only learned that lesson during the last 3 years. Now I enjoy having the privilege of being able to train, even if conditions are shitty. It is way cooler to be happy with your craft everyday than to place all your happiness on a win that once may or may not come.
At some point, I realized I wasn't "doing" my sport. Instead, I was *in a relationship* with my sport. That was the moment I realized that like all relationships, the vast majority of time and effort is spent at getting really, really good at the unglamorous, unsexy fundamentals...and falling in love with the act of achieving mastery at those foundational elements.
Sports. Work. Love. Parenthood. Friends. Self. Most of any relationship is, I suppose, boring but important shit, punctuated every so often by moments of utter ecstasy, terror, agony, or joy.
Love this! It connects to something we keep seeing in confidence research. Athletes who last are the ones who stayed curious! Long enough to fall in love with the process before the results showed up.
In my life of recovery and forward progress I continue to hear, read and see reminders that keeping life steady, and consistent with routines are some of the keys to success where progress, not perfection is often the end goal. Great share Steve.
Again, an amazing piece, Steve! As a runner, cyclist and adventure racer for over 25 years now, I only learned that lesson during the last 3 years. Now I enjoy having the privilege of being able to train, even if conditions are shitty. It is way cooler to be happy with your craft everyday than to place all your happiness on a win that once may or may not come.
At some point, I realized I wasn't "doing" my sport. Instead, I was *in a relationship* with my sport. That was the moment I realized that like all relationships, the vast majority of time and effort is spent at getting really, really good at the unglamorous, unsexy fundamentals...and falling in love with the act of achieving mastery at those foundational elements.
Sports. Work. Love. Parenthood. Friends. Self. Most of any relationship is, I suppose, boring but important shit, punctuated every so often by moments of utter ecstasy, terror, agony, or joy.
And all of it is necessary and all of it matters.
We need to love boredom to get good at it and everyone finds out the hard way.
Love this! It connects to something we keep seeing in confidence research. Athletes who last are the ones who stayed curious! Long enough to fall in love with the process before the results showed up.
I love this! …and now I’m wondering if Ted Lasso also reads Steve’s substack!
Ted? Are you there?
In baseball we talk about being able to accept and overcome the “boredom of repetition.”
This article puts a whole new spin on
“Boredom.”
The Elite players meet the standards as described in the article- Thank You!!
Bruce Lee distilled it well: I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.
Dope article!
Excellent!
In my life of recovery and forward progress I continue to hear, read and see reminders that keeping life steady, and consistent with routines are some of the keys to success where progress, not perfection is often the end goal. Great share Steve.
Can the pursuit of excellence through mundane repetition be applied to the study of mathematics?