Remember We Do This For Fun

“I can get really nervous under pressure”

“What pressure?”

“When I compete”

“Just think of it as another workout and have fun”

Hmmm, Good Point.

That was a from a conversation I had a couple of weeks ago, and although it’s not exactly word-for-word that’s more or less what was covered and it stuck in my head.

When someone plays a sport, has a hobby or does pretty much anything their actions are driven by two different types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation originates from within and is associated with personal enjoyment or feelings of fulfillment (e.g. running because you love being outside and it makes you happy); whereas extrinsic motivation is derived from external sources and is associated with a reward (e.g. running a race to win prizes or money) and people are typically motivated by a combination of the two. However, while both extrinsic and intrinsic factors are super important, if you to want stick with something and avoid burnout I believe it is the intrinsic factors that really matter.

ON BEING COMPETITIVE

So Here’s the Thing

I am a very competitive person and I can get competitive with pretty much anyone or anything (friends, family members, inanimate objects), but the person I get most competitive with is myself. I want to excel at (almost) everything but even when I do a part of me always thinks I could have done just a little bit better. Now I like to compete for a number of reasons…. its fun, it makes me push my comfort zone and I feel super alive (intrinsic) but I admit I also really like ‘title’ or ‘recognition’ that comes along with winning (extrinsic). If I don’t win that doesn’t mean I didn’t have fun along the way or step outside my comfort zone (although the disappointment of losing sometimes makes me forget that I did) but if I’m not having fun anymore not only is ‘the win’ less likely to happen but it’s not as satisfying if it does.

Competition (official or me deciding to compete against someone often without their knowledge) motivates me to keep going when I want to give up because it gives me something (or someone) to chase. When I have a goal I push myself to try things that scare me…

Check out the full post on Coach Taryn’s blog: Go Hard Get Strong