The Beauty of Being Ugly But Effective: Embracing Your "Good Bad Days"
As entrepreneurs, it's common to strive for perfection and expect ourselves to get through each day perfectly. However, this can often lead to disappointment and a negative self-image when things don't go as planned. But what if we reframed our thinking to embrace the reality that we will never be perfect, and instead focus on being "ugly but effective" on our "good bad days"?
Former world number one golfer Jack Nicklaus once said, "being able to play badly well." In other words, accepting that you will have bad shots and embracing the constraints of reality can lead to greater trust in ourselves. As sports psychologist and founder of The Awakened Man Project, we believe that this mindset is crucial for success in both sports and life.
Former world number one golfer Ernie Els offers a practical example of this mindset in action. He always expected to have a certain number of bad shots in any given round and when he hit that inevitable bad shot, he never lost his focus. Instead, he simply acknowledged it and moved on.
As mere mortals, it's important to accept that we will make mistakes and have rough patches. Instead of falling into a self-destructive cycle and constantly worrying about what's wrong with us, we can acknowledge that we're not at our best and commit to taking the next baby step. Mistakes and mishit shots are simply no big deal.
The Awakened Man Project offers a daily coaching challenge to help entrepreneurs overcome this mindset. We ask you to think about your performance when you did not believe a good or respectable outcome was possible but you still found a way to make it happen. This is a powerful reminder that you have the ability to perform well, even on your "good bad days."
But it's not just about reframing your thinking; it's also about identifying and overcoming the habits that lead to "really bad days." We ask you to think about the stupid things you do when you're stressed, the things that you tend to gravitate toward when you can least afford to be seduced by them. By identifying these habits, you can work to overcome them and avoid turning what could have been a good bad day into a really bad day.
In conclusion, the key to embracing "good bad days" and overcoming the habits that lead to "really bad days" is to expect that we will make mistakes and have rough patches, and then acknowledge and accept them. By doing so, we can cultivate a truly intense trust in ourselves and perform well, even when things start falling apart. Join The Awakened Man Project today and start your journey to becoming an awakened man.