Can perfectionism be a disorderly influence in competitions? The answer, I’m afraid, is yes.
Experienced psychologists, as presented in many academic papers, believe that perfectionism can be the bane of an athlete’s performance in competitive sport.
But here’s the paradox; perfectionism can also be a good thing for athletes and competitions. The focus is on the timing.
This article will explore the multifarious impact of perfectionism in competitive sport.
In an article contributed to a reputable sports psychology blog, Patrick Cohn, a notable sports psychologist investigated the allure of perfectionism among athletes.
It is very common to hear top athletes call themselves perfectionists and as a result of the admiration these elites athletes enjoy, lots of their admirers conclude that perfectionism has to be a good thing.
Without arguments, perfectionism can be advantageous but; it can stand in the way of great performance when it is time to compete.
Being a perfectionist during practice is considered a good thing but being a perfectionist during a competition? not really.
The problem with athletes who want to be perfect during competition is that they have a way of fixating on the things that didn’t turn out well even in the face of so many things that turned out well.
This obsession with things that didn’t turn out so well makes the athlete with a thing for perfectionism makes such an athlete edgy, nervous and difficult to play with, assuming he or she is part of a team.
The truth some athletes run away from is the fact that perfection is an impossible standard to attain.
Even though most elite athletes reference their perfectionistic tendencies as a plus in interviews, it is now clear that perfectionism is not a guaranteed way of performing better during competitions.
Athletes who are perfectionists during training are doing the right thing as it allows for the improvement of skills among other things.
In competition, an athlete only ought to be concerned about functional performance.
Functional performance allows an athlete to compete intuitively; such intuition comes from hours of dedicated practice again and athletes that understand that competitions are for functional performance as opposed to perfect performance know that mistakes are necessary evils in the sporting world.
Perfect performance means there will be no mistakes but that is an impossibility.
Athletes who understand how to perform functionally in competition don’t have unrealistic expectations of themselves; they will rather pursue manageable objectives.
Athletes with a healthy sense of self often don’t strive to be perfectionist during a competition.
As earlier said, perfectionism is more of a double-edged sword. one aspect of perfectionism is the perfectionist strivings.
This is the good part, according to psychologists, as it reflects an athlete’s hunger to set and pursue an extremely high level of performance.
The other side to perfectionistic striving is a perfectionistic concern; this is the bad side.
Perfectionistic concerns revolve around an athlete’s fear of making mistakes, fear of negative commentary attending to his or her performance, the feeling that there’s a disconnect between an athlete’s expectation and what is delivered during a competition.
According to recent studies, athletes need to view failure as a setback that is necessary for progress as opposed to viewing it as something unacceptable.
Furthermore, it was discovered that athletes with a more rigid concept of failure are likely to suffer from substandard performances during competitions.
In other words, a distinction has to be drawn between seeking and obsessively expecting perfection in competitions.
Apart from the fact that perfectionism can be self-defeating, it has many other drawbacks.
Perfectionistic tendencies have been linked to various clinical issues ranging from depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, chronic fatigue syndrome, chronic headache, and the worst of all, suicide.
In fact, some studies appear to suggest that the higher the perfectionism, the more psychological disorder the athletes are likely to suffer.
Take, for instance, Cristiano Ronaldo distinguishes perfectionism and the pursuit of excellence when he remarks that “I’m not a perfectionist but I love to feel that things are done well”.
Treating perfectionism is considered to be no small feat by a psychologist. This is because lots of perfectionists, athletes especially, don’t see anything wrong in it; they believe that being a perfectionist is beneficial while in fact, it is self-defeating.
For someone interested in Sports Betting, you must understand the impact perfectionism, as displayed by athletes, will have on your wager.
Why analyzing a prediction, look out for athletes likely to show a perfectionist tendency and factor that into your betting plans.
Sports bettors understand that athletes face immense pressure and this pressure has psychological ramifications.
Perfectionism, as displayed by athletes, is a by-product of the pressure native to competitive sports.
As a sports bettor, check into the profile of the athletes you will be betting on, look out for tendencies that can adversely affect your wagers.
It’s not always about an athlete’s physical condition; the mental condition and personality quirks of an athlete matters too.
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Closing thoughts
Ultimately, perfectionism is not the same as striving for excellence, and betting on an athlete or a team with a thing for perfectionism can be dangerous to your earnings as a sports bettor.
Keep that in mind when placing your next wager.
