It’s been a great run of big sporting events recently. The NBA Finals just finished with the Golden State Warriors winning their fourth World Championship in eight years, the Stanley Cup Playoffs are in full swing between the Colorado Avalanche and the Tampa Bay Lightning, the College World Series kicked off in Omaha this past week and the USGA just hosted a very exciting US Open outside of Boston at The Country Club.
As awesome as the play has been on the court, rink, field, and course, there have been plenty of big misses along the way. Two-time league MVP Steph Curry failed to hit a 3-point shot in Game 5 of the NBA Finals for the first time in 233 games. Great hockey players miss passes and shots and the best goalies in the game have missed some big shots to allow goals. The final 8 teams alive for the college baseball championship make a few errors before the national champion is crowned. Some of the best golfers in the world missed fairways, greens, and many putts at the US Open this week in Brookline.
Yes, in spite of the mistakes, miscalculations, and missed opportunities, someone still found a way to win. It’s easy for the teams and competitors that lost to look at miscues and wonder “what it” but even the winners probably have some turnovers or missed assignments they might regret. They could have some bad swings, errant throws, or base running mix-ups they’d like to have back. No doubt, some of the best golfers in the world have some misplayed shots or misread putts they’d like to take a mulligan.
Steph Curry and his Golden State Warrior teammates missed a lot of shots over the course of the playoffs but they are still World Champions.
Whoever wins the Stanley Cup will quickly forget about their missed shots and start finding ways to embellish the good parts of the season and playoffs.
The players, coaches, and fan bases of the winning College World Series champ will not remember the struggles or bad plays. They will recount the hits, home runs, and high-five-inducing plays in the field that helped secure the title.
And newly crowned US Open Champion Matt Fitzpatrick won’t be talking about the fairways, greens, and putts he missed. He’ll be reflecting on the long 70′ putt on #15 that he made to grab a two-stroke lead or the amazing bunker shot he hit on the 72nd hole to give him a chance to secure his first major victory on the PGA Tour.
This week has been a great reminder that you’re probably gonna have to miss a few in order to have a make that means anything.
Take some chances. Start some new conversations. Put yourself in some vulnerable positions where the best outcome could get you closer to your goals or expectations. Seek opportunities to build relationships, solve problems, and have fun.
Sure, you might miss…but when you connect and achieve what you wanted, it’s gonna be pretty awesome.
Heck, it might even be something that people will talk about for years to come.