IND Vs SA: It's Hard to reach on Top & even Harder to Maintain it. |

The recent match between India & SA left all cricket fans community in dismay as the latter couldn’t do justice to their image & the expectations of fans. Here the matter of concern was the not the poor performance of SA but the disappearance of the spirit of SA players, the hunger to win.

The SA team was considered as one of the best teams in the world at a point of time. But the decline in the standards of their game is enough to beep the panic button of their team management. Now the question arises are they living upto their name of “Chokers” that was given to them when they made it a habit to get defeated in really important matches. On the contrary, the Indian Team did well without any difficulty.

The point of making Proteas’s exit as a theme for this piece of writing is totally related to us. It is human tendency to succumb to pressure. But there are two kinds of pressure that an individual suffers. First one is the pressure to achieve a certain goal. It could be societal, family presssure, peer pressure or self-generated pressure. Whereas the second type, is the pressure that comes with great responsibility, when you are already successful. It is an extremely lethal kind of pressure. Choking, it is, therefore called. This situation arises when you tend to overthink about the path rather than walking on it. Overthinking leads to stress & this stress is an enemy of your productivity. The same thinking happened to South Africa in that match. Neil Mckenjie was seen with a score-chart kind of thing on camera, that day.

What does this imply? Simple. South Africans were overthinking about the score rather than concentrating on free play. That could be easily termed as ‘paralysis by analysis’ after seeing their performance. This whole scenario could become a case study for many B-schools. So, the point to make here is not to overthink but to walk the journey with a jovial attitude. Another important aspect of this study appears when responsibility comes into picture. We are quite aware that not all shoulders are capable enough to bear the burden of responsibility. But what is it that makes these shoulders strong enough to handle even worst of the worst situations. Are these people God-gifted or they inculcate these attributes in them with time. So, the answer that comes out is that these people have a mechanism that bypass the pressure & focus. The leaders who reach the top and maintain their supremacy have a flavour of composure in them that help them to surpass difficulties with ease. This type of change in behaviour takes time, humility, and a willingness to confront weaknesses, fears, and blind spots that many of us would rather ignore.

Friends, always remember that when you are nothing, the expectations are less but when you reach the summit, the burden of expectations surge. Then comes the time where there is no room for mistakes. That is the time when the real test of the person’s abilities starts. You need to show your true prowess when you are at the top as leaders are the ones who make & inspire future leaders that’s hidden inside all of us. Also, self improvement is the key to continuously evolve as a successful human.

As in the words of author, Catherine Pulsifier, ” One of the best lessons you can learn in life is to master how to remain calm.” This holds true for each one of us. So, friends, try to be a better human being by evolving yourself day by day. Work on yourself, everything else is secondary.