Our society thrives of competition. A winning mindset, a will to win, and winning work are all part and parcel to Championships and Champions, whether we are talking about sports, fitness, business, and every other venture in life. At the Orange County Fitness Playground, we want to open the discussion on winning, winners, and what it takes to win. Is it good? Is it bad? What makes a winner tick? How do you develop a winning attitude? The questions are endless.
First off, I would just like to say that I am no expert on winning. I am a student of successful people and continue to learn everyday. I created this article in hopes that it would become a discussion. Below are some of my thoughts and some quotes from from winners. I hope you enjoy them and look forward to hearing your thoughts in the comment section below.
What does it take to win?
Skill – Whether you are an athlete or a business owner, you must develop a basic set of skills. An understanding of the marketplace, a mastery of a certain skill set or other skills that allow you to perform better than the competition. This may seem basic, but it may take years of consistent effort to develop this skill set. Once you start, never quit.
“A quitter never wins and a winner never quits”
Napoleon Hill
Talent – Everyone is different and has unique gifts that allow them to perform well at different tasks, sports or jobs. Learning your strengths can help you learn your needed skills more efficiently.
“A winner is someone who recognizes his God-given talents, works his tail off to develop them into skills, and uses these skills to accomplish his goals.”
Larry Bird
Passion – I truly believe that you must love what you do if you want to compete at a high level. There must be a deep seeded passion for winning at your chosen venture. Without it, you will get sidetracked or thrown off course too easily.
“Winning is not a sometime thing, it’s an all time thing. You don’t win once in a while, you don’t do things right once in a while, you do them right all the time. Winning is habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.”
Vince Lombardi
Consistency – Experts say that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to become an expert on a subject. Developing a consistent work habit will allow you to gather information, practice, compete and continuously improve. Consistency over time will create momentum, which can make the journey quicker and more powerful.
“Winning isn’t everything, but the will to win is everything.”
Vince Lombardi
Will – Your journey will never go as planned. There will always be challenges and set backs. This is not negative, but can be discouraging. Having the will to fight thru challenges will separate you from 99% of your competition. This is sometimes easier said than done, but critical for your success in any venture.
Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships.”
Michael Jordan
Support – I don’t believe in self made men. People are strong, but a team of people is always stronger. Having the support of a good team is vital for creating major success. Think about all the people that have helped you over the years. It may be as simple as an introduction or as intense as personally coaching you through an area of your life. Be thankful for those who have helped you along the way. You wouldn’t be where you are without them.
I asked about 20 pro mma fighters, who train at the gym, what they thought created a win. Here are their thoughts:
“Train and fight harder longer. Be able to take yourself far out of your comfort zone and still perform”
Ian McCall – WEC veteran and #1 125lb fighter in the world
“Mental toughness, dedication, determination, work ethic, skill and contempt”
Mike “Joker” Guymon – UFC veteran
“A belief that, no matter what happens, you will come out on top. You have to brainwash yourself by constantly telling yourself that no matter how much better someone is at something than you, that you are better at winning than them. I beat plenty of guys that are better in every aspect of the sport than me, but I convinced myself that I’m better at winning. Trick yourself into believing that you can’t be beat.”
Shannon Slack – Olympic Wrestler and Pro MMA fighter
“A supporting team, with good consistent partners. Working with better talent.”
Bao Quach – Pro MMA fighter
“A lot of heart. 100% confidence in yourself that you will win. Obviously skills and CARDIO because you can’t use your skills if you’re gassed out”
Brent Cooper – Pro MMA fighter
What do you think?
What separates people that are victorious from the people that watch from the sidelines?
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I love this article…sooo motivating!
Doing what others won't today so that you achieve what others won't tomorrow!
That's an excellent article. Every day/week/month I'm zeroing in on what I'm passionate about and that alone has helped me improve my winning!
Love it! I think to be successful you must love the journey. Because if you love something, you are willing to do whatever it takes to be great at it!
I like what it said about talent,
“Learning your strengths can help you learn your needed skills more efficiently.”
I think something that separates victors from side-liners is their will and desire to tap into their “God-given” talents and their eagerness to work at perfecting them by developing specific skills.
I like what it said about talent,
“Learning your strengths can help you learn your needed skills more efficiently.”.
I think something that separates victors from side-liners is their will and desire to tap into their “God-given” talents and their eagerness to work at perfecting them by developing specific skills.
Determination is what keeps a person going forward despite any pitfalls, or detours. A person must be able to continue to chase what they desire. Having determination also allows a person to look for hidden opportunities.
I really like what was said about Passion. It is so true! If you have a passion for something it becomes apart of you and it will help improve and propel you to the top.
I really like what was said about Passion. It is so true! If you have a passion for something it becomes apart of you and it will help improve and propel you to the top.
I agree with the quote "a quitter never wins and a winner never quits" I also agree with Brent Cooper “A lot of heart. 100% confidence in yourself that you will win" If you do not believe in yourself or have the confidence in yourself you have already defeated yourself.
To me its all about action and mental toughness to push through tough times. Yes cardio and strength are essential to any champion or winner, but how do you think they got there without taking action and working through physical and mental road blocks?
Everything stated is definitely needed to become a winner. However, I agree with Devin and believe that one of the most important thing stated that separates a lot and most winners is ‘Learning your strengths can help you learn your needed skills more efficiently.” Instead of working on themselves, comparisons between self and other people are constantly thrown around and it is a waste of time. With strengthening skills and diligence, which I believe sums up some of the words together, winners can be made.
Michael Jordan’s quote, “Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins world championships” stands out to me. There is a difference between working hard and smart. Although one may work as hard as possible, it may not yield the best results because he or she is not working efficiently. For example, IR focuses on efficient progressions rather than all out chaos every session which ultimately leads to enhanced performance and recovery.
Dedication. Being consistent and showing the effort will make you into a winner. Not just only in competitions but in everything you do. Winning is a lifestyle.
Absolutely agree with all the above quotes, and one in particular got me thinking about a demonstration from a TED Talk I have seen more than a few times. 10,000 to become an expert at something, but how long to become proficient in the basics? I will post a link shortly, however the takeaway from the presenters research was this. The biggest obstacle that stands between people and learning a new skill is the fear of failure. Fear of looking and/or feeling stupid. When you first try to learn something new, whether it is the drums, or learning to speak another language, the learning curve is actually far more forgiving than you might think.
Long story short, the presenter provided evidence that any skill can be acquired given proper, systematic planning, within 20 hours of dedicated practice. At the end of his seminar, he pulled out a banjo, performing a medley of popular songs from the last several decades for about two minutes. After his finale, he announced that he just completed his 20th hour of practice on the banjo.
The takeaway being this. Tackle the basics first with forethought and careful planning, and do not allow the enormity of the task at hand to overwhelm you and insight procrastination. Then, with as little as 45 minutes of dedicated practice a day, within a month, you will have acquired the fundamentals behind any skill set out there. And in doing so, you will have overcome the biggest challenge to change that we as humans experience, fear of feeling like a failure or a fool.
Here is the link, highly recommended!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MgBikgcWnY
This is great!! I once heard a quote from a story “you have to want success/winning as much as you want air when you are drowning” I think that’s what you need to instill in your brain.
Besides the physical, I think it takes heart to win. I used to play high-level hockey and we would win and lose. However, we would play the same teams and some teams we just couldn’t beat. All it takes it just to catch that team on a bad day and us on a good day, and we’d get the win. But we wanted it more than they did on that day. They had beaten us over and over, and we had lost over and over, so having to swallow that was hard. So, at the end of the day, its not impossible to beat a team (or individual), you just have to tell yourself you’re better, and show that you have that heart to be there competing with the best.
I think support may be one of the underlying factors that some people don’t have or either choose not to because they want to be “self made men”. This method is extremely rare and highly improbable. The best method for success has been underlined above and all the qualities listed work perfectly together and create a fool proof formula. All one has to do is just commit to embodying all of these ideas.
Winners have a drive, a valiant effort that takes them beyond their competitors. They have learned their skills and use their talent to advance them. As an athlete, I have learned that one needs to have passion to win, they need to have a will that will never give up, that will try until they physically cannot. What an inspirational article!
What does it take to win. I have been playing for years and not won anything.
I agree wholeheartedly with this article about what it takes to not just be a winner but to be successful in any endeavor a person wishes to accomplish. I am a big believer in passion and working on specific skills in the right timing as a way toward success.
I believe it takes courage and belief in yourself. Obviously training in your craft, knowing you put in 110% effort, and thats what will give you the confidence. But I think it takes the courage to go for it initially. Courage to begin the process.
I love this article! It is so true that mindset dictates anything. Whether it be winning an mma match of winning by way of losing those 10 pounds. It takes a belief in yourself. You must put in in your head that you will accomplish a certain goal. The only thing that stands in between your point A to point B is the work you KNOW it takes to get there. Be diligent and hungry and you can do ANYTHING you put your mind to.
I agree with this article! It’s applicable in different areas of life. To win or achieve your goals, it truly takes passion, consistency, Will and support and all this is a mindset!
Awesome article! Gives you the blueprint to win, not just in the ring but also in life! Skill at whatever you do, Talent in what you do , a passion for what you do, consistency, the will to win, and support from those around you!
I like that you included support. Utilizing the support of those around you isn’t weakness, it’s about creating a positive environment that propels you to success! Because the reverse is equally true; a lack of support or a negative environment will undoubtedly distract you and prevent you from maximizing your victory.
To victory!
I’m a firm believer in working hard to achieve goals (in a strategic, efficient manner, of course). While we can’t really control our natural gifts and talents, we can control the effort we put into our endeavors. I love the quote:
“Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”
Great article with sound advice from professionals who are constantly putting these values to the test. Being disciplined and adhering to these values will help keep you on track especially when obstacles occur.
There are so many factors that go into winning, not only in fitness but in life. Everything has to line up and you must be confident in all aspects (skill, talent, passion, consistency, will and support). Very eye opening article to look at what it really takes!
I learned a lot from this article! Especially “will”, and remembering that getting though the setbacks and challenging moments is necessary to overcoming them!