After but Not Before

This super brief post is more for those of you who are new to competition.
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It’s tempting to think that your first competition is a learning experience where winning or losing doesn’t matter.
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It might not be your first competition. Instead, it might be your 50th competition.
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Either way, this attitude is quite tricky.
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Because it is not such a bad perspective to have as far as your whole learning journey is concerned.
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But you have to learn to push that thought aside before your competition.
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If you decide to compete, then practice going in the mat space with the attitude of a champion.
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If you even entertain the possibility of you losing, then you are already behind.
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So, push that thought aside, too.
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You can (and should) reflect on your match/es and see them as your precious learning experiences AFTER you competed. But not BEFORE.
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If you decide to compete, go there to win.
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I will write more about how you could practice and prepare for your upcoming competition in my next post.