People are self motivated in different ways. Fear of failure drives many people, but other successful people are just wired differently.
Most successful people failed along the way, they had to have optimism that they could achieve a better result or they would have stayed down.
I am a pessimist, I fear failure every time we tee the ball up. Just had my hopes dashed too many times. I want a perfect season so bad, I can taste it, and I dont have many tasting years left.
mattmd2. Failure sucs . No competitor should feel good about losing, it's a fine line we start learning in little league and on the playground. I've read biographies of champions, some are driven by fear of failure, others seem more focused on the positive. They all have one thing in common though, a drive to succeed.
Fear of failure can lead some to not take chances. Don't fear failure , fear not being good enough and prepared enough to do what needs to be done.
FYI. Larry Bird's autobiography has a one word title...''DRIVE''.
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In doing research for a book "They Psychology of Champions" a colleague and I found that many great athletes fear failure but have great confidence in their ability to take the steps (the process) necessary to succeed. The "drive" to avoid failure or the fear of failure can be counterproductive (it sets the stage for anxiety) unless there is a positive (confidence) to counterbalance it. That's a bit of a simplification but still a good way to look at it. At least we thought so.
donm. No doubt believing in yourself is essential. Clearly Larry Bird didn't want to return to French Lick and waste away in booze like his father did. That was a driving force. He had ultimate drive and confidence in his abilities though. If takes moxie to walk into a locker room at The NBA all star game filled with the best players on the planet and ask who was coming in second in the 3rd point shooting contest like he did. The point being Larry Bird had already decided he was going to be the winner.
Good and bad, maybe. Fear that paralyzes you - bad. Fear that motivates you to take the task seriously and put your best effort - good. An employee that does not fear failure may not be challenged enough.
Office Space, what a great movie, I should have listed it on my all time favorites. I have to admire a man who is willing to work to accomplish his dream of doing nothing.
I think this is a very interesting subject. It sparks a question for me: What's the biggest difference in a fierce competitor and a winner?
