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What If This Season Isn't About Winning? · The Nadia Chapman Show

• 0:01
  Hi, welcome to the Nadia Chapman Show. I'm your host, Nadia Chapman.
• 0:05
  This is the figure skaters edition. And I'm so excited to talk to you today
• 0:10
  about this unusual topic.
• 0:13
  What if this season isn't about winning? Hmm.
• 0:18
  That's a question I have for you. If you are a skater, a coach, a parent.
• 0:22
  So what if this season is not about the medals? It's not about the podium.
• 0:26
  It's not about the scores.
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  What if this season is about something else entirely?
• 0:31
  And if you miss it, you might actually miss the real opportunity in front of you.
• 0:35
  Because in figure skating, as we know, it's so easy to get caught into the results, into numbers.
• 0:41
  And it's so easy to believe that winning means that you're doing well.
• 0:44
  And anything else means that you're falling behind.
• 0:47
  But what if that's not actually true? What if the skaters who go the furthest,
• 0:52
  the ones who become strong and confident and consistent, are not the ones chasing
• 0:58
  medals every single time?
• 1:00
  But what if they are the ones who understand what season they're actually in?
• 1:04
  So let's talk about just...
• 1:06
  What if this season isn't about winning?
• 1:09
  I want you to just sit with that for a second, because I know how this sport
• 1:14
  works. I know how your mind works.
• 1:16
  You know, score matters and placement matters and testing and medals and qualifying.
• 1:21
  It's all very important. And it is important. Don't get me wrong.
• 1:25
  But somewhere along the way, something subtle kind of happens.
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  We start believing that winning is the point and that the results are the only goal.
• 1:34
  And that if the podium isn't there well something went
• 1:37
  wrong along the way i want you to challenge that
• 1:40
  belief for a second because it is a belief and that
• 1:43
  belief ladies and gentlemen quietly start putting pressure
• 1:46
  extra pressure on everything the skater will do pressure on every practice pressure
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  on the program pressure in every single competition and then suddenly skating
• 1:56
  stop feeling like something you get to do it starts feeling like something you
• 2:00
  have to prove so let me offer you a completely different perspective today.
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  What if this season isn't about winning? What if this season is about building
• 2:10
  yourself as a stronger skater?
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  You know, the season where you become stronger, more consistent.
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  Braver, more resilient, more you.
• 2:19
  Because here's the truth that no one talked about enough.
• 2:22
  The skater you are becoming matters more than the medals that you are collecting
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  on your wall. Could that be the rider downer for today?
• 2:30
  Maybe it is. The skater you are becoming matters more than the medals you're collecting.
• 2:35
  Medals don't build your confidence. Experiences do.
• 2:39
  So handling pressure builds confidence. Falling and getting back up builds confidence.
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  Showing up when you don't feel like it, when you're not ready, it builds confidence.
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  That's the work. And that's the part that lasts.
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  Now, imagine this. Two skaters finish a competition.
• 2:59
  One wins, everything went perfectly. Then the other skater struggles,
• 3:03
  miss an element or two, doesn't place where their hope.
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  But here's a real question. Who grew more?
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  Because sometimes the biggest growth doesn't look like winning.
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  It doesn't look like a gold medal. It looks like getting back out there after a bad skate, right?
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  Trying to jump again the next day or holding your focus even when things aren't
• 3:24
  perfect. That's not easy to do.
• 3:26
  Maybe it looks like not letting one moment define your entire identity.
• 3:30
  And that skater that goes to this challenge, that's the one building something powerful.
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  And parents, coaches, this is also a podcast for you.
• 3:40
  This matters for you too, because the way that we talk about a season shapes
• 3:46
  how the skater experience it.
• 3:48
  So if everything is about results all the time, they will feel the pressure.
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  If everything is about growth, they will feel possibility. And there's a huge
• 3:56
  difference between the two.
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  One creates fear of failure. The other creates room to learn.
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  And the best athletes, the best skaters, they're not just chasing results all the time.
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  They're constantly developing skills. They're building habits.
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  They're learning how to handle themselves under pressure.
• 4:12
  That's what creates long-term success. So let's shift the question for a second.
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  Instead of asking, did I win? Start asking, who did I become this season?
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  Did you become more focused? Did you become more disciplined?
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  Did you become more confident in yourself, even when things did not go perfectly?
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  Because sometimes it doesn't. Did you learn how to reset after a mistake?
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  Did you learn to trust yourself maybe a little bit more on the ice?
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  Because that is the real when.
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  And here's something I want every skater to listen right now.
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  You are not behind where you're supposed to be. You're not too late either.
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  You're not missing your moment. You are in a season, all of us in life,
• 4:55
  but also you as a skater, you are in a season.
• 4:58
  And every single season has a purpose, something to teach you.
• 5:02
  And some seasons are not about winning. Some seasons are about learning.
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  Some seasons are about rebuilding. And some are about finding your love for skating again.
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  All of them, every single season matters, all right?
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  So the next time that you step on the ice, I want you to bring a different energy to your training.
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  Not that, oh, I have to win, I have to get gold, I have to get first place, but I get to grow.
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  Not showing up on the ice with, oh, this has to be perfect, but more like,
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  I'm here to show up fully.
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  I'm here to learn, I'm here to stretch.
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  And I want you to watch what happens. Because when the pressure drops,
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  performance actually rises.
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  And when you stop chasing results all the time, you start skating way more freely.
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  And that's when things start clicking.
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  So maybe, just maybe, this season is not about winning.
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  Maybe it's about becoming the kind of skater who can win over and over again
• 6:00
  in the seasons ahead. And that, well, that's a much bigger game.
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  So here's what I want you to do after this episode. I want you to take a moment
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  and ask yourself, what season am I in right now?
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  And more importantly, am I fighting it or am I growing through it?
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  Because the second that you understand your season, everything starts to make more sense.
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  Your training, your mindset, your expectations, and you stop putting pressure
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  where it doesn't belong.
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  If this resonates with you, save it, download it, or share with a parent,
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  a skater, or a coach who might need a reminder.
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  And if you're ready to take your work deeper. If you want to build more confidence,
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  handle pressure and truly train your mindset like you train on the ice,
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  that's exactly what I do.
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  You can reach out, connect and explore my resources anytime at the mentaledgeacademy.com.
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  Until next time, trust your season, stay in your lane always and keep showing
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  up. I'll see you in the next episode.