Sports world and superstitions
Superstition is all around us, from people fearing black cats crossing in front of them or swerving widely to avoid walking under a ladder. Superstitions are ingrained in culture and are part of a lot of people’s daily lives. They swear by them and claim that it has happened to them numerous times where they have walked under a ladder and their day was horrible or some tragedy befell them. They believe these things even though there is no rational or logical explanation as to why a black cat is unlucky but the human mind is a very powerful thing. The power of the human mind actually makes things we believe in come true so if someone does something in a particular way every morning before going to work and for some reason they miss it one morning the fact that they missed their routine plays heavily on their minds and they cannot concentrate on work and so inevitably have a bad day. They signify the not doing of their daily routine on them having a bad day when in reality it could have been them thinking too much about it that messed up their day.
Athletes in some sports take superstition to another level. A lot of them have certain things they have to do before a big game, certain things they have to read before a game, a certain way to dress, a specific ornament or trinket they must wear or hold in a certain way and all these things are attributed to them having a good game at the end of the day. Some athletes take it to the extreme with a certain method of doing things that is so exhaustive and intricate that it takes a lot of effort and time to do. Maybe if they spent that time practicing more they wouldn’t need the superstition in the first place. But still to each their own and if they feel that their elaborate rituals will help them win games then that’s what they should do.
Athletes just like other people forget that maybe it could all be in their minds. The pressure to perform is a lot greater for athletes and if they feel they have messed up their routine or forgotten their lucky rabbit’s foot at home their game performance will be impacted even worse than the average salesperson. Salespeople only have their bosses to worry about; athletes have their teammates, coaches, fans, families and sometimes even the whole country to appease and that is a lot of pressure that could lead to some serious superstitious routines. The routines go from the subtle like touching something a certain way or dressing in the exact same manner every game to the downright weird like employing a bald man to stand in the locker room so everyone can rub his head before they leave to go onto the field.
If more athletes used logic instead of superstition they might perform better because a lot of the time it is all in the mind. At the end of the day though if rubbing bald men’s heads leads to better performance on the field does it really matter? It probably does for the poor bald guy whose head will become bruised and battered after a few seasons.
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