Workplace lessons from Olympic athletes: Storytelling, resilience, teamwork

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Electives instructors are real people sharing real-life experiences as professors, FBI agents, psychologists, performers, athletes and more.

No matter their background, Electives instructors are authentic as they tell stories from their lives. Here are workplace lessons from a handful of Electives instructors with Olympic roots.

Be open to other ways of achieving success.

Simi Adeagbo tried three different times to make the Olympics in triple jump. Later, Simi tried out for the Olympic skeleton at an age that was considered “too old.” Instead of backing down, Simi became the first Black and African woman to compete in Olympic skeleton. Simi trained for only 100 days before the Olympics, where she was up against women who had been racing Skeleton their whole lives. None of them – and none of the world – had ever seen someone like Simi in their sport. Simi quickly realized that standing out was more important than fitting in, and she found her higher level purpose: elevating the continent of Africa through sport. According to Simi, “When the original way you want to accomplish a goal doesn’t work out, you have to find, and be open to, other ways.”

Learn from your losses to accomplish your dreams.

Matt Whitcomb, the coach of the U.S. cross country ski team discovered that the magic sauce of a team, and its best moments, are often created from the failures. When teammates come together and celebrate each other, that team creates strength and depth — even in times of loss and challenge. According to Matt, “If you can’t embrace and learn from the losses, you won’t be able to accomplish your dreams.”

The only thing you can control is yourself.

When Garrett Klugh was selected for the Olympic rowing team, it was not the moment of unbridled joy he imagined. Making the Olympics had been Garrett’s dream since he was a child watching the Olympics in his hometown of L.A. However, his national team coach was not the cheerleading type. When Garrett was told he was selected, there was yelling, anger, imposed doubt and confusion. To win, Garrett realized, he had to focus on the only thing he could control: himself. 

Flexibility and resilience are critical.

Dan Cnossen made it through Hell Week to become a Navy SEAL and was deployed to Afghanistan as a platoon leader. On Dan’s first expedition, in the middle of the night in Afghanistan, he stepped on a bomb. After being dragged down a mountain in pitch-black darkness and barely making it into a helicopter, then surviving 10 days of a coma, Dan woke up at Walter Reed Hospital in Maryland with both of his legs amputated above the knees. Feeling like he was at rock bottom, the resilience Dan had built during Hell Week kicked in as Dan decided to focus on what he had, not what he was missing. Dan became a Paralympic athlete who recognizes that fulfilling your dreams doesn’t always play out like you think it will. Flexibility and resilience are critical.

Focus on your attitude, not just your outcome.

It is easy to look at Shannon Miller’s medals and think she must have had a perfect run at the Olympic games. But Shannon had several moments of failure and significant self doubt as a result. Shannon had to constantly remind herself to focus on her attitude and to be proud of the work she put in – not to focus only on the outcome. Shannon knew if she worked hard and kept a positive attitude (two things she knew she could control) that she would be successful no matter what. Later in life, when Shannon was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, her practiced resilience and positivity mattered more than ever.

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