3 lessons I learned through sports that can prove useful in our professional lives
Zhasmina Gevezieva reveals how sports have made her a better professional and sheds some light on the notion that a higher level of physical activity leads to a better work performance.
I was 14 when I stepped into the gym for the first time. I’ve tried all sorts of sports – from the so called “female sports” such as Zumba, Pilates, Tae Bo, Kombat Xtreme and dancing to more brutal ones like boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai. The latter was one of the most exhausting workouts I have done in my life. I recommend you to try it.
In the past three years I made a transition from conditioning workouts to a whole new level – I became a two-time national champion in one of the most popular strength sports – powerlifting and bodybuilding.
At the same time, I’m managing several entrepreneurial projects and I’m working 10 to 12 hours a day.
Therefore, from the position of a business lady with 14 years of sports experience, I would like to share some lessons that I learned “at the gym” which can also be useful at the workplace.
Discipline
It took me over a year to learn how to work out properly. Be patient and have in mind that you need to work out hard every single day if you want to achieve actual results. This applies to both obtaining your dream body and climbing up that career ladder.
Monitor your progress
Your scale must become your best friend if you want to monitor your progress. It’s just a measure of what stage you’re at. When you become tired of it all, the desire for sweets starts to kick in and you can fall into the popular demotivation spiral – overeating – starting fresh – dieting – overeating again. And it goes on and on like that. It is crucial to have clear performance indicators when it comes to both sports and work. As management guru Peter Drucker says, “If you can’t measure it, you can’t optimize it.”
Mentorship
I admit, if I hadn’t met the right people along the road, who I worked with for the past year and a half, I would have never been able to prepare for a sport that I had no experience in – power triathlon. At work, I had the opportunity to work with wonderful professionals and mentors, with whose knowledge I was able to improve my abilities quickly enough to become a recognizable face in digital marketing and advertising. Decide what you want to be. Find the proper environment and the people who are role models in the chosen field. Talk to them daily. This will help you develop your skills faster than you can imagine.
Go out and train with your Multisport card. Try to apply what you have learned from this article, both at your workplace and the gym. Good luck!
