The Olympics bring out the best in everyone— from pride, to perseverance to passion for the competition.   Those stories about athletes who overcome personal and professional obstacles to make it to the games inspire many.

Time and time again, as these athletes compete, win or lose, they get back in the game, proving that a defeat is just that—a momentary loss.  Of course, it’s painful to lose, however, the one constant is getting up, dusting off and trying again.

We are all competitors—whether we recognize this or not.  We pitch to the same clients, we apply to the same job boards, we compete for the same RFPs, and we look for the same talent skill set.

How can we best adhere to the same competitive principals, as we tackle goals and challenges that arise in our daily lives or work? 

Here are 5 lessons we’ve learned from the Olympics:

1.   Even though you compete in the same arena & in the same game, the mindset you bring is yours and only yours.
2. You enter the track with many other competitors— the preparation you do beforehand is yours and yours alone.
3. You may experience a defeat, or miss a target by .003 seconds— your reaction, acceptance and perseverance to come back the next time is your decision.
4. You may fall down — the decision to get up is yours
5. You may work long hours to pursue your goals, train hard, have a coach, have an accountability partner— how you apply the lessons learned and improve your game is up to you.

 What do you do to stay in the game and create a winning mindset?