Many people have crowned Simone Biles the phenom of this summer’s Olympic Games—with some declaring her the greatest gymnast of all time.
The diminutive powerhouse packs her routines with technical difficulty far greater than any of her opponents, and consistently executes them with only minimal errors. As thrilling it is to watch her fly so high, performing double flips and twists, I am most impressed with her unflappable composure. Elite gymnasts never experience pres
sure as extreme as in the Olympic arena and many cannot handle it. (See: poor Seda Tutkhalian, the Russian gymnast who landed her beam dismount on her back then fell twice during her floor exercise.)
The secret to her success, Biles says, is reminding herself that gymnastics is supposed to be fun, not stressful. She doesn’t take herself too seriously and instead revels in the thrill of performing.
This is advice applicable to all kinds of activities—even those in the floral industry.
Say, for instance, you have a customer on the phone you’re trying to talk into a $200 design. Or you have a networking event coming up where you don’t know a soul. Perhaps you’re competing in the Sylvia Cup.
In any of these events, your chances for success go up significantly if you have confidence. Tim Huckabee has discussed this myriad times in his presentations and webinars; customers can detect confidence or nervousness in your voice. If you sound nonchalant pitching a design, they’ll likely go along with your suggestion. If your voice shakes or you sound apologetic? Not so much.
So follow in the footsteps of Simone. When you approach a task that scares you, just think about how much you love what you do and let your passion carry you to success.