The Gift of Nerves: Why You Shouldn’t Try to Avoid Anxiety Before Competition

There’s a quiet epidemic in sports today — one that doesn’t make headlines, yet silently limits countless athletes.
It’s not burnout, not injury, not even pressure from rankings or parents.
It’s fear of feeling nervous.

More and more players — even professionals — try to escape anxiety before competition.
They avoid looking at their opponents, stay away from the draw, or distract themselves until the moment they walk on court.
They say things like:

“I don’t want to know who I’m playing, it makes me anxious.”
“If I can just stay calm, I’ll play well.”

And on the surface, this sounds harmless — even wise.
But beneath it lies a dangerous misunderstanding about the nature of performance, courage, and human growth.

1. Anxiety Is Not the Enemy

What we call “anxiety” is often just aliveness misunderstood.

Before competition, your body is doing exactly what it was designed to do — awakening, sharpening, preparing.
Your heart beats faster, your focus narrows, your senses heighten.
That’s not danger. That’s readiness.

When we interpret that energy as something to fear, we call it anxiety.
When we interpret it as fuel, we call it excitement.

The goal is not to get rid of nerves, but to change your relationship with them.
The greatest competitors don’t avoid nervousness — they learn to play with it.

2. Avoidance Strengthens Fear

When a player refuses to see their opponent or avoids the draw, they teach their nervous system one thing:

“This situation is dangerous. I can’t handle it.”

Each act of avoidance makes the fear stronger next time.
It’s like feeding a wolf that grows larger in the dark.

Avoidance offers short-term comfort, but long-term weakness.
Courage, on the other hand, grows only through exposure — by walking toward what scares you, not away from it.

3. Clarity Creates Calm

Many players think their anxiety is emotional.
But underneath, it’s often a lack of clarity — a fragile foundation.

If you don’t truly know your own game — your weapons, your patterns, your plan under pressure — the unknown feels dangerous.
You can’t trust what you haven’t defined.

That’s why legendary coach and former player Brad Gilbert kept a notebook full of notes on his opponents.
He studied patterns, strengths, and weaknesses — not to obsess, but to anchor himself in clarity.
Preparation created confidence.
Knowledge quieted noise.

When you know yourself and understand the game, you don’t need to hide from your opponent.
You can look them in the eye and say:

“I know who I am. Let’s play.”

4. Emotion Follows Preparation

Emotional stability doesn’t come from avoiding pressure.
It comes from knowing that you’re prepared, from trusting your process.

You need emotional readiness, yes — but also tactical clarity, physical sharpness, and spiritual grounding.
When those are in place, the mind calms naturally.
When they’re not, even a small challenge feels overwhelming.

So don’t just train your strokes — train your nervous system.
Build your foundation so deep that nerves can shake but not move you.

5. The Pre-Match Ritual: Ground, Clarify, Embrace

Here’s a short practice to help you center before competition:

1. Ground: Feel your feet. Take two long breaths.
   “I am here. I’m ready to compete.”

2. Clarify: Remind yourself of your plan.
   “This is how I win points. This is how I adjust if I need to.”

3. Embrace: Welcome the nerves.
   “This energy is my ally. It means I care. Let’s go.”

It takes less than three minutes, but it can transform how you walk onto the court.

6. We Are Not Weaker — Just Untrained in Discomfort

It’s not that today’s athletes have more anxiety than those 50 years ago.
It’s that the modern world has made comfort too available.

We no longer live in the rhythm of hardship, patience, and resilience that shaped earlier generations.
Now, the slightest discomfort feels unbearable.
But discomfort is the gym where champions are built.

To compete well is to love that discomfort — to see challenge as the teacher and nerves as the sacred tremor of being alive.

7. The Real Goal: Capacity, Not Calm

The best athletes aren’t those who never feel nervous.
They’re the ones who can feel everything and still play freely.

Don’t train to eliminate fear.
Train to hold more life.

That’s the path of the warrior, the artist, the competitor.

In the end, competition is not about avoiding anxiety.
It’s about remembering who you are when anxiety visits —
meeting the moment fully awake, heart open, ready to give your all.

The trembling before a match is not weakness.
It’s the soul whispering, “Something beautiful is about to happen.”