The Ancient Principle Athletes Need to Level Up Their Performance
There is an ancient principle from the renowned Stoic philosopher Epictetus that all athletes would be wise to live by. In his book the Enchiridion, Epictetus states the following:
If you wish to improve, be content to appear clueless or stupid in extraneous matters–don’t wish to seem knowledgeable.
While this may seem counterintuitive to an athlete, it makes perfect sense in the context of coaching. Coaches tend to provide the most help to athletes who are coachable. Moreover, to be coachable an athlete must listen, learn, and execute coaching suggestions. Without both a coach and coachability, it’s very hard for an athlete to level up their performance strictly through their own volition.
Unquestionably, if an athlete walks around acting like they know everything, they won’t get as much coaching, and this will hinder their growth. Therefore, as Epictetus alluded to over 2000 years ago, it’s better to appear clueless than to appear as a know-it-all. Furthermore, this principle is a fundamental characteristic that separates average athletes from good and great athletes.