Ditch the songs about fatalism and chant instead for success
2021
It's strange that the supporters of some football teams choose to sing Que Sera Sera as their anthem given that it's about leaving success to fate rather than what happens on the field. Que Sera Sera loosely translates as whatever will be, will be.
If we want our team to be successful, it's better to choose a song that pushes the belief and confidence that “We’ve got this.” The same applies in our personal lives.
Film fans will know that the song came to prominence when Doris Day performed it in the Alfred Hitchcock thriller of the 1950s The Man Who Knew Too Much.
Day's character takes us through the stages of childhood, adulthood and parenthood, asking: "What will I be" or "What lies ahead?" Only to answer: "Whatever will be will be."
Countless football fans have embraced this cheerful fatalism often after their team has progressed from one round of a competition to another.
Their team might have moved to the next round but we’re talking about winning prizes in one of the most competitive games in the world. Today’s footballers are powerful athletes who are required to work hard for success. There’s a prize for working hard and a penalty for resting on their laurels.
So, why show our support with a rendition of a song that basically says the matter is out of our hands – or, rather, out of our feet?
A more appropriate song is one that encourages the players and the supporters to believe that everything is possible if they strive for it.
We earn success. Rarely will it come knocking without any effort on our part as many of our great pioneers and inventers will tell us.
Striving for something is essential for the following three reasons.
1. Recognising and achieving our potential. To be successful, it’s important that we take responsibility. We must shift to having a strong locus of control – that is to say that we believe in our ability to shape what happens to us. We need to be aware of our capabilities and abandon any view that success is down to external factors such as fate, luck or the actions of other people.
2. Developing resilience. Striving is what makes us grow and learn. If we’ve chosen the right goal, we need to regard setbacks as feedback. We take on board the new information, modify our approach and keep going. Resilient people as themselves: "What can I learn from this setback? What is it telling me that I can put to good use?"
3. Boosting our self esteem. We know that accomplishing goals is good for our self esteem – no matter how big or small the goal. When we accomplish something that's required effort in the face of adversity, the sense of triumph is even greater. This motivates us to achieve more.
Research tells us that throughout our lives, we're likely to be exposed to more negative language than positive language. This programmes us if we allow it to. While there’s definitely a place for caution and assessing risk, we must be prepared to allow ourselves to explore new possibilities.
Which all means that it's vital that we think carefully about the inner script or song that’s playing in our head. The words need to cultivate an awareness of our potential to succeed. They need to encourage us to show that we’re up for each challenge and that we’re going to emerge from it better than we were yesterday.
The subconscious works 24-7 and awaits our next command. If we feed it fatalism, we risk becoming passive players on life’s sports field.