And so Anthony Hamilton is through to the main draw of the World Championships, for the first time since 2008. Anthony saw off the hard to beat Perth cueman Scott Donaldson, whilst admitting that he wasn’t playing his best snooker.
To compensate for the weaknesses in his game, he had what he described as ‘the best attitude in the room’. This is a lesson for anyone in sport who isn’t at the best. For it shows that you do not need to be at 10/10 to find ways to win.
A great attitude brings so many things to your game. Firstly a refusal to ever give in. If my opponent is going to win then there is going to be blood spilt! It’s a fierce refusal to accept that you are going to lose, however poorly you are playing. Throughout the history of sport, there have so many games won by the player with the lesser talent, but the better attitude.
The ‘best attitude in the room’ means that you accept your weaknesses on any given day, with a wry smile. You don’t try and beat yourself up. How would that help anyway?
The wry smile is the acceptance that, yes you are not playing well, and are basically ok with that. If you are going to be playing at 5/10, then be ALL IN at 5/10. And prove to yourself that you can find ways to win at 5/10!
The best attitude is about CHARACTER and WILL. A refusal to be negative or down on yourself, or the game itself. There is no blaming of others. No moaning or complaining. And it carries a BELIEF that the game can turn quickly, at any moment, if you simply stick in there and ride out the rough, tough moments.
A great ATTITUDE is a free skill. You don’t need talent to have one. It comes from YOU. You can switch to a great attitude instantly. Often because you are so fed up with being negative or down on yourself!
Go on! Try it! You might find that you are turning matches around that you would have previously written off. And once you start winning when playing at 5/10, then you will feel you can win from any position. And then how good will it be to say, ‘I have the best attitude in the room!’