One of my most memorable competitive experiences was the Unreal Tournament over at the Fragwire party about a year ago. I won the tournament, but it wasn't an easy trip to the top. By the final three matches, I had some fierce competition. I started a match against a guy named Falcon and I quickly went down by 3. It was the first time I had no competitive nervousness. I just kicked it up a notch and said to myself, "I CANNOT lose." My mind, in its indecipherable language, knew that it was impossible to lose that game. Sure enough, I pulled off the greatest comeback I've ever accomplished and won the game 10-8.
Little did I suspect that I'd be presented with a harder challenge in real life in which my brain is reacting in the exact same way - real life. "I CANNOT fail," I thought to myself, once again thinking over the horrible consequences of failing - this time just a tad more painful than being knocked out of the tournament. Unfortunately, there's five months (to the day) remaining until we know which way this one goes.