Learning to lose

  I spent the past year of my badminton career learning how to lose. I would travel from my hometown of Campbell River, BC all the way to Vancouver usually once or twice a month for a tournament, only to lose first or second round. Back then, I looked at it as wasted money and beat myself up too many times to count. What I didn't realize was that this was one of the most important steps that must be taken to rise up to the national level. Because of these losses, I have perfected the art of losing gracefully, even with a smile sometimes. Although no one likes to lose, (and I am no exception) you must accept losing as the large part of the sport of badminton it is. It comes with the game. No one can win one hundred percent of the time. Even Lin Dan can lose. Learning to utilize the losses as a tool to move ahead is one of the most beneficial things you can do for your badminton.
  So what about the players who can not lose? Some of them lose all the time. Others, although rare, are national champions. I know of a player who is amazing on the court, but they do not know how to lose, and that is probably their biggest downfall. We all know a player who is like this. They are joyous in their wins, but overly hard on themselves when they lose. When you lose, you must not cry. You must not be mad. You must get up, smile, and learn from your loss. And you will always comeback stronger next time.
 Basically, when you are on court, you should be playing to win, not playing to 'not lose'.