C05. Projection of self-denial

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When you make a mistake or do something poorly, you may blame yourself, thinking, "I played like that, I'm such a useless guy," lose confidence, and become depressed . At times like these, you may feel that the people around you are also criticizing you .

Some people may actually criticize others, but they may also be " overthinking ." This is a phenomenon in which people project their feelings onto others , believing that " just as I blame myself, the people around me must be blaming me ," and they become increasingly convinced that they are being blamed. This is also linked to "sensitivity to rejection," a symptom of depression with atypical features . They no longer have the energy to overcome their feelings of self-blame or to get through the " criticism from others that is happening in their heads ."

In such a case, first try to " switch positions ." If someone else made the same mistake, would you blame or criticize them? I think many people would answer, " I don't think I would do that." That's right, there are very few people who would make fun of or criticize someone who is doing something seriously, just like you. Furthermore, you probably think that you too can make mistakes .

Also, during a game, your teammates may be so focused on improving their own performance that they don't have time to think about you . Therefore, you don't need to worry about what other people think of you. If you let these thoughts take over, your performance will suffer.

In the manga "Slam Dunk" (Inoue Takehiko), Shohoku lost the first round of the Inter-High finals, but the final play was a pass mistake by Sakuragi Hanamichi with five seconds left. The next day, when Sakuragi was feeling down because "I was the reason the team lost ," Rukawa Kaede told him, "Don't be so conceited. What an idiot." and "I had already calculated that you would make a mistake. No one would be surprised, your skill is still at that level." Sakuragi was furious and got into a fistfight with Rukawa, but Rukawa said, " Your mistake doesn't determine the outcome of the game. It's my fault that we lost . If my stamina had lasted until the end, we would have won yesterday." Sakuragi retorted, "You're the one who's conceited," and the fistfight continued. The next day, Sakuragi shaved his head and went to practice. I think both Sakuragi and Rukawa thought that it was their fault and that everyone else thought the same, but they both denied that idea . And so Sakuragi's red shaved head was born in order to redirect his responsibilities into positive energy.