Silver, Bronze and Beyond

And just like that, the Olympics are over - but with the Paralympics just two weeks away, the inspiration continues! In my last post , I shared some insights on my favourite Olympic moments so far, and how business principles can support athletes - maybe they listened, given the impressive medal haul!

There’s always a lot of focus during the Olympics on who’s taking home the gold, silver, or bronze. These victories are, of course, incredible. But there are also amazing stories happening off the podium, like our breakdancer Rachel Gunn. Yet, these stories often go untold, and we rarely hear about those who finished second or third. Where are they now? How are they feeling? And what’s next for them?

Interestingly, a study I came across, thanks to Arianna Huffington, sheds light on the happiness levels of Olympic medalists. ?According to 2021 research by professors from the University of Iowa, Olympic silver medalists are often less happy than their bronze-winning peers. The researchers used photos of Olympians spanning four Olympic Games (over 16 years) to observe muscle movement and facial expressions. What they found was fascinating - despite performing better, silver medalists often appeared less happy than those who took home bronze.

The reason? Silver medalists tend to compare themselves to the gold winner i.e., “I almost won” or “That could have been me”. This is known as upward comparison. On the other hand, bronze medalists are more likely to compare themselves to those who didn’t make it to the podium, feeling grateful to have won a medal at all - this is called downward comparison. The silver medalist is stuck in the “what could have been”, while the bronze medalist is just happy not to be in the changing room already.

So what does silver or bronze look like for us at work?

In the workplace, we’re not immune to silver or bronze moments. Often, it feels like nothing but gold will suffice. We might find ourselves comparing ourselves upwards to the performance of others - whether it's the person who won the client, achieved better results, or got the promotion. This kind of comparison is natural, and not all of it is bad. What matters most is the lessons we take from those experiences.

In my work, I’ve seen firsthand how these factors can transform second, third or fourth place finishes into long-term success. It's this ability to pivot from comparison to growth that empowers individuals and teams to continuously push for exceptional results.

What did the ‘winner’ do differently? What can we learn? How can we apply these insights going forward? In business, setbacks are inevitable, especially in roles like sales. But we have a choice in how we think about and respond to them. These moments can have a big impact on how motivated we are to strive for the next opportunity.

Interestingly, the business world often treats second place very differently from the Olympics. Take Subway, for instance - they may not be the ‘gold medalist’ in public perception like McDonald’s, but with a larger footprint, they’ve found ways to win in other important areas.

What are the key factors here?

Mindset plays a crucial role. Specifically, the traits of optimists - those who are grateful, see challenges as learning opportunities, continuously strive for improvement, and view experiences as a stepping stone to greater success. I wonder if anyone’s studying whether optimists won more golds this year?

Resilience is also key - whether you're an athlete aiming for gold or a professional navigating setbacks. The ability to move forward from 'silver' moments and keep striving is what sets great performers apart. Just like in the Olympics, where silver and bronze medalists must harness their mindset to fuel future wins, in business, the ability to learn from every outcome and use those insights to drive exceptional results is what separates the best from the rest.

A great approach is to also expand your KPIs beyond just performance measures. By doing so, you’ll find there’s plenty of room for everyone to achieve exceptional results - it might be productivity gains, better wellbeing, greater alignment to purpose, less stress, or more confidence and impact. ‘Winning’ can take many forms. And we must also celebrate our progress towards these, even if it doesn’t perfectly align with our initial goals.

So, how do you view success? Gold is great but there’s immense value in silver, bronze and all the other spots too.

Until next time,

Anna