Monday Motivation After a Big win
Monday Motivation: “After a Big Win”
By Jon Gums – Dakota Grappler
Inspired by Bill Holtan
This past weekend, you may have experienced a breakthrough—a big win that you’ve been working toward for months. Maybe you beat someone you’ve never beaten before, took down a higher-ranked opponent, or put your name on the map in a way that’s hard to ignore. Those moments are unforgettable.
But after researching how to react after a big win, these thoughts came to me: success is fleeting if you don’t handle it the right way. As exhilarating as victory can feel, the way you respond to it—how you follow it up—matters far more than the win itself.
In short: You have to act like a champion, but work like you’re still chasing one.
The Thin Line Between Celebration and Complacency
After a big win, it’s tempting to ease up, to ride the high of your success. But remember this: championships aren’t won in a single match. One weekend doesn’t define a season. Dwyane Wade put it best: “Success isn’t owned, it’s leased—and rent is due every day.”
A win is a marker of progress, not a finish line. If you want to build on your success, you need to stay hungry and approach each week with the same determination that got you here.
Stay Humble, Stay Hungry
Winning can make you feel unstoppable. But don’t let it fool you into thinking the work is over. There’s always someone out there training just as hard—or harder—to take you down. Humility and hunger are your best allies in moments like this.
Tom Brady, arguably the greatest to ever play football, once said, “I don’t care about three years ago… or last year. I’m thinking about this game. This practice. This play.”
That’s the mindset of a champion: always looking forward, always focusing on what’s next.
The Invisible Work
A big win may get you noticed, but the work no one sees is what makes you great. The hours you spend running stairs, drilling on the mat, perfecting your technique in an empty gym—those moments define who you are more than any win ever could.
As Muhammad Ali famously said, “The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses—behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights.”
Ask yourself: What kind of wrestler do you want to be? The kind who celebrates past success, or the kind who doubles down and works even harder after a big win?
How to Build on Your Success
Reacting to a win the right way means staying grounded while using the momentum to propel yourself forward. Here’s how:
- Reflect and Learn: Even in victory, there are lessons to be learned. What did you do well? What can you improve? Don’t mistake a win for perfection.
- Stay Consistent: The routines and habits that led to your success must continue. Consistency in effort and mindset is what separates champions from the rest.
- Set New Goals: Now that you’ve hit one milestone, it’s time to set your sights on the next one. Keep pushing yourself to climb higher.
- Put in the Work: Treat this week like you’re preparing for the biggest match of your life. Act like you’re in first place but work like you’re still in second.
As Tim Duncan once said, “Good, better, best. Never let it rest. Until your good is better and your better is best.”
Focus on the Process
It’s easy to get caught up in what a win means—rankings, recognition, validation. But at the end of the day, those things don’t win matches. What wins matches is focusing on the process: improving your skills, sharpening your mindset, and staying physically and mentally ready. I apologize for using basketball player quotes in a wrestling article, but they fit.
Kobe Bryant captured this perfectly when he said, “Great things come from hard work and perseverance. No excuses.”
If you stay locked in on the process, the results will take care of themselves.
Final Thoughts
How you respond to a big win defines you far more than the win itself. Success doesn’t mean you’ve arrived; it means you’ve taken one step forward. What matters now is how you use that step to propel yourself toward your ultimate goal.
This week, take pride in what you accomplished but don’t let it slow you down. Keep working like you’re still chasing the win, like you still have something to prove. The mat doesn’t care about last weekend—it only cares about what you bring to it today.
As Serena Williams said, “Every champion was once a contender that didn’t give up.” So, celebrate your progress, but stay relentless in your pursuit. Act like a champion, but work like the underdog.
This week, the real work begins again. Are you ready?
