The Mind Games — NorthStar Navigator

By Jared L.

Sports are often affiliated with the physical aspects of it. For example, the strength of football players, the agility of soccer players, and the precision of basketball players are commonly attributed aspects inside of the competitive world. With the rise of eSports however, many people feared this would take away from the definition of Sports. People might think that eliminating the physical aspects of sports would be like taking the pumpkin out of a Jack-o-lantern. It just would not work! But the one thing not often considered was the mental attributes of sports.

The mind is used as a strategy element in sports. In each sport, one has to decide on an action quickly to gain the best success. The aspect of deciding which way to dribble the ball or what you should do to get around a defender brings the decision-making aspect to the game. The best players of any sport are physically fit but also have trained their minds to be quick in these decisions. This is where eSports ties into the competitive world. While online and on a device, many of the same aspects of decision making and mind games work in this environment. In fact, they are amplified because the physical challenge is taken out of the equation. As video games are coded by humans, laws of the real world do not have to be followed, such as gravity or force, making the possibilities that much greater. Competitors in eSports have a whole new realm to explore and an entire new aspect of the mind game that other sports do not have.

Overall the aspects of both online and physical sports form one main similarity, that being the mind. Understanding and learning how to train and use it is what makes a team reign victorious in a match. This aspect of the “mind games” changes a game from a casual setting to a competitive one where the people involved will learn and grow in knowledge. In any field of competition one competes in, the mind will always be a key player.

Columns: 🔎Informational

Jared L. lives in North Carolina with his parents and two dogs. He is a sophomore in his fourth year at NorthStar Academy. Some of his interests include running a small-time YouTube channel as well as making mini films. In addition to being on the Navigator for his first year, he is also a part of NSA's student council, as well as NSA's esport team.