The static pulls my hair to the TV screen as I watch Rocky in his intense fight against Ivan Drago. My blood is pumping, my face is sweating and my hands are shaking because I see myself right there with Rocky, cheering him on. Rocky wins the match and spreads good vibes across communist Russia, and I pull away from the TV smiling. This was eight years ago
— my first time seeing “Rocky IV.”
The glow of the computer screen illuminates my face as I watch Tyson Fury battling against Deontay Wilder on YouTube the day after the fight. This was a long awaited rematch after a controversial tie Dec. 1, 2018, but the fight was nothing like its predecessor. Fury was determined not to let scorecards be the deciding factor as he finished off Wilder in the seventh round of the fight. This was six days ago.
As I looked at the results from the first Wilder vs. Fury fight compared to the rematch, I wondered why the results were so different. How could something that was so evenly contested turn into a landslide victory? I think the answer is simple. It is a difference of pride versus confidence.
While both fighters physically prepared for the fight, their mentalities going into the fight were very different. Both fighters obviously had words for each other. Wilder posted a video saying, “Listen, I’ve got to keep it real. I know people always go back to the old school or look at the new school, and there’s no school where I’m not No. 1 on earth.”
Fury heard Wilder’s message, and reporters asked him what he thought.
“I don’t know [whether I’d beat him],” Fury said. “ I love the fact that he thinks that, because that’s the way I would think as well. He’s supposed to think that way, he is the heavyweight champion of the world and that’s something very special.”
Pride and confidence make a difference not only inside the ring, but in our daily lives. They determine things like the strength of our relationships to our ability to accomplish our goals. Though, I still struggle sometimes with knowing the clear distinction between pride and confidence.
When I was growing up, my parents told me not to brag or boast because that was a prideful thing to do. This made me feel conflicted any time I wanted to share something exciting with someone, such as an accomplishment or an award. I wanted so badly to share with people, but I was too afraid of being seen as prideful.
I started to not really care about my accomplishments as I got older, and my parents would be upset when I didn’t tell them about these things. After a long talk with my parents, they explained that sharing my accomplishments with others isn’t prideful, but constantly talking about your accomplishments and talents is. They explained that they wanted to share in my accomplishments and to encourage me whenever I did well.
As I’ve gotten older, the distinction between pride and confidence has become clearer. Pride isn’t just the beating of your chest and putting your name in lights, it’s also the quiet idea that you are capable of handling everything by yourself. Pride leads to so many harmful things, such as overbooking, false standards and constant comparisons.
Confidence, on the other hand, is an assurance and awareness of what you are capable of. Confidence is the humility to ask for help because you know your limits. Confidence is trusting others and God to accomplish the things you set out to do. People are more attracted to those who are confident because those people are vulnerable and honest, and they know that they are not the sole contributors to their accomplishments.
A few days after the Wilder vs. Fury rematch, Wilder announced another rematch as he claimed the costume he wore into the ring had made him fatigued. Pride was Wilder’s downfall — don’t let it be yours.
