Choosing Drivers for the Long Haul

[Kims Robot]

Originally Posted by Kims Robot

Freshmen/Rookies may have "no fear"... ever seen a 5 year old barreling down a mountain on skis? they are unbreakable, they don't know how to be afraid yet.

My reference here was in regards to the kids that psych themselves out so much they freeze up, or are too afraid to be aggressive with the robot because they've seen how hard it is to fix it. When kids learn to be afraid of messing up, they can get completely locked up.

Originally Posted by Siri

I tend to argue against this being a good thing. (Also, I'm having trouble juxtaposing the assertion with the latter story)

I see fear and nerves as two different things. The story I relayed was not fear (in my eyes) it was nerves. The second that kid got behind the sticks he was amazing, he "drove it like he stole it", and could outdrive 90% of the drivers Ive seen. He was not afraid of the robot or the matches, he just got nervous before the competitions.

I can agree with the "need to respect the pressure" statement, but I don't think respecting the pressure means you have to be afraid. You simply have to be aware of it, understand it, and move past it.

[Siri]

Originally Posted by Kims Robot

I can agree with the "need to respect the pressure" statement, but I don't think respecting the pressure means you have to be afraid. You simply have to be aware of it, understand it, and move past it.

I like the fear/nerves distinction, but I'm not sure how someone can "be aware of it, understand it, and move past it" (agreed--I called this courage) if they "don't know how to be afraid yet". It's the latter statement I'd avoid in long-haul selection, or any driver/leadership selection really, because at some point they will learn about the things that some are afraid of, and it's difficult to predict if they'll be able to do the aware/understand/move=courage thing.