10 Things I learnt about winning and losing while playing foosball
1. A beginner is bound to get everything wrong
The rookie stage of any activity is crucial. You have to give yourself the grace to be bad at something to get better at it. If you just give up, you’ll never learn anything new. Even if it feels really disheartening and you keep missing the ball, its important to keep playing the game. Although it feels stupid to be bad at something that doesn’t even look hard but of course everything you try for the first time is hard.
2. You can’t defend every strike
No matter how many times you defend a good attacker will get their shot in. So you really need to learn how to attack because if you keep defending you will still lose. Tactics are a funny thing. Depending on the situation, it sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t. If your goal keeper passes the ball to the other team, you might just hand over the shot to them. This disappointing move could be something you do over and over and over. When you’re pushed to a corner, when you encounter a specific situation with a specific set of limitations, it’s quite possible to make the same mistake again and again.
3. Learn both — attack and defence
This is like stepping out of your comfort zone. If you are in your zone(corner) just take a sideways step. That’s all it takes to step out of that — comfortable space on one end of the table. The first few times will be terrible but later you’ll be good at both. It pays to be good at every aspect of the game. (It is actually better to be a jack of all trades and master of none rather than a master of one; even though we don’t always feel that way.)
4. Muscle memory builds up over time
Like badminton or table tennis players you’ll eventually learn the knack of a tiny wrist movement that can generate a lot of power. This can only happen over time. Consistency and persistence are things you can’t get from anywhere but yourself. And it pays to have these qualities no matter what sport or game or activity you do in life. Habits can be built over a specific period of time. In four weeks, two months, you can become really good at something you were terrible at before — simply because it something you did everyday; even if it was only for 10–15 minutes.
5. If you keep at it one day you can start doing trick shots
And that means you’ve reached the epitome of winning. You’ve now reached a stage where you can put a creative spin on your moves. Stop the ball in its tracks and completely change its course, hit the end-to-end super gratifying shot (score with your goal keeper), kick the ball out of the table — there are no limits now.
6. It’s just a game
At the end of the day it’s just a table. It’s just a bunch of plastic figures on a stick. So win or lose — no matter how the game makes you feel you can still go home and forget it all. Even if your opponents like trash talking or messing around (or cheating) it doesn’t really matter. The size of the board is enough to remind you how irrelevant it is to your life. The boundary between fun and serious is quite clear.
7. If I could learn so much from this imagine playing a real sport
Being actively engaged in something plus being self-aware (or overthinking) has helped me learn so much from a board game. If I tried playing an actual sport, I could probably turn my whole life around. What I mean is, if you ever get an opportunity to play a sport, or any activity don’t turn it down without a good reason. If you do have some time to spare just indulge yourself. You never know what you could end up learning.
8. Nothing lasts forever
I had a small window of opportunity to play this game. The right time, the right place, the right people. But things change. Situations and circumstances change. And now I have to take what I learnt and apply it elsewhere. Just another turn of events in the grander scheme of things.
9. Fun things said by my co-workers & replies that I didn’t say out loud
“This looks so easy I might even win.”
Well, you’re playing for the first time and you’re playing against two of the best players in the office — so sure! Just flip the handles around. How hard could it possibly be? hahahaahhaaa
“I don’t want to play. I can’t even hit the ball properly.”
Yes. Of course you can’t. You’ve literally never played.
“Wow you guys are playing really well.”
Is that a compliment or an insult? Are you mocking us sir?
“Hah! Did you see that?”
He says after getting 1 point and losing 5.
“This is so annoying.”
So don’t play?
10. It doesn’t take a lot to strike up a conversation
Foosball may be just a table but any activity shared by 2–4 people can really liven up a space, a coffee break or a lunch room. It can show you how annoying or petty or fun or serious or boring your friends or colleagues are. Have you played foosball?
