The sun will rise tomorrow.

There’s a story behind that.

This is your daily message from Chad number 1221 to upgrade your mental game today by telling yourself a better story, because the most important story you hear is the story you tell yourself. And this message is dedicated to Charlie Becker.

Here’s the upgrade:

You think a loss means something is over, but upgraded thinking knows losing is the price of playing.

Here’s the story:

November 16, 1957. Norman, Oklahoma. The football game has been over for an hour, but the fans are still sitting in their seats. The final score was Notre Dame 7, Oklahoma 0. Bud Wilkinson’s Sooners had won 47 straight games. When it ended, the fans didn’t leave. They sat stunned in the stadium.

In the locker room, Wilkinson didn’t blame anybody. He said, “There wasn’t anything mysterious about it. We just got beat.” Then he told his players, “You have done something no other major college football team has ever done before or will ever do again. You have won 47 straight football games. I am proud of you. The only ones who never lose are the ones who never play.”

Notre Dame coach Terry Brennan said after the loss that Bud Wilkinson shook his hand. Wilkinson hated to lose. But he was a perfect gentleman. No blame. No mystery. Just pride in his players and a handshake. He handled the loss with grace.

I bring the Oklahoma streak up because of yesterday. Another streak ended. I’m a Hoosier. That’s what people from Indiana are called. My daughter goes to IU right now, so I’m invested in more ways than one. Indiana lost a close one. It came down to the last play. Fourth-and-four. It didn’t go our way. One of the players, Charlie Becker, said, “That doesn’t really feel like a real thing right now.”

Losing doesn’t feel real when you’re used to winning. But listen to what Coach Cignetti said after the loss, “We just didn’t make it happen. So it’s a hard one to swallow. Sometimes you learn from it and move on.” Then he told his team, “The sun comes up tomorrow.”

This is bigger than sports. Every time you make the call, ask the question, start the business, or love somebody, you put a loss on the table. That’s the deal. The only way to never lose is to sit in the stands. Winners lose more than losers lose, because winners keep showing up. The better story to tell yourself is, “I’d rather lose playing than never lose watching.” The sun comes up tomorrow. Get back in the game. You will stop fearing losing when you trust the rising.

Tell me a story of a loss that taught you something to fromchadsmith@gmail.com. Send someone a text and tell them, “Just imagine what you’d try if losing didn’t scare you. Go try it. The sun comes up tomorrow.” You can get a free copy of my book, The Most Powerful Story in the World, by going to fromchad.gumroad.com. The transcript of this message and hundreds of others are always available at http://www.fromchad.com.