I love the NFL playoffs because it is one loss and your team is done. This is the ultimate in pressure. Some players thrive while others choke. Yesterday was the ultimate in how one individual in a team sport can make or break the outcome. The New York Giants began to control the game against the Green Bay Packers, excect they couldn’t convert offensive drives into points at the end of the game. The problem was that the kicker, Lawrence Tynes had missed two field goal tries (one with time expiring) to give the Giants the victory. When he missed the field goal at the end of regulation the network replayed the reactions of the coach, the quarterback, and other players. I saw disappointment, frustration, and flat out anger that this kicker did not perform at his best when it mattered most. If he makes it they would go to the Super Bowl. He misses and now the team thinks their opportunity is gone. The great thing about sports is there usually another opportunity to redeem yourself. In this case the kicker gets a chance in overtime. This time Tynes nails the kick right down the middle. The team celebrates and Tynes years from now will be looked at as the hero and the two previous misses will have been forgotten. Peak performance is about having a short-term memory on the failures and long-term memory of the successes so one can be ready.