Mikaela Shiffrin speaks plainly. © APA/afp / PONTUS LUNDAHL

Mikaela Shiffrin: That's what really drives her

In the “Moving Right Along” series, one of the most extraordinary talents of our time provides insights into her world. In the latest episode of the series' second season, Mikaela Shiffrin explains where her motivation comes from to keep climbing to the top of the world.

02 Maj 2024

From: sn

Mikaela Shiffrin is a talent of the century: she is a two-time Olympic champion, five-time World Cup champion, seven-time World champion and eight-time Slalom World Cup champion. She also holds records as the youngest slalom Olympic champion, the first four-time world champion in a row, with the most World Cup victories (60) and is the most successful female skier in World Cup history across all genders. Still, even she sometimes has to question her motivation.

This weekend, Shiffrin released the fourth episode of the series “Moving Right Along” on YouTube, in which she says she offers “insights into my world, my mindset, my personal ups and downs of hope.” This episode is about Shiffrin's motivation, which doesn't always come naturally to her. Supposed insider information about plans to end her career was circulated several times. But so far, the 29-year-old has always come back stronger from setbacks.

It's not about records

She writes under the video: “THIS is what motivates me. The work itself – all the time in the snow, the video analysis, all of that is what motivates me. All of this contributes to me reaching my best level. No record, no result or any award that I want to achieve before the end of my career. It's just a matter of doing this thing as well as I can."

Shiffrin (left) with her fiancé Aleksander Aamodt Kilde. © GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / JAMIE MCCARTHY

When she's lacking motivation, Shiffrin said, she thinks about her employees doing everything possible to make sure they do their best. The drive comes from the reciprocity of performance: Shiffrin sees that her employees are doing their best, so she puts her foot down. Her co-workers see that Shiffrin is giving it her all, so they follow suit. The key to the American's success is the immediate environment with which she surrounds herself.