The Peak Performance Expert

A good gauge of a team’s focused competence is the sounds emanating from our TV room.  If there are a lot of “aws” and “I can’t believe its!” it’s probably because our team (the Celtics) is missing shots that should not be missed.  

Ok, easy for us to say - we’re sitting there warm and cozy in our slippers, sipping wine as we watch the big guys sweat but - as a scholar and student of sports psychology and mental toughness, I  know a few things that give me permission to spout off now and then. 

Let’s just look at why someone misses a shot.  There are several possibilities including being bumped or pushed by another player, thus interfering with the player’s physical lay up.  But what about other reasons?  I would argue that every other reason has to do with focus. 

If a player is well focused he will only attempt a shot he knows he can make and everything will be properly aligned.  He won’t shoot out of desperation or because he’s overly eager or because he’s trying to prove something. Those thoughts, in a focused, mentally tough performer, will be either dismissed or absent. 

What I saw last night was some occasional sloppiness (albeit along with some superb playing, too) that contributed to the loss. There were many lost opportunities that were lost due to that distractibility factor. 

One of the tests of true mental toughness is the ability to manage distractions that interfere with focus.  A focused mind is a competent mind and a competent mind leads to competent playing. 

There are techniques to improve focus and I have addressed this in previous posts. 

We’ll see what my guys do tonight. 

This entry was posted on Friday, February 6th, 2009 at 7:37 pm and is filed under Celtics, Championship Mindset, Mental Toughness. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.