The Peak Performance Expert

Looking at the sports pages, it seems that any athlete is mentally tough.  The term mental toughness is overused or misused by commentators.  Anyone who exhibits determination and who works hard is deemed mentally tough. 

But - it’s much more. There’s a difference between describing a mentally tough person and becoming a mentally tough person (athlete or not). In athletics, one becomes mentally tough through years of hard work, dedication, and commitment; through a willingness to follow the routine of practice, perform and evaluate; and most importantly by adjusting one’s thinking. 

Champions in athletics and in business maintain a fairly dispassionate perspective about their chosen area of competition.  They may love their game or their vocation but they do not fall prey to emotional over-involvement.  Their thinking is disciplined and their approach is deliberate.  Rather than frantically going for the big grand slam, they are satisfied with base hits.  It’s the steady consistency that ultimately wins.                

Our bodies come equipped with an immune system which, when fully developed, succeed in fending off unwanted viruses and bacteria to help keep us healthy. For some people (those undergoing chemotherapy or those who are HIV+, for example), the immune system is compromised and hence, the person is more susceptible to disease. 

Interestingly, the immune system can be strengthened by exposure to certain viruses and bacteria which allow the body to develop antibodies to better fight off disease.  The same thing can be said for what I refer to as our psychological immune system or our resilience to adversity. Many people who have experienced severe adversity report that they emerge from it feeling stronger, happier, with greater clarity about what is important to them and with an intense commitment to achieving their chosen goal. 

This is not true for everyone, of course.  There are those who get beaten down by rough times and who never recover.  Some might say this makes sense; that life’s curve balls do have the power to ruin a person.  I would argue that perception has a role in this.  For every person who gives up there is one who turns it around and thrives. 

There are countless examples.  In the world of sports, Lance Armstrong comes to mind.  He has almost become a cliché in these kinds of discussions - how he endured intense painful treatment for cancer, including brain surgery and then how he became one of the greatest athletes in the world by winning the Tour de France 7 times.  He has stated many times that without the cancer, he never would have become the superb athlete he became. 

In the world of jazz, there are 2 tales: Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday.  Both had gruesome childhoods filled with abuse, poverty, and loneliness.  Both became big jazz sensations but Billie chose to numb her pain via heroin, which ultimately killed her while Ella shunned drugs and, despite diabetes, lived a long life filled with laughter and love.  Choice has something to do with this - the choice to see the world in a particular way. 

Because so many people operate with a fear mentality, where they anticipate failure or humiliation or adversity, they never actually move forward.  It can be helpful to consider that it is often the anticipation of adversity that is far worse than the adversity itself.  (Research supports this notion.) 

Here’s what you can do to boost your psychological immune system: 

• First, write down 4 adversity experiences you have had and then consider some positive things that happened as a result.
• Second, write down 4 mistakes you have made and the lessons learned from each. 
• Third, list 4 successes you have experienced and include what motivated you, what obstacles you encountered and how you felt upon completion

One of the things that separate champions from also-rans is the reaction to mistakes. In my work as a performance coach, I have seen many people’s careers stall because of fear of making mistakes.  No risk, no gain. They are reluctant to move out of their comfort zone and so their lives remain stagnant - dead - going no-where. 

The mind-set of champions is different. Rather than avoid risk, they embrace it.  Rather than shrink from challenges, they seek them out. And when they make a mistake, they don’t dwell on the failure aspect, instead they learn from it. 

Peak performers (and I include here everyone from athletes to business professionals to performing artists) view mistakes as the opportunity to learn how to improve performance; they recognize that there is so much more to learn from a loss than a win and so they take time after a loss to conduct an honest, objective evaluation.  This self-assessment includes assessing what went right and what went wrong; what factors contributed to the failure; what could have been done differently; and what areas need strengthening in order to prepare for a future performance. 

I recommend  that such a self-assessment be done in writing for several reasons. First, putting thoughts on paper (or an electronic version although I prefer the old fashioned tactile way of holding pen and scribbling on paper - preferably a notebook dedicated to your performance record) is itself an act of commitment and allows you to organize your thoughts for future reference. Second, it allows you to keep track of your goals and your progress.  Third, that which we pay attention to improves. 

So, next time you make a mistake or experience a failure, do what peak performers do - honor the feelings of disappointment briefly then step back and evaluate the mistake in an objective, dispassionate way and highlight the lesson embedded in the mistake. 

A Canadian study of 219 sets of twins suggests that mental toughness has a strong genetic component.  Tony Vernon, the lead researcher from the University of Western Ontario, said that the questionnaire-based study assessed the genetic and environmental contributions of 4 traits associated with mental toughness.  These included: feeling in control over one’s life, commitment, confidence and the ability to face new challenges.  Apparently 52% in the variation of mental toughness was due to genetics.  Mental toughness also correlated strongly with extroversion.

What does this mean for those who are not positively genetically endowed?  Well, they may worry more and be more pessimistic and may not have the courage to take risks but - and this is an important but - this does not mean that they cannot learn to be mentally tough.  My work as a coach and consultant has afforded me the grand opportunity to witness people being transformed. We now know, thanks to the new field of neuroplasticity, that the brain is always changing and that one is able to change one’s brain  in ways one wants…with a little guidance from a good coach.

 Every time Matt Garza of the Tampa Bay Rays pitches, there is a lot of talk about his potential “wildness” and his emotionality.  It seems Garza’s temper got him into trouble a while back and manager Joe Maddon encouraged him to see a sports psychologist.  The results have been mostly positive.  He’s more of a team player and is much better able to control the intensity of his emotions. 

When Garza faced my Red Sox in the last game of the ALCS, he was fierce in his accuracy and the force of his pitches.  The Red Sox couldn’t hit anything he threw at them.  In other words, Garza demonstrated superb control.  He was able to harness all that intensity and channel it just the way he wanted. (Too bad for us.) 

Last night he didn’t fare as well when he played the Phillies in game 3 of the World Series. This led to speculation: did the rain delay affect him?  Did the reality of playing in the World Series get to him?  We’ll never know but it’s always fun to guess. 

The Garza story brings up an important element in sports psychology known as the Zone of Optimal Functioning or the ZOOF. This refers to a performer’s sweet spot, just the right level of physiological activation that allows him or her to perform well. 

The concept of flow in sports (or any performance) refers to a state in which there is a perfect or near perfect match between the perceived demands of an activity and the abilities of the performer. Flow is accompanied by feelings of being energized yet calm and focused with your attention directed on what is essential. 

It’s a myth that “the harder you try, the better you’ll do.”  Too much activation or arousal can lead to feelings of agitation and tension and a shift of attention from the activity at hand to oneself or others. Of course, too little activation can lead to feelings of apathy or boredom (left field?) and result in too little focus on the details necessary to perform. 

Garza is a great example of this.  Too much and he’s wild and loses control of the ball; too little - well, we haven’t’ seen that!  Think of yourself and the activities you engage in. Are you too revved up or too laid back?  What works for you? 

Some people need to get revved up.  They feel it energizes them and that they perform better. (Garza, again, listens to rap music before the game.  Maybe he listened to too much of it last night!)  Other people need to calm down and control over-activation. 

Another way to think of it in musical terms is a rah-rah college fight song or a languorous bossa nova.  Are you a fight song person or a Bossa Nova type?  Different activities might require different levels of activation.  Consider the differences between a hockey player and a brain surgeon, for example. 

A man who had attended one of my seminars emailed me a few weeks later to say his golf game had improved because he realized he was a “Bossa Nova type of guy.”  When he teed up, he imagined hearing a slow Bossa Nova which allowed him to slow down, relax, and focus.

In less than half an hour, my (note the possessive “my”) Red Sox will confront the L.A. Haloes for game 4 of the ALDS.  This is a game that should not have needed to be played but here we are. 

Tonight the Sox need to focus, focus, focus on each pitch and they must forget about any bloopers that happen and move on.

 As I’ve mentioned before, focus occurs on 3 dimensions: width -  focus is either broad or narrow; direction - focus is either internal or external; and time - our focus is on the past, the present or the future. 

Flexibility is key.  Although a batter might reflect on what he knows about the pitcher and consider the kind of pitch likely to come his way (broad-internal-past focus), he will perform better in the moment with his attention focused externally, on the pitch coming his way. 

This may sound elementary but the reason some batters get into trouble is they are thinking too much, either about the pitcher, the way they are feeling or their last at bat. This is where healthy amnesia comes in.  If a guy had a lousy at bat, he might want to briefly review what went wrong and how he can make it right but then he needs to forget about it and move on.  If not, his focus is narrow-internal-past instead of where it should be - narrow-external-present. 

Of course, all this holds true for the pitcher as well.  Look closely at the guys tonight.  Who’s the coolest customer?  Who is able to quickly review and learn from a mistake, shake it off, and move on?  That will likely be the winning pitcher…assuming he has a good offense piling on those runs! 

On with the game!

My guys, the irrepressible Red Sox, already have a play-off slot.  They confront  the Los Angeles Angels Wednesday night.  I was tempted to take a mini-break from baseball until then but now I’m not so sure!

Seems to me tonight’s show-down between the White Sox and the Twins will be a  game not-to-be-missed.  The Chi-Sox won Monday night, forcing a tie breaking game tonight.  Not only will tonight’s game be a contest of athletic superiority, it will also be a test of mental toughness.

Young pitcher, Gavin Floyd, performed well for the White Sox on Monday after some initial jitters detected by veteran pitcher, A.J. Pierzynski who tried to break the ice by asking Floyd if he was a “little nervous.”  Floyd laughed and acknowledged he was but, in true baseball fashion said that “it was time to go out there and play baseball. There’s no time to be nervous.”   Later, Pierzynski said, [Floyd] admitted he was nervous, which is good, because if you’re not nervous in that situation, there’s something wrong with you.; just admit it, because everyone is a little nervous in a game when your season is on the line. It’s a good thing because it means you’re alive and you’re into the game. He pitched great.”

It’s refreshing to see athletes admit they are human and experience anxiety in these high stakes situations. I’m reminded of something John Wayne said: “Courage is being scared to death but saddling up anyway.”

Yeah.  The test of courage is not an absence of fear but experiencing the fear and forging ahead anyway.  It also helps if you have some tips on how to manage what is manageable.

Tonight, neither team has control over who wins.  (We never have control over any outcome.) They cannot control who is injured, who is feeling exceptionally tired. They cannot control the fact that the other team might be better rested and in better shape.  They cannot control the calls from the umpires. Each man must exhibit superb focus, composure, and confidence.  Mental toughness can trump other factors any day.  Players should focus on things they can control such as their  thinking and their bodily response to stress.

In my post dated 9/19/08, I wrote about a Self-Calming exercise which helps if someone is too revved up.  When we’re too revved up (like Floyd was early on in Monday’s game), we are likely seeing a situation as threatening.  If we see a situation as threatening, our bodies tense up (not good for an athlete) and our brain releases a certain chemical cocktail that affects our ability to think clearly.  Knowing this, an athlete can first, focus on his body, using some means to relax to the level that’s right for him.  (Some players, like Kevin Youkilis, seem to play better at a higher level of arousal than others.)  Often several slow exhales can do the trick.

Then some shift in the internal conversation has to happen.  If Floyd was saying to himself, “Yikes!  This is a BIG game…I can’t screw up…it’s up to me,” of course this would increase his anxiety and adversely affect his focus.  (His focus should be external, not internal.)  It may be that after that little talk with his catcher he was able to change his self-talk to something like, “Yes, this is a big game and I’m prepared. I’ve got a great catcher with lots of experience guiding me and he and others have faith in me.   I’m getting better and better with each pitch.”

All the players tonight have to have similar conversations with themselves. They can’t get caught up in the enormity of the game.  They have to focus on each pitch as if it’s the first.  If a guy makes a mistake, he has to let it go and refocus on the task at hand. If an umpire makes a bad call, he has to let it go and refocus.   Each guy has to go out there and focus on his own process.

And may the best team win!

In my last post I wrote about the importance of preparation to ensure feeling and being composed in high stakes situations.  I specifically wrote about how to mange your body’s response to a percived threat.  Today, I’ll touch on mental preparation.

Let’s say you have a big meeting or presentation coming up.  You have to either present your ideas at the meeting or give a talk to a group.  Of course you will jot down your ideas and create an outline or a script.  And, of course you will (or you should!) rehearse (out loud) what you’re going to say.  You will attempt to memorize your key points so you don’t have to refer to your notes (or you should!).

Here’s a technique that helps you learn and retain new material and that will train your mind and body to respond in the way you wish.  It’s helpful to use this for a variety of high pressure situations including preparing for a test, rehearsing a talk, or practicing an athletic move such as putting in golf.

  STUDY/REHEARSAL/PRACTICE ROUTINE 

1.       Begin with relaxation exercise (Can be simply exhaling slowly several times)

2.       Once relaxed, connect with Ideal State (This is how you want to feel, act, be in the actual performance situation)

3.       Say CUE word/phrase to yourself (Cue word is your trigger - a word that connects to Ideal Performance State)

4.       Once firmly in “positive space” begin to study/rehearse/practice

5.        As soon as you notice you are leaving positive space, STOP EVERYTHING, then re-connect with positive space.

6.        Once firmly in positive space again, repeat CUE word/phrase and resume your work.

7.        Study/rehearse/practice ONLY in positive space.

8.        Important to strengthen association between positive space and study/rehearsal/practice.

9.        At time of test/performance, exhale slowly three times and repeat CUE word/phrase to get back into positive space.

By using this technique, you are essentially training your mind and body to respond in the way you wish. You are only “performing” (i.e., practicing) when you are in your ideal state so when you are in the actual performance situation, that is the state you will be in.  If you find yourself diverting from your ideal state during performance, say your cue word to yourself to reconnect with your ideal performance state.

As major-league baseball moves relentlessly towards playoff season, we all have the opportunity to see which team can survive the pressure.  The ability to stay poised and self-assured, even in high stakes situations is a valuable quality.  How well do you perform in high pressure, competitive situations?

The first step in improving your composure is self-awareness.  So you can ask yourself, when have you lost your composure?  What happened?  And also, when are you the most composed?

One way to ensure composure in high stakes situations is to be adequately prepared for those events.  Mental preparation is truly the key to success.  In preparing for a big talk or an important meeting, you might focus exclusively on the content and the organization of what you’re going to say and neglect the mental preparation.  This is a big mistake.

In oder to maintain composure, it’s useful to know how to control your body and control your thinking.  In today’s blog I’ll talk a bit about steps you can take to control your body’s response to stressful situations.

When we perceive something as threatening our body responds in particular ways.  Typically, your heart rate increases, your respiratory rate increases, and your muscles tense up as you prepare to run or fight.  This is fine if you are in fact going to run or fight.  However, usually, these responses undermine your performance. 

A quick way to reduce the negative impact of this is to focus on your breathing.  As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, don’t try to take a big deep breath, if you are in a stressful situation and you’re already tense, it can be very difficult to take in a nice deep breath.  You’re much better off focusing on your out-breath.  So exhale as slowly as you can, and notice how you begin to relax.  Now you can train your body and your mind to respond in any way you wish.  So why not train your body and mind to respond in a way that allows you to perform at an optimal level even in those high stakes situations.

Here’s one technique that I teach, and it’s called the Self Calming technique:

Find a quiet spot, sit upright,  and close your eyes.  Just notice the rise and fall of your breath for a moments.  And now exhale slowly, as slowly as you can, three times.  You might say to yourself, “With each out-breath I’m relaxing more and more.  As you relax, put your hand on your chest and notice the warmth from your hand spreading over your chest soothing you and calming you.  Continue to focus on your out-breath, telling yourself with each out-breath you’re relaxing more and more.  Be aware of the warmth from your hand as it contributes to your relaxation.  And you can say to yourself that in the future, whenever you’re in a stressful situation, all you have to do is exhale slowly three times, and put your hand on your chest in order to reconnect with these positive feelings of calm and relaxation.

If you practice this technique several times, it can be helpful to you in the heat of the moment.  So in a high-stakes performance situation, you can simply exhale slowly three times or even once and surreptitiously put your hand on your chest to reconnect to these positive feelings of calm and relaxation.

So this is just one example of a technique that you can incorporate in preparing for a high pressure, high stakes situation.

As a Red Sox fan, I was sure happy to see my team bash the Rays last night however, as an empathic human I did feel bad for Rays’ pitcher,  Scott Kazmir.  He didn’t seem to have it last night.  Nine straight balls in the first inning set up 3 runs brought in by Big Papi’s homer followed by a solo homer by Mike Lowell.  And it went downhill from there!

So what happened?  Kazmir usually fares much better.  Was it the pressure of being so close to the play-offs? He looked ashen, sweaty, uncomfortable.  After the game Kazmir said, “It felt like my body wasn’t there…I felt flat. I didn’t have the strength.”   And it showed.  What might have contributed to such a state?  Well, anxiety can sure do that. Illness can too but Kazmir never said he was ill, just not mentally present.

It’s always a point of curiousity when an otherwise good performer falters. In my last blog I wrote about Jon Lester’s ability to ward off “bad thoughts.” I’ll never know what Kazmir’s thought process was prior to and during the game but I can conjecture that he felt the pressure of the responsibility of winning the game.  The sensation of feeling like one’s body isn’t there is typical for an anxiety state.  For an athlete especially, being and feeling connected to one’s body is critical.  What could he have done differently?  Well since he started feeling “off” when he was warming up in the bull pen, he could have seen that as a sign that he needed to do one (or all) of the following: (And this holds true for anyone out there who might be feeling “off” just prior to a big performance.)

1. Take a few moments and stop everything and reboot your personal computer, your brain.  This means simply closing your eyes, exhaling slowly 3 times, then saying to yourself, “My mind is a blank screen.”  After a few seconds open your eyes and refocus on the task at hand.
2. Take a few moments and with your mind’s eye, do a body scan, noting where you might be holding tension or - if you re feeling disconnected with your body, you can now re-connect by mentally embracing all parts of your body, noting how important your body is to your performance.
3. Remind yourself of your past successes and your performance goals (which are differnt from outcome goals; we have no control over outcome, only our own performance).
4. Ask yourself what might interfere with the upcoming performance such as unrealistic expectations, negative self-talk, worry, etc.  Then once identified, work to reframe these thoughts into something that is either realistically positive or neutral.
5. Determine if you need to calm down or get revved up.  If the former, focus on exhaling slowly.  If the latter, engage in a brief stint of physical exercise.

These are just a few things Kazmir might have done that could have made a difference.  Of course, I’m happy he didn’t!