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From Coach Traub:
Do you try hard but sometimes stink it up? Join the crowd. Everyone makes mistakes, but great athletes make fewer. They know how to prepare themselves optimally so they can release their talents when they perform. They do everything they know to do at this point in their lives to put themselves in a position to give their best effort. They know how to prepare, both physically and mentally. The resulting pre-performance routine leads to consistently superb performances. Said another way: a detailed, consistent approach leads to consistent results.
A routine is the professional athlete's tool for making sure that he (or she) is in the right place at the right time. Based on his experience and knowledge, he has decided that certain check points, decisions, stretches, rehearsed movements, images, self-talk and other strategies will help him be ready to perform at his best. That is, they cause him to do everything (at this point in his life) he knows to do to (1) create his ideal state for performance, preparing his body and his mind/attitude, (2) commit to a specific and controllable plan-of-attack, and then (3) ensure that he clears his mind and enters that trusting mode where he can relax, focus, and let the game come to him.
With experience and attentiveness, athletes learn the most common mistakes they make. Then, the dedicated achievers go to work at correcting each mistake as best they can. Often this includes adding a step in their routine specifically designed to counteract that natural bad habit. Rushing is a common flaw, so to aid timing many performers prepare themselves with a deep breath and a power phrase thought such as, "I'm ready. Now let it happen." Over-aggressiveness is also common, so athletes use a thought like "Nice and easy" or an image of a personal past peak performance (P.P.P.P.) when they were nice and easy...AND successful.
Occasionally, you will be completely prepared to perform at your best because the environment leads you to your ideal performance state. Usually it does not, so getting yourself as close as possible to that ideal state is your responsibility. If you don't have a pre-performance routine that you use every time, you are missing out on the opportunity to guarantee the best effort that you are capable of delivering on that particular day. Also, make adjustments to your routine afterwards based on reason, not emotion, and do not be afraid to guess. Notice patterns, then repeat what works and change what doesn't.
COACHING POINT - Make them COMMIT! Remember, awareness allows effective adjustments to be made. Challenge your athletes to pay attention to what's working and what's not. Make them talk about it or even write it down. The great ones do this, but the majority think that working hard physically is sufficient. They don't want to work on their weaknesses because it's uncomfortable and they don't want to concentrate all the time because it's tiring. They don't want to develop and commit to a pre-performance routine because they never really had a specific routine before. If they don't know why they keep underperforming in a particular situation, they're sure to repeat the mistake(s). Once they gain awareness about how to coach themselves into a postion to have success, get them to commit to it. Watch or ask them, particularly after something bad happens, if they are following through on all the checklist steps of the routine they developed. If you catch them skipping a step, simply remind them of things they said or thought, probably including: "I think doing this before each performance will help me perform my best." And: "My job is to give my best effort for the good of the team."
Coach Wooden Quotes: "Do not permit what you cannot do to interfere with what you can do."
"The more concerned we become over the things we can't control, the less we will do with the things we can control."
"Acquire peace of mind by making the effort to become the best of which you are capable."
Do you try hard but sometimes stink it up? Join the crowd. Everyone makes mistakes, but great athletes make fewer. They know how to prepare themselves optimally so they can release their talents when they perform. They do everything they know to do at this point in their lives to put themselves in a position to give their best effort. They know how to prepare, both physically and mentally. The resulting pre-performance routine leads to consistently superb performances. Said another way: a detailed, consistent approach leads to consistent results.
A routine is the professional athlete's tool for making sure that he (or she) is in the right place at the right time. Based on his experience and knowledge, he has decided that certain check points, decisions, stretches, rehearsed movements, images, self-talk and other strategies will help him be ready to perform at his best. That is, they cause him to do everything (at this point in his life) he knows to do to (1) create his ideal state for performance, preparing his body and his mind/attitude, (2) commit to a specific and controllable plan-of-attack, and then (3) ensure that he clears his mind and enters that trusting mode where he can relax, focus, and let the game come to him.
With experience and attentiveness, athletes learn the most common mistakes they make. Then, the dedicated achievers go to work at correcting each mistake as best they can. Often this includes adding a step in their routine specifically designed to counteract that natural bad habit. Rushing is a common flaw, so to aid timing many performers prepare themselves with a deep breath and a power phrase thought such as, "I'm ready. Now let it happen." Over-aggressiveness is also common, so athletes use a thought like "Nice and easy" or an image of a personal past peak performance (P.P.P.P.) when they were nice and easy...AND successful.
Occasionally, you will be completely prepared to perform at your best because the environment leads you to your ideal performance state. Usually it does not, so getting yourself as close as possible to that ideal state is your responsibility. If you don't have a pre-performance routine that you use every time, you are missing out on the opportunity to guarantee the best effort that you are capable of delivering on that particular day. Also, make adjustments to your routine afterwards based on reason, not emotion, and do not be afraid to guess. Notice patterns, then repeat what works and change what doesn't.
COACHING POINT - Make them COMMIT! Remember, awareness allows effective adjustments to be made. Challenge your athletes to pay attention to what's working and what's not. Make them talk about it or even write it down. The great ones do this, but the majority think that working hard physically is sufficient. They don't want to work on their weaknesses because it's uncomfortable and they don't want to concentrate all the time because it's tiring. They don't want to develop and commit to a pre-performance routine because they never really had a specific routine before. If they don't know why they keep underperforming in a particular situation, they're sure to repeat the mistake(s). Once they gain awareness about how to coach themselves into a postion to have success, get them to commit to it. Watch or ask them, particularly after something bad happens, if they are following through on all the checklist steps of the routine they developed. If you catch them skipping a step, simply remind them of things they said or thought, probably including: "I think doing this before each performance will help me perform my best." And: "My job is to give my best effort for the good of the team."
Coach Wooden Quotes: "Do not permit what you cannot do to interfere with what you can do."
"The more concerned we become over the things we can't control, the less we will do with the things we can control."
"Acquire peace of mind by making the effort to become the best of which you are capable."