This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of a book by Lanny Bassham's With Winning in Mind (2012) series. One chapter, one article. Read this summary, buy the book. Enjoy!
“In mental rehearsal you are picturing what you want to see happen before you actually perform. You go over in your mind exactly how you want your performance to be conducted. In rifle, looking through the sights, centring the target, and firing the shot in the ten ring. The more vivid the picture, the better the outcome. The more often you rehearse, the better the chance for success”
(Lanny Bassham)
(Lanny Bassham)
Mental rehearsal is simply visualizing your performance or behaviour in your mind. You can mentally rehearse giving a speech, shooting free-throw, hitting grand slam, writing an exam, or anything else. The benefits are threefold:
1) You are practicing: Mental rehearsal is mental practice. Maybe it’s not as good as actually practicing, but Lanny says it’s a great substitute when actual training is not possible due to weather, injury, or time limitations.
2) No negative reinforcement: Because you only rehearse good performances, there is no negative reinforcement. It’s 100% purely positive reinforcement (which is almost impossible during actual training).
3) It reduces fear: This is neat. When you’ve been in a stressful situation often, the stress or fear you encounter diminishes over time (Think about the first speech you’ve ever made. I bet you were more nervous than in your 10th speech, right?). Rehearsal reduces fear because it gives you mental experience in a pressure situation. Lanny claims that he’s competed in the Olympic Games twice physically, but thousands of times mentally.
Keep in mind that you mentally rehearse the process of your performance,
NOT the outcome.
Have A Winning Mindset!
No comments:
Post a Comment