What is it about patience that links it with virtue?
When building relationships of value that take time to come together, or working on something incrementally that needs progressive development - yes in those cases - patience is a virtue. To rush the process would cheapen it.
What about patience links it with weakness?
When patience is laziness in disguise. When patience is fear of progress, fear of speaking up, fear of creating change.
Sometimes doing "the right thing" for too long is the wrong thing. Sometimes holding onto a way of doing life or business or relationship or health that is "safe" is actually blocking desired progress.
Calm evaluation of areas where patience has become complacency reveals what can now change for the better. Is there a way to incrementally ratchet that area into motion with tactful urgency?
What will happen?
Showing posts with label Mental Strategy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mental Strategy. Show all posts
Monday, November 14, 2011
Friday, October 21, 2011
Competition Prep - Performance Objectives
This post is an extension of the Competition Prep Overview post.
The volume of total work that goes into competition prep is vast. This post is written with the assumption that the physical workload has been blocked out in a periodized manner and that there is a pre-existing level of conditioning and technical expertise in the given sport. Addressing Real vs Perceived Limits can help you clarify how to orient to your performance objectives.
When preparing to compete, it is important to set an intentional performance objective. Setting the blanket objective of "winning" is not enough. You must break it down more specifically.
My preference is to choose one physical and / or technical objective and one mental strategy objective.
The physical and / or technical performance objective might fall into one of these categories:
-something that has lagged and is now ready to improve
-something that is already an asset and can be enhanced
-something that is newly relevant in this specific event
For a grappler, examples of a physical and/or technical objective might be:
-developing explosive power (physical)
-choosing to fight from the top position instead of the bottom (technical)
-developing explosive power to initiate transitions or submissions (physical and technical)
-improving specific cycles for moving from transition to submission (technical)
The mental strategy performance objective might fall into one of these categories:
-maintaining confidence
-remaining "in flow" or in "the zone"
-honing and directing aggression
-committing to perform through discomfort
-rewiring weak or repetitively unhelpful thought patterns
-managing emotions
Again, for a grappler, this might look like:
-continuing to engage with intensity regardless of point status or opponent's dominance
-remaining committed to breath and technique regardless of point status or opponent's dominance
-adhering to a specific mantra (and / or visualization) for the duration of the preparation and competition
These points can be adjusted so that they apply to specific opponents, specific competition habits, and specific sport challenges. Even when training, the above can be used to test run athletic improvements. Its rewarding and helps keep trainings fresh and focused.
The volume of total work that goes into competition prep is vast. This post is written with the assumption that the physical workload has been blocked out in a periodized manner and that there is a pre-existing level of conditioning and technical expertise in the given sport. Addressing Real vs Perceived Limits can help you clarify how to orient to your performance objectives.
When preparing to compete, it is important to set an intentional performance objective. Setting the blanket objective of "winning" is not enough. You must break it down more specifically.
My preference is to choose one physical and / or technical objective and one mental strategy objective.
The physical and / or technical performance objective might fall into one of these categories:
-something that has lagged and is now ready to improve
-something that is already an asset and can be enhanced
-something that is newly relevant in this specific event
For a grappler, examples of a physical and/or technical objective might be:
-developing explosive power (physical)
-choosing to fight from the top position instead of the bottom (technical)
-developing explosive power to initiate transitions or submissions (physical and technical)
-improving specific cycles for moving from transition to submission (technical)
The mental strategy performance objective might fall into one of these categories:
-maintaining confidence
-remaining "in flow" or in "the zone"
-honing and directing aggression
-committing to perform through discomfort
-rewiring weak or repetitively unhelpful thought patterns
-managing emotions
Again, for a grappler, this might look like:
-continuing to engage with intensity regardless of point status or opponent's dominance
-remaining committed to breath and technique regardless of point status or opponent's dominance
-adhering to a specific mantra (and / or visualization) for the duration of the preparation and competition
These points can be adjusted so that they apply to specific opponents, specific competition habits, and specific sport challenges. Even when training, the above can be used to test run athletic improvements. Its rewarding and helps keep trainings fresh and focused.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Competition Prep Overview
When I began my work in health and fitness I made a personal commitment to compete in a minimum of 1-2 athletic events each year. This decision is rooted in my own desire to prevent complacency and to keep my perspective fresh, thereby remaining at pace with the requests I make of my clients.
"Winning" is fun, but it is not my primary focus. My competitive purpose is more closely related to personal development and building a foundation of intention, flow and follow-through.
Typically my competition prep is comprised of the following points:
1. Set the intention - what is the specific objective of participating in this event?
2. Set a performance container - from preparation start date to one week after the event, block out the time in which physical preparation, strategy and inner work will occur.
3. While in the performance container make conscious agreements to match the intention in very specific ways. Choose 1-2 successful athletes to "model". Establish a success ritual and choose a mantra that is relevant to performance objectives.
4. While in the performance container do all the planned physical and technical prep, tapering as needed.
5. Compete! - By the day of competition the toughest work has been done. Aim to be in a state of self-directed flow.
6. Debrief one week after the event. Consciously release any inner performance agreements that were made at the start of the container.
This is a very bare bones version of the prep. It can be done as simply as listed above, or in much deeper detail, depending on the time available and the significance of the event. Sometimes it is helpful to create strategy around Real vs Perceived Limits.
Having a competition prep outline is helpful in determining competitive improvement over time. The more competitions there are, the more the relationship with competition evolves.
Regardless of event outcome, digging deep and discovering what is possible is unbeatable.
Special thanks to D.Cody Fielding, T.Thorn Colye, Vince Brown and Mushtaq Ali for their insight on competition strategy, and to Jeff Samson and TJ Burleigh for their recent competitive direction.
Return to CareyRockland.com
"Winning" is fun, but it is not my primary focus. My competitive purpose is more closely related to personal development and building a foundation of intention, flow and follow-through.
Typically my competition prep is comprised of the following points:
1. Set the intention - what is the specific objective of participating in this event?
2. Set a performance container - from preparation start date to one week after the event, block out the time in which physical preparation, strategy and inner work will occur.
3. While in the performance container make conscious agreements to match the intention in very specific ways. Choose 1-2 successful athletes to "model". Establish a success ritual and choose a mantra that is relevant to performance objectives.
4. While in the performance container do all the planned physical and technical prep, tapering as needed.
5. Compete! - By the day of competition the toughest work has been done. Aim to be in a state of self-directed flow.
6. Debrief one week after the event. Consciously release any inner performance agreements that were made at the start of the container.
This is a very bare bones version of the prep. It can be done as simply as listed above, or in much deeper detail, depending on the time available and the significance of the event. Sometimes it is helpful to create strategy around Real vs Perceived Limits.
Having a competition prep outline is helpful in determining competitive improvement over time. The more competitions there are, the more the relationship with competition evolves.
Regardless of event outcome, digging deep and discovering what is possible is unbeatable.
Special thanks to D.Cody Fielding, T.Thorn Colye, Vince Brown and Mushtaq Ali for their insight on competition strategy, and to Jeff Samson and TJ Burleigh for their recent competitive direction.
Return to CareyRockland.com
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