We start the playoffs tonight. Last night at practice, I had two purposes - focusing on half-court trap solutions and zone offense and stoking the confidence of the team. "Confidence comes from proven success" and with a 21-3 record, they deserve to be confident.
We control our minds. Our minds control our responses. We can recognize a challenge as "nervousness" or excitement about performing. We determine whether commitment means reaching for a loose ball or diving on it like a rat on cheese.
But matching the degree of "arousal" to the desired performance matters, too.
Here are five quick ways to optimize that arousal level.
1. Listening to music. Why do you see so many professional athletes wearing their 'Beats' before contests? Many use music to regulate their stimulus.
2. Meditation. If noise is one solution, then quiet is another. Everyone determines upon what to focus.
3. Visualization. What we see "mentally" becomes real. Neurolinguistic programming affords us another means to optimal ends. We can isolate emotion from reality by imagining ourselves in a photograph or painting of our situation. Conversely, we can imagine ourselves in another venue. I imagine sitting under an umbrella at the beach, shielded from the warm sun, a light breeze off the ocean, and seagulls squawking overhead. Jason Selk, in "Ten-Minute Toughness" advises developing a "highlight reel" of personal great performances.
4. Muscle relaxation. Stress balls really can work, but according to Performing Under Pressure, they must be used with the left hand.
5. Focus on the process not the result. The more you have "automated" the process, the better the likely result. Last night we had "3 sessions" of free throw shooting. I counseled one group that I had a pre-shot routine of 3 dribbles, breathe out, and shoot. But I organized the process last night, closed my eyes, and made the shot. They need to learn 'the feel' of the perfect shot. Practicing some elements of basketball with your eyes closed helps "automate" the process.