As If

Dr. L. Michael Hall discussed a concept of "As If". He paraphrases W. T. Gallwey in The Inner Game of Tennis, with an "As If Frame." "Imagine that he is a movie director and you are an actor who plays tennis and you take on and adopt various qualities that I call for as a director. So when you are called to adopt "supreme self-assurance" you just step into that role and play that part." 

When I am in a meeting, I imagine that when speaking, I will speak in support, in opposition with reasons, or seek to get or to add clarity to the discussion. Because I may not have any authority or influence, I remember Del Harris' five levels of communication:

"Go nuts." (Extreme displeasure with unsatisfactory performance or behavior." I have only used "Go nuts" once, when a previous team adopted the fetal position and just let the opposition push them all over the gym. 

When coaching, I want to coach "as if" I am the best coach I can be and seek to become a better version of the coach I am. When I can convince players to play "as if" they are the best they can be and work to become their better version, good things will happen. 

Finding a balance between mindfulness (conscious openness and curiosity) and mindlessness (non-judgmental awareness) creates a tremendous challenge for coaches and players. The former allows us to broaden the scope and depth of our technical, tactical, and relational skills. The latter helps us form and modify our perspective and approach. We constantly work to develop our team's hardware (skill, athleticism, execution) while attentive to their software (decision-making, resilience, emotion, and psychology). The "As If" framework can help us bridge the gaps.