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The Mental Edge
Extra Inning Softball has partnered with former DI softball coach Julie Jones (Akron, Cleveland State) and current Mental Performance and Mindset Coach to help give athletes, coaches and others in the softball world the “Mental Edge.”
Julie spent 26 years leading Division I softball programs with her mission being simple: to build smarter students, stronger athletes and better people.
Today, she also serves as an Adjunct Professor at Ursuline College teaching well-being and performance, mindset training, athletic coaching and career development courses in both the undergraduate and graduate studies programs.
Continuing her work of helping student-athletes reach their goals on and off the field, Julie regularly sends Mindset Made Simple Tips to players and coaches across the country as well as posting them on her site, SSB Performance.
This week’s Mental Edge, Julie Jones emphasizes that newness brings uncertainty. Uncertainty brings discomfort. Discomfort brings…all kinds of stuff: Overthinking, over-analyzing, over-coaching, overdoing, over adjusting…over and over.
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Here we go! Tuesday was the first day of school in our district…hence the delay in getting this Tip produced…and my first day isn’t far behind. New year. New people. New roles. New expectations.
And…like it or not, all this new means new behaviors, new challenges and new adjustments are needed!
Newness brings uncertainty. Uncertainty brings discomfort. Discomfort brings…all kinds of stuff: Overthinking, over-analyzing, over-coaching, overdoing, over adjusting…over and over.
This seems to be the theme this week.
One of my athletes who moved to a new team, is starting a new school and has committed to a great college program is struggling! Another is a new freshman in a new dorm, in a new state, on a new team with new expectations and guess what? She, too, is struggling!
There are many similarities between the two situations, but the one that stands out to me the most is INFORMATION OVERLOAD!
Both athletes are on cognitive high alert. Every new feeling and experience is hitting them like a ton of bricks…and affecting their performance and their well-being.
To cope, athlete #1 is doing more…too much more. She picked up another hitting coach, is hitting the gym and practice facility more and is running full speed into MORE!
Athlete #2 is doing the exact opposite. She is pulling back, isolating herself, trying not to get too connected so she can leave if it becomes too much.
After listening to these scenarios, all I could think about was this: These kids have too many people telling them too many things!
They are both under immense pressure (mainly their own). They both want to do their best. And everyone around them wants to help…so they tell them more…and more…and more!
WHEW!
For one, it has thrown her into overdrive. For the other, it has made her want to sleep!
As we approach a new season, a new sales quarter or a new program, there are a few things we should remember if we want to be our best and if we want to get the best out of those around us and it starts with this: too much information isn’t helpful!
Yes. Communication is vital. Helping people adjust is necessary. And giving instruction is the leader’s job.
But when is it too much? When does a suggestion, an instruction or an observation become one too many?
Athlete #1 hasn’t been performing to her best and she is searching high and low for answers. Everyone and their brother is offering their advice. Her head is spinning.
Athlete #2’s world is spinning so fast, she isn’t sure which end is up, so people are pointing her in any direction they feel will help her move.
Both have no idea where to start. So they keep looking and listening…or freezing!
Everyone is trying to be helpful…they aren’t intentionally sabotaging either kid. But too many suggestions and directions can lead to hesitation, mistakes, and a drop in confidence…and neither need any of these right now.
How can we help them get back to feeling comfortable, consistent and confident?
According to author James Clear, we need to change our focus and here is how. “Focus is the art of knowing what to ignore.”
What? Ignore help? Ignore instruction? Ignore suggestions that could make you better?
Yes…sometimes!
Too much coaching, too many helpful suggestions, and too many choices do not lead to better performance! When we’re bombarded with too many instructions, our ability to make quick, effective decisions on what is critical for success is impaired. Too many suggestions and directions can create what is known as cognitive overload. Our brain gets overwhelmed by information. When this happens, the brain’s ability to process and apply the information effectively diminishes. As they say, a full mind is an empty bat!
Too many thoughts, too much to do, and too many “important things” don’t allow us to do anything one thing well.
A study published in the Journal of Applied Sport Psychology found that athletes who focused on one or two key performance indicators (KPIs) performed better than those who tried to juggle multiple goals. The study concluded that “narrowing focus to critical areas of improvement can enhance performance by reducing cognitive load and increasing mental clarity.”
FOCUS. What are the one or two things that will make the most significant difference?
Does it matter if you get your foot down, keep your front shoulder in, keep your weight back and use your bat speed if you aren’t looking at the ball?
If a hitter is focused on all these instructions while trying to hit a moving object with a moving object, he is toast! The more things he TRIES to do at once, the less attention each of them gets, and the less effective he is at everything! Top that off with the fact that he is TRYING…not responding to the environment and allowing his training to take over.
How often are we victims of TOO MUCH INFORMATION? Go to any kid’s game and you’ll hear it…from the coach, their teammates and their parents. EVERYONE is full of suggestions.
I hope the player isn’t listening!
Years ago I read Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less, by Greg McKeown. I knew if I was to succeed in building my own business, I needed to SIMPLIFY since I tend to do everything I am arguing against in this TIP!! I needed…and still need to keep the main thing the main thing! McKeown advocates for stripping away the non-essential to focus on what truly matters. We know the adage “Keep It Simple, Stupid” and yet we can’t help ourselves!
Simplicity often leads to success. What can we remove from our focus, so we are more…focused?
“The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak,” said artist Hans Hofmann. Imagine if an artist kept adding to his work. In the end, it would be a jumbled mess. That is where are when we seek, offer or ingest too much information! By cutting through the noise, we can concentrate on the few things that will make the most significant impact.
Before you perform, where does your focus need to be? Does it need to be on your opponent? On the ball? Are you listening for the gun or watching for the light? What is MOST IMPORTANT?
Many factors increase the likelihood of success. But if a player is standing at the ball and thinking about a million mechanical or outcome-based pieces of information, he or she is not focused on what needs to be done RIGHT NOW to do his or her job.
As they say, it is impossible to focus on the goal and the means at the same time!
“RIGHT NOW” changes quickly and what is most important may change, too. To be flexible enough to move to the next W.I.N (what’s important now?) factor, there is no room for too much! Remember, too much slows us down. I like to say that when we look ahead we rush. When we look behind, we lag. When we look now, we see!
We have talked often about Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the psychologist behind the concept of “flow.” To enter this state…the place we all want to be…he says we must be fully immersed in a task, where distractions fade and performance peaks. In Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, he argues that achieving this state requires a clear set of goals and immediate feedback, not a barrage of conflicting instructions. When athletes are inundated with too many cues or suggestions, their ability to enter flow diminishes, and their performance suffers.
We’re just trying to help…and it backfires!
How can we simplify and avoid information overload like my two athletes?
First, we must keep the main thing the main thing. Yes, there are subpoints to the main point, but our mind can only digest one thought at a time. We must identify the most critical areas of focus in our training or leadership. What are the one or two things that will make the most significant difference? As I like to put it, what is the critical success factor?
Then, we must reign in our tendency to say too much (Hello pot, this is the kettle calling!) Whether you’re a coach or an athlete, we must resist the urge to pile on advice. We must also resist the urge to go down the rabbit hole of more and more and more information. We are much better if we can focus on one key instruction at a time, allowing time for mastery before moving on to the next.
Let’s not forget about the #1 way to reduce uncertainty: routines! Routines create a sense of structure and reduce the mental load required to make decisions. By simplifying our routines, you free up mental energy to focus on performance. Knowing what we will do…a simple “when…then” plan, prepares us before pressure and increases our chance of performing through the tough stuff.
In my pitch for mental training, I often use the phrase, “Our tools will help you use your talent and training to their fullest!” Yes, preparation is essential, but when it comes time to perform, trusting your training and instincts is the secret of champions. We know what to do then we talk or think ourselves out of it. Overthinking leads to hesitation and mistakes.
Finally, instead of judging our performance and looking for new information, new tactics, new techniques, let’s evaluate! Judging is full of guilt. Evaluating is for learning. After each training session or performance, take time to reflect on what worked and what didn’t, what caused these things to be, what we need to repeat and adjust and how can help us refine our focus and simplify our approach further.
We tend to throw the baby out with the bathwater as my Pappy used to say, and want a complete redo. This causes unnecessary stress and exhaustion…mentally and physically. There is always something to repeat…and there is always something we can tweak. Let’s keep that something to ONE THING and simplify.
When we are looking for everything and anything, this is an indicator that we need to focus on the ONE THING…then the next thing, but not all things at once! That is a recipe for disaster…just ask my athletes how it was working for them.
Manage the moments ONE THING at a time!
Julie
To learn more from Julie check out her social media sites below; to contact her personally, she can be reached via email at: juliej@ssbperformance.com
View more inspiring articles by Julie Jones:
August 18: The Mental Edge: What Are You Looking At? Lessons Learned From the Olympics and a Funeral!
August 11, 2024: The Mental Edge: Why You Should Utilize Two Peak Performance Tools You’ve Seen at the Olympics!
August 4, 2024: The Mental Edge: Harnessing the Power of Breath: Lessons Learned On a Run With My Son
July 28, 2024: The Mental Edge: When Did “Standards” Become Old-School? Three Ways to Make Them Mod!
July 21, 2024: The Mental Edge: I Believe in Mental Performance Training, But How Do I Get My Team To Buy It, Too?
July 14, 2024: The Mental Edge: What Our 12U Championship Taught Me About Pressure!
July 7, 2024: The Mental Edge: It’s 12U Baseball. And I Still Lose My Mind! Three Ways to Keep Your Cool On the Field and Off!
June 30, 2024: The Mental Edge: Time. I Could Be Better at Managing Mine. How About You?
June 24, 2024: The Mental Edge: Words Become Pictures. Use Them to Enhance Your Performance!
June 16: 2024: The Mental Edge: It’s Evaluation Time and We Need a New Approach
June 9: 2024: The Mental Edge: Times are Changing, Whether You Asked for it or Not
May 26: 2024: The Mental Edge: Handling the Inevitable Changes in our Lives
May 20: 2024: The Mental Edge: The Effects of Cognitive Distortions
May 12, 2024: The Mental Edge: How We Communicate Matters
May 5, 2024: The Mental Edge: Developing a Plan to Deal with Pressure