02/27/02 More on the Mental Edge (continued)...
Welcome to Part II of "More on the Mental Edge". To recap from the last related column, I'm convinced that having the mental edge is the key to becoming a better darter (of course natural ability helps and you have to have the basics of dart throwing down pat, i.e. the stance, stroke, release, understanding of the games and strategy). In my quest to understand this concept I've recently read "The Mental Edge - Maximize Your Sports Potential" by Kenneth Baum, with Richard Trubo. His strategies work for any athlete or darter and I'll illustrate his comments with dart specific examples that I am familiar with firsthand.
Here are two of the first things that Ken discusses. "If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten". What this means is that you're not going to get any better simply because you keep playing. You must make an effort to learn and apply new techniques to gain the advantage of the mental edge.
Secondly, Ken writes "Bodies work perfectly; the mind gets in the way". You've hit every triple on the board...when you've got one dart in your hand and you miss that game shot there is no doubt in my mind that "the mind" has gotten in the way. Your body knows how to throw the dart and what to do, you just need to mentally be able to focus your mind so the body can do its thing. Hence, "bodies work perfectly; the mind gets in the way".
A couple of notes...Ken suggests you must spend 15 to 20 minutes a week to the Mental Edge and that you WILL play better. "You also need to believe that improvement is possible."
On to maximizing your potential because Ken clearly states that "If you make a commitment to the Mental Edge your performance will improve, and you'll have more fun as it happens - no matter what your present level..."
"Limitations are Temporary": When you begin throwing darts you may have picked up the game pretty quickly. Sooner or later you're going to hit that frustrating plateau or slump. All darters go through this and you're going to reach different levels of plateaus as your performance improves. This is okay and having the mental edge will help you progress through these frustrating periods. You've got to believe that "limitations are temporary".
"Anyone Can Play Any Sport Better": I assume this is a given but you've got to believe that anyone, and specifically yourself, can improve your performance as a darter. Anyone and everyone can play better darts (yes, even Dennis Priestly).
"Events Have No Meaning Except What You Give Them": Most dart players experience nerves at some point whether from playing that first singles match, to the first blind draw, the first dart tournament, or simply any match against another opponent when you really want to do well and win. The basics of throwing darts are the same every time you play...the stance, the stroke, the release. "Nothing really changes except the meaning we give it. We are the ones who pressurize the situation by mentally approaching it in a different way. The pressure comes only from within." The goal of gaining that mental edge is understanding and believing that events have no meaning except what we give them, and as a darter YOU can learn to eliminate that stress, or use it to play better.
"Getting Better is More Important Than Winning": Somewhere along the line, especially after losing, someone has probably told you that winning doesn't count, it's the way you play the game. It's true and you've got to believe the getting better is more important than winning. Some athletes are so focused on winning that they involve themselves in destructive behaviour such as steroid use (not that I know any darters who use steroids to improve their game). Some darters don't think they are any good at all unless they have won and they let it ruin their whole evening, or blind-draw experience, or tournament weekend. The goal is to reach toward your potential, focus on getting better and becoming your best. And as you work on becoming better the winning part will come more naturally.
"Practice Like You Play": Some people are lucky enough to have a natural ability. Most of the rest of us "need to work a lot more intensively". You've got to practice the way you want to perform, because that's the way you will perform. How many of you honestly concentrate on practicing your games every single week? League and blind-draw play is not practice. Practicing is an exercise that you need to work on separately. If you play cricket in league then you've got to practice playing cricket. If you play '301 and '501 then you've got to practice playing those games, and hitting the outs to win those games. You can't practice throwing only bulls-eyes and expect for your overall game performance to improve. You've got to practice what you play, and like you play.
"The More You Expect From a Situation, The More You Will Achieve": Ken writes that "modest expectations tend to produce modest results". When you approach the line, tell yourself "I am going to do this". Don't limit yourself with negative self-talk such as "how can I hit two triples?" or "I've never shot 2 double-bulls to win a game so I probably won't be able to do it now either". Most of us engage in negative self-talk without even realizing it, I know that I do. "Don't miss the diddle like you did last time!" "How could you miss hitting a simple single number for game shot?" Negative self-talk can leave you feeling "anxious and afraid". These negative messages are communicated to your sub-conscious and effect your game. You've got to turn the negative self-talk around, and the more you expect from a situation, the more you will achieve.
The next topic Ken writes about is "Defining Your Desire". In order to get better, to improve your performance, to achieve more, to win more, you've got to create what he calls "your own desire statement". A coach for the Dallas Cowboys has said "It's a dream until you write it down. Then it's a goal." This is the exercise that I'm going to leave you with today, so grab a pen and some paper and let's get started.
- Write down one or two (but no more than two) limiting beliefs that you have regarding your performance playing darts. Examples of limiting beliefs are "I can't hit a Ton 80", "I can't hit multiple bulls-eyes or a hat trick", "when playing in cricket in league and my opponent opens with 3 triples, there is no way that I can also hit three triples" or "I can't win a game of single-out '301 game with a double even if it means I could win the game because I've only got one dart left, and the out happens to be a double". These are just examples of limiting beliefs. Write down one or two, and no more than two of YOUR limiting beliefs.
- Write down five positive beliefs such as "I think quickly at the line", "I understand most of the outs required to win a game with a three dart out", "I'm good at hitting bulls-eyes" or "I understand the strategies of the games". Again, these are just examples. Your exercise is to actually "write down" five of YOUR positive beliefs.
- Read these beliefs aloud. Yes, you read correctly! I'll wait here and listen while you finish this part. Read these positive beliefs aloud because they are helping to prepare you for "greater performances in the future".
- Next, write down your desire statement. "Dream a little. Stretch yourself." Write down a positive desire statement! You can be as general as "I want to throw more triples in cricket" or as detailed as "I want to throw a 6 round cricket game in league".
- Write a reward statement. The reward statement may be the result of your desire statement such as "I will be the team MVP" or "I will place in the Top 3 in a tournament singles match".
- Read aloud your positive belief statements every single day (yes, aloud) and take the time to review your desire and reward statements every day of the coming weeks. (Make this a priority and write yourself a note if you have to.)