Friday, April 24, 2009

Creating Your Mental Game Toolbox. Step Three: POWER PRACTICE SECRETS

The third step of creating your mental game toolbox is POWER PRACTICE SECRETS.

In step one you analyzed what you want, your payoff and what has and hasn't worked for you in the past. In step two, you learned about mental training tools and you should have picked one or more to start. Now, it's time to put them into action.

What's very important is that you have to practice the tools. You wouldn't learn a sports skill (such as in golf) and never do it again until you compete in a tournament. You'd practice that skill so you'd have it when you really needed it. It's the same with business or sales skills.

The best way I've discovered to get results with mental game tools is to create a method of systematic practice. We learn by repetition, so I suggest you create a checklist so you can track your practice and keep yourself accountable. Mental game tool practice can take as little as two minutes each time. If you do that 10 times a day, that's 20 minutes of your daily life that can result in you succeeding under pressure when you need it. In the old days I scheduled practice in my daily paper planner. Now with smartphones, we can set alarms to remind us to practice. Remember, keep practice short so it's easy to do (not easy to skip).

Another tip is to vary your practice. We can get bored doing the same thing over and over again, but making it interesting can keep you on track. Some ideas: if practicing visualization, use different scenarios and if practicing relaxation, practice in different locations.

By keeping your practice frequent, systematic and interesting, you will build a pattern of success.

David Kenward - The Mental Coach thementalcoach.com

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