coachmaxi

“What is your purpose at practice?” So asks former NFL player (and now coach) Deion Sanders. Here Sanders, in his own unique, energising, vibrant way…is asking athletes to engage in deliberate practice. To have a purpose (or a set of purposes)… Deliberate Practice…the work of the late, great Anders Ericsson asks players to have specific goals for their game whenever they practice… Deliberate Practice can include: -specific objectives relevant to your game -objectives can be stretched and tough to attain -a focus on these objectives as you train and practice -obtaining feedback from coaches (or significant others) -reflection on the objectives after practice is complete “What is your purpose at practice?”

Seven (possible) myths of high performance sport for ambitious competitors: 👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻 1. “Train like you play” Possible reality: training (and practice) is an opportunity to engage with meta-skills. To think about thinking and to think about behaviours. It’s also an opportunity to practice deliberately (in a controlled, thoughtful environment with specific, focused goals). Both inject a cognitive load that will (likely) slow players down. Training is not (always) playing. 2. “Prepare to play your best game” Possible reality: prepare to play your best game and prepare to play your best possible game. Human beings are too complex and sport is too complicated to focus purely on preparing to play best games. Players need frameworks, approaches, techniques, and tools to deal with tough days, ‘C’ games, the uncontrollables, and the human challenges competition demands. 3. “Grind your way to the top” Possible reality: deliberate practice is more important than amount of practice. Ambitious competitors may be better served practicing with specific, measurable objectives in mind…that involves feedback and contextually-relevant repetition. An emphasis on quantity and quality feels a nice mix for any ambitious sporting competitor. 4. “You have to be single-minded” Possible reality: ambitious competitors would do well to make the right lifestyle decisions for their game. The right lifestyle decisions can include activities that help competitors rest, recuperate, and enjoy other interests. World class competitors at the adult elite end of sport don’t necessarily have to live in a personal, social, and cultural vacuum devoid of outside influences. 5. “To win you gotta really want to win” Possible reality: ambitious competitors are motivated to action in multiple ways. Some players compete better when they give-in to their yearning to win. Other competitors find it easier to explore their optimal mental state when they engage with the notions of joy and fun. Further still, some players love the thrill of moving and simple pleasure of engaging in their sport. Competition is never straightforward and a relaxed, focused mindset is rarely underpinned uni-dimensionally. 6. “Talent doesn’t matter…” Possible reality: there are very many competitors across all sports who live at the top of world rankings or who make millions a year who may have a tendency towards… …laziness, social unpleasantries such as gossip, being close to uncoachable, poor teamwork, lacking leadership ability, distractions… ….simply because they have a lot of skill in their hands or feet, or are perceptual-cognitively brilliant. Talent matters! 7. “You must be coachable…” Possible reality: some of the world’s greatest sporting competitors are monstrously difficult to coach. They know their own mind, they know their own movements, they feel what you and I can’t, they see what others can’t and won’t. Uncoachable players can help ambitious coaches become better coaches.