What's on the RADAR

What's up?? Well, heaps so I will share and attempt to make sense or connection between what I am experiencing, seeing and exploring.

Stages of performance have been something I have considered a lot lately. The poster below I thought was a great simple reminder of these stages. It ain't perfect but works for me. The concept I have played around with includes three perspective like the image below. On top pre-challenge, in it and on top post challenge. Having looked at CRISIS experiences that have related to my own and others I have observed it is fascinating to think about how our mind set, emotions and the manifestation play out physically. The below image came from a blog site by Tom Fishburne, but I can't find who he referred to who created this image.



Stage of grief can be considered along with change models. To bring this back to my rowing. I share preparation, connection and release. It seems to me the simple cycle of what we do in the boat. Actually I can't think of a sport that doesn't uses this cycle. A golfer at the level of hitting a ball, but also at the level of a round, and and event and even a season. Prep, connect, release underlines surfing too. Paddling out in preparation for a wave. The scanning, moving, shifting, motion that set's us up to pivot and surge into the wall of water. The connection comes as the energy on the wave and surfer meet and begin to realise the possibility. The possiblity of unity. Connection is expressed through wave and rider engaging in a dance, a play, a moment. The release comes when the one becomes two again and the surge subsides and fall's away to leave the lingering sense of wonder. Wonder for what has been, for what has come, for what was, and wonder for what will be. What will be is future orientated and surfer like golfer, like rower anticipate the effect, the result or the connection. As I said this simple cycle appears to to me to relate to every activity I can think of. The image above I like because if you overlay it prep and stay calm, connection now this is the freak out but in the moment one of a few things occur. Freak out is one, thrive is another. Freeze is there as a possibility so how we see the connection and how we react, live with or anticipate is another thing. Release and get excited I like because no matter what happens we have the power and capacity to see and respond to our experiences in a way that best serves us and those around us. Unfortunately habit and conditioning can rule and being unconscious of how we judge or experiences and the impact of these judgments is dramatic. Worth considering, I know during the initial phase of getting my back injury in Beijing it was critical for me to stay positive and excited which for two days I struggled with until I woke up to the fact that I was creating the nightmare through my judgment of how bad it was to be having it happen at the games. Getting excited and looking forward to the next moments of connection being each race and in each race, each stroke was so basic, simple and fundamental to performing the best I could and to combining with Duncan.

Having worked with many clients recently where it seems just by simply reminding them of what matters most and them learning to keep it at the surface of awareness can have a huge impact on performance. It is like self talk for athletes, reminders and motto's which hold meaning. Even reading through them or considering them can keep things on track. The article below has another perspective on this and points to research. The book, Predictably Irrational I read during the build up to Beijing and found it to be a great prompter and support for our own mind set.

Call the Mission - article page

The institutional approach to selecting people, athletes, idea's etc is concerning I think. If the above article points to a way of harnessing great possibilities in people then the Cartoon below by Tom Fishburne shows us when it is taken to far to the level of squeezing out, cutting down and marginalising people and things to such a degree as to drain the life of out it and us.

Point of Difference - Tom Fishburne

Sport is heading down a dangerous path. Cloning is occurring at a great rate. The most obvious thing I can think of is selection. The easiest thing to see is the first and often the last thing we look for. It can mean we become focused on the obvious, the most visible and to be frank the lazy and easy things. This may not make sense, but copying something means your a copy. Reducing something or someone down is a reduction. Starving people and idea's of their uniqueness creates poverty. Wanting things to be the same becomes dull because eventually the controlling aspect play's out the only way it can. It all becomes average. We become average and our idea's become average.

I have jumped around here, but the various stages of performance combined with clear reminders of what matters most, but not all the matters is critical and maintaining our unique shape and the boldness of our imagination is essential for a rich life.

This has been about showing and sharing some of the thing that have been on my RADAR and making some connection and linkages.

Comments

rowingflip said…
Drew,
I am well past the "Panic" poster.
Could we please have a "pass the dunny paper " poster next !!
Batters

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