Focus & Concentration
“Ninety percent of my game is mental. It is my concentration that has gotten me this far.”
-Chris Evert, Tennis champion
This thing runs, but cannot walk, sometimes sings, but never talks. Lacks arms, has hands; lacks a head but has a face. What is it?
Did you have think about it for a minute? Did you have to concentrate, perhaps? Concentration – the intensity of our attention – is the tool we use to understand, learn and solve problems in our everyday lives. As an athlete, it is also something you use during key moments in competition.
SPORTS-RELATED CONCENTRATION
These are all examples of moments when you must concentrate. So how do we concentrate? We do this by focusing on cues and maintaining focus. Focusing on the right cues involves ignoring irrelevant information and attending to only the cues that are important to the success of your performance. Sometimes you can ignore almost everything else and focus on just one or two cues. Other times, you must constantly react to changing action and require a broader focus. Also, your focus should alternate between your environment (external focus) and what’s going on with your mind and body (internal focus). No matter what sport you play, you will find yourself rotating between these types of focuses.
Something to Think About
Most sports require the ability to alternate between different types of focus. Come up with some examples in your sport when your focus might shift from one attention style to the next.
Types of Focus
Narrow: focusing on only a few things
Broad: focusing on many things at once
Internal: focusing on your own mind and body
External: focusing on your environment
Every athlete has their own preferred style of attentional focus. As the pressure of competition increases, athletes tend to play to default to this style. Some over-analyze their performance within the game to the point where they no longer trust their instincts. Other more instinctive athletes may react too quickly and rush their decisions.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Concentration is important to care about because it is a way that athletes can improve performances that is completely in their own control.
The Two Phenomena of Concentration:
“The Zone” vs. “Choking”
A prolonged level of peak performance, also known as “the zone”, is what every athlete strives to reach. Have you ever been in the zone? It’s sort of like the question, “Have you ever been in love?” If you have, you know you have. If you’re unsure, then the answer is probably “no.” When you are in the zone, it feels like you can do no wrong. Your confidence is soaring and the pace of the game slows down just a little bit in your mind. (Think of Neo from the movie “The Matrix”!)
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF
“THE ZONE”
Have you ever been
in “the zone”?
Sometimes an athlete can do everything right and still fail. Their focus is on the right things and their concentration level is on point. On occasion though, the importance of the situation may affect an athlete in such a way that their performance deteriorates, and they are incapable of regaining control over their focus while under pressure. This is known as “choking.” Choking is a process. It does not happen immediately. Rather, little by little, an athlete will begin to lose focus on important cues and begin to think about irrelevant things. The size of the crowd, the significance of the game – these are just examples. Even worse, they begin to lose trust in their ability to get the job done. Their confidence is challenged. They feel their muscles tighten. Once concentration is weakened, distracting information gets into the mind. Thinking about these distractions, whether internal feelings or external circumstances, reduces focus, and consequently, your performance.
“Paralysis by Analysis”
This happens to athletes
who “choke” and over-
think to the point that
they are unable let their
instincts take over.
The Tools To Improve
Proven methods to raise your level of concentration and focus. Trust us. They work.
Techniques to Promote Selective Attention Objective: Learn these steps.
1. Attend to the present.
2. Attend to effort not outcome.
3. Simplify, do not complicate.
4. Be aware of what is important in the skill or situation.
5. Minimize distractions and uncertainty.
6. Develop a performance protocol or routine.
Picture This.
Objective: Maintain a mental image. Twice a day, practice holding a specific object in your mind steadily for 5 to 10 minutes: a hockey puck, your lacrosse stick, a baseball, your dog – whatever. Ready? Now close your eyes. Call up a strong mental image of it. See it in detail. Try to keep your focus on the object for a full 5 or 10 minutes without losing your focus. Every minute or so, rotate the image to see it from a different angle. This is hard to do at the beginning because your mind isn’t trained for it. Random thoughts and pictures may keep popping into your head, and you’ll have to keep pulling your attention back to the object again. Don’t let this stop you! Remember, the only reason you struggle with this is because you don’t have a strong ability to focus yet. After all, Luke Skywalker did not become a great Jedi overnight! The more you do this, the better you will get. Pretty soon, you’ll notice that your concentration will improve in other areas as well. Also helps: Stress Management & Mental Stamina
Tune Out.
Objective: Use the power of music. Throw on some headphones before the game to get your mind right. This can benefit you in two ways. First, it can help you focus by keeping out external distractions. Secondly, a well-selected playlist can help you “psych up” or relax, whatever works best for you. Also helps: Stress Management
The “Anything Goes” Game.
Objective: Block out distractions. You probably have seen basketball games where the fans are going nuts right in front of the opposing player as he is trying to shoot a free throw. They wave balloons, hold up signs, etc. Well, short of hiring 100 extras, how can you recreate this? Get two or three of your teammates together, and have them do whatever they want to distract you. The only rules are that they can’t touch you, and they can’t directly impede your task (like tackling you mid-free throw). Other than that, they are free to say or do whatever they want. They can stand right behind you and whisper jokes in your ear or YELL! As the name of the game will tell you, anything goes. This doesn’t have to be limited to basketball either. Think of any aspect of your sport that requires complete focus and practice this activity. Have fun with it!
Anybody Got Quarters?
Objective: Improve focus. We’ve all played it before. But wouldn’t it be nice if we can get something more out of it than bragging rights? What we’re talking about is arguably the greatest arcade game of all time – air hockey. Talk about an exercise in focus! Of course when someone beats you, it’s luck, right? But in order for you to win, you must focus on the puck, react quickly, and anticipate where it’s going to go. First one to seven wins!
Also Helps: Mental Stamina & Decision Sepeed
King Me
Objective: Improve focus & mental stamina. Challenge someone to a game of checkers or chess. Both these games require intense focus and the ability to anticipate. Also helps: Mental Stamina & Decision Speed
Then Tune It Down.
Objective: Listen closely. The next time you watch television, turn the volume down so that it is barely audible. This forces you to focus more on the show so that you can hear what is being said.
Get Your Monk On.
Objective: Quiet your thoughts. Okay, so you probably don’t have time to go to a monastery on the top of some mountain on the other side of the world, but luckily, you don’t have to. Simply set aside 5 or 10 minutes a day to focus on quieting your thoughts. While you really can’t completely empty your mind of thoughts, you can detach from them and simply let them pass on by. You’re aware that you’re having thoughts, but you don’t latch on to them and start actively “thinking” about them. You simply sit in a space of peace and being while your thoughts flow calmly past. This experience is hard to describe, but once you master it you’ll have discovered a powerful technique for releasing stress and improving your focus in a very short period of time! If it helps, make a list of everything you can think of that you need to remember before you do this exercise. This will help you feel more comfortable about releasing your scattered thoughts. Also helps: Stress Management
EXACT Sports Plan for Success
Think about some short and long term goals when it comes to concentration and focus, and then complete the following sentences.
In the next week, I would like to
In the next month, I would like to
By the end of the season, I would like to
Before next season, I would like to
Mental Checklist.
Objective: Review what you must do. A good way to get yourself focused on what you need to do in order to play well is to make a mental checklist and review it before you play. Make good passes, use your legs on defense, keep the ball down, etc. Reminding yourself, and focusing on these objectives, will help you concentrate on game- related tasks before the game instead of being distracted by random thoughts or looking up into the crowd. Also helps: Confidence & Competitiveness
Final Thoughts.
Concentration and focus are super important no matter what sport you play. The key is to focus, then execute. Never take a play off. Imagine the intense focus and concentration a hockey goalie must demonstrate during a power play for the other team. Not easy to do! Listen, we know. We’ve been there too. As you get older, school gets harder, practice is more demanding, and you may have a part-time job. Your mind must be racing like Jeff Gordon at the Daytona 500. But a head full of scattered thoughts can also be a focus-killer. Take care of your off-the-field business Ahead of time So your mind is clear come game time