If you failed to accomplish all of the goals you set last season, what adjustments would you like to make this year in response to how last season unfolded? Take out a piece of paper and a pen and write the new season year at the top of the page. I want you to write out some areas you feel compelled to improve in your performance this year. Be sure to focus only on those adjustments that are within your control. Things to consider may include your preparation, your attention to critical details, your competitive drive under pressure, and your focus on and off the track. Be sure to include all four pillars of performance; physical, technical, tactical and mental skills that you believe can be attended to and improved upon.
Once you have completed your list, go through each point and provide a specific example of when that skill was tested the previous year. For example, you could write down for attention to critical details, “In my last race of the season I think I paid too much attention to my opponents and what they were doing, where I should have been focusing on my own race and the next turn.” The more aware you are of when specific improvements could have been made, the more likely you will make the adjustment in the future. This will help provide you with a more contextual base to seek out similar opportunities when they present themselves this year. It is important for us to learn from our experiences and recognize any chance to turn weaknesses into our strengths. These events, however, are not meant to dwell upon. They are valuable insight towards skill development and mastery. One trick to help maintain a more proactive focus is to pay attention to the wording you use in writing out your objectives for this season. You should make specific, action-focused statements of intentions. Always state what you want to happen, and avoid stating what you do not want to happen. Creating a new list at the start of each season is a great way to wipe the slate clean and provide some structure to your performance right from the start. Far too often athletes wait for something to spark their season and give them a reason to find that next gear. This is usually a gamble, as it takes all control out of their hands and leaves fatefulness behind the wheel. Looking inward and deciding for yourself where improvements need to be made and how to go about making them is something that you are in total control of.
Having that clean slate is definitely something that is important to start a season. For some athletes, a clean slate is important to start every race, event or performance. If you find it difficult to get over a missed opportunity or poor performance, this may apply to you. If you find that you lack consistency following success or a poor performance, this may apply to you. If you find yourself reliving or even fearing past events in your performances, it may be important for you to make the conscious effort to wipe the slate clean following every event.
Mental skills tip: Identify a task or an action that takes place almost immediately following a race or event (ie. removing your helmet, drinking a sport drink, changing out of race gear, etc.). Following your performance spend a short amount of time reviewing everything that went well, as well as those things that did not. Try to find a moment to yourself if you can to reflect on everything that just happened. Identify which goals were achieved and which goals need to be adjusted and met in future performances. Once you feel as though all aspects have been reviewed and adjustments have been noted, continue on with that symbolic task. This will represent the end of all retrospective thinking and will pave way to more positive and eager thinking towards your next performance. This helps to practice the art of closure and forward thinking.
If the mind is fixated on something that has already taken place, it occupies valuable space and energy, which could otherwise be used in completing future events to its highest potential. No two performances are exactly alike and your preparation going into every new performance should reflect that. Make it a part of your goal setting this new season to make the effort to view each performance in its own light. Do your very best to attend only to what’s important now in this event. Feel content that you gave all past performances the respect they deserve for all of their successes and failures. However, this is one event that you have never raced before, and in that fact alone it is already different than all the others. Take advantage of this opportunity and prepare that blank slate to be decorated.
Your mental game is busy enough preparing for the performance at hand. It is a very strategic practice to ease the workload of each pillar including our mental performance. The best way to prioritize your mental skill set, for those who have been following along, is to ask yourself “What’s Important Now?” The WIN mentality will always assist you in shifting your focus to where it needs to be.