When or when not to train focus...
That is the question
As we transition into a new year, for this month, we are going to be exploring common mental skills topics and looking at the “timing” of when we should be training them. For this week, we are looking at focus training and important considerations when deciding when focus training can provide optimal benefit to our clients.
QUOTE
“Attention is a limited resource.”
OBSERVATION
Focus is often treated as the solution when performance breaks down.
Coaches are usually good at teaching athletes what to focus on. The target, the read, the cue. Where things fall apart is staying focused on it when the task speeds up or pressure increases.
However, focus training by itself doesn’t bring clarity around the task/performance. It amplifies and strengthens the decision-making around the task that already exists on behalf of our athletes.
When athletes aren’t sure which decision they’re trying to execute, taking them through focus drills doesn’t help the way we think it does. In some cases, it increases self-monitoring or hesitation because attention has nothing stable to attach to. Or, it just stays inconsistent.
ACTIONABLE IDEA
Before introducing any focus strategy, clarify the task and the decision.
Ask the athlete or keep in mind for yourself:
“What is the task right now that you are struggling with?”
“What decision are you trying to make within that task?”
If they can’t answer both clearly, don’t add focus cues yet.
Your job in this instance is to help them identify the decision that matters most in that moment. Have them meet with their coach or have them teach you their responsibilities.
Once that decision-making process is clear, focus training becomes useful because attention now has a specific role. If not, all of our self-talk cues tend to fall more on the motivational side, which is not necessarily focus training.
STOP WHEN
Stop when: the athlete can state the task and the decision without prompting and execute without checking where their attention “should” be.
When you are engaging in focus training to help establish an anchor, recognize when you have reached a good monitoring stage (a.k.a the comment above). From there you can now monitor the focus training and at that point you can progress on to either managing distractions or other presenting concerns the client has.
If they’re still asking what to focus on, our work isn’t focus training, it’s figuring out the decision-making process for that task.
Want more clarity and confidence in your work? Check out the support options at the mental performance institute.
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