Welcome to today’s special interview on “The Power of Our Thoughts: Upon reading this post, one can find “How Our Inner Dialogue Affects Our Tennis Performance.”
Players to watch are Bane Bradonic a best PTCA Master Professional, Psychologist and specialist in mental strength who have coached so many players to break their barriers to the mind to achieve greatness. This is the 1st of two articles that present this idea. The next one will upload tomorrow, don’t wait for it. Good moves meant mastering staying on course for a long time – do you?
Hakan Dahlbo: We will begin with a definition of this matter. : How much of a part do thoughts play in the game of tennis?
Bane Bradonic: It is really interesting that our thoughts, Hakan, are so influential. They not only drive the performance, but also the ways and perceptions in which people see themselves and their assets. Sports psychologists have found that the can speak to ourselves, and the words that come out of our head can either help us play or hinder. Negative thought can make a chain reaction that includes doubts or fears, which will in turn influence the physical actions that are later performed. On the other hand, positive self talk can energizes us and thus we play with more freeness and, or aggressiveness.
Hakan Dahlbo: The case is that a lot of players suffer from negative self-talk or comments in the stress. Why do we, as the intelligent beings we are allow ourselves to be taken over by such thoughts?
Bane Bradonic: Self negativity involves thinking patterns that are developed from previous experiences, and the negative belief system. To many players, such patterns are attributed to childhood play characteristically, probably due to earlier failure or critical remark. When someone is pressured to perform, subconscious automatically retrieves those past occurrences and results in negativity such as thinking “I will miss this shot” or “I always do poorly when under pressure.” This is an immature defense mechanism, whereby a person creates a self- fulfilling prophecy and thus prepares to fail.
Hakan Dahlbo: It sounds like a cycle that is nearly impossible to escape. In what ways can players begin to do this and can one actually replace negative self talk with positive?
Bane Bradonic: The eradication of such habits and hence pulling out from this cycle begins with sensitization. Players have to know when they are being negative to themselves and how it is coming out. From there they are able to start questioning of these thoughts. Is it always so that the Verder missed under pressure? Probably not. To keep these thoughts in check they need to be replaced with more positive ones such as “I have been able to perform under pressure in the past, I can do it again.” It is not until a player starts practice that he or she can gradually change their thinking pattern from one that brings a negative influence on their performance to one that fosters performance.
Hakan Dahlbo: You’ve talked of subconscious mind and how it contributes to a person’s actions. Can you please describe how enhanced one’s thinking process is during the match and how do the conscious and the subconsciously work?
Bane Bradonic: Absolutely. Conscious mind can be best described as a player who is normally aware of the game, making decisions and making changes to the strategies. No — it is calculated and conscious. Instead, the subconscious mind is like the cruise control, or autopilot, so to speak: people’s temper or the swing or even the reaction to a fast serve which comes out of a training. This is an interesting issue which comes into play when your sub-consciousness is full of negative patterns, may be learnt from your experiences. Your conscious self may desire change but the subconscious part of your mind will take you back to energy-draining behavior. In order to enhance, there needs to be a synchronization between these two parts of the mind, so that the subconscious self has only positive things to say and believe in.
Hakan Dahlbo: That makes sense. However, how is a player able to rewrite the program in their subconscious mind to aid his or her game?
Bane Bradonic: The process of reprogramming the subconscious mind is a slow one and takes a lot of time, and is done by the constant reinforcement of ideas. The human subconscious mind is like clay – by forming a good picture in it every day on how to performs well under pressure, then such picture is formed. Another procedure is using affirmations, that can be said are effective. Any kind of affirmation telling something like, “I am confident and composed under pressure,” in daily life can work step by step to rewrite the negative messages stored in the subconscious. Just like how you jog in the morning, and have a shower in the evening it’s the same way with your mind: Say no today, and you will start doing it tomorrow.
Hakan Dahlbo: So it’s really about developing a new habit in the mind?
Bane Bradonic: Exactly. Just as you can rehearse your strokes or your serve until you get them automatically correct, you must condition yourself to keep thinking and responding positively and to maintain mental toughness. The more the person does this, the more his subconscious mind accepts such positive patterns and they become natural to him out on the court.
Hakan Dahlbo: That’s fascinating. In which manner do personal conceptions and attitudes affect perceiving and responding to certain occurrences in a match?
Bane Bradonic: We have cognitive frameworks which we use to make interpretations of all occurrences that happen on the court. If your self-talk has convinced you that you’re not good in the third set, pretty soon you will start seeing comedies out of even good shots as proof of it. This can cause a vicious cycle, in which you begin to center your thoughts on negativity and this just strengthens that belief. On the other hand, if you actually are confident about it beyond the third set, you’re most likely to focus on the strengths like how you drew a fewsets in the past. Such faith will assist you in keeping off the pressure hence maintaining peace which is vital for success under the pressure.
Hakan Dahlbo: They learn that is it as important to master the psychological aspect of the game as it is the physical skills aspect. Looking at the various tips given above what message do you have for players who want to begin stopping their mental game today?
Bane Bradonic: Some advice that I have would be to start small and give yourself grace. Start paying attention to how you speak to yourself, particularly in times of stress. If you notice yourself having negative thoughts, stop and turn those around. Use visualization techniques prior to matches to rehearse success mentally; Use positive affirmations as part of your daily routine. And above all, be consistent. Most theories relating to mental training suggest regular practice, similar to physical training, is the only way to make such training worthwhile. With time, you will realize that you not just feel confident on the court but your game would also elevate.
Hakan Dahlbo: That’s solid advice, Bane. Thank you for your insights today. I know our readers will find this conversation really helpful as they strive to master the physical and mental components of tennis.
Hakan Dahlbo: And I’m sure it will. Thanks again, Bane, and good luck to all of our readers as they are inspired to apply these lessons and take their tennis game to the next level, from the inside out.
Tennis World USA