Effort, Support & Learning

In the previous post, we discussed why praising athletes “shamelessly” might foster the Fixed Mindset. That does not mean we should hold back praises. Instead, we may want to be more deliberate in reinforcing the actual effort that leads to learning (rather than ability), and to mix up external praises with process based feedback.

The objective for this post is similar to the last one – to provide anyone in a coaching role (you could be a teacher or parent) with strategies that will help their athletes foster a mindset that pushes one to train consistently, cope with inevitable failures and to bounce back even stronger and better.

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Why ‘Good Job’ is not good enough…

Ever came across “positive” coaches who praise athletes for almost anything they do? I vividly remembered a rollerblading coach who was constantly praising kids even when they performed the drills incorrectly. There was this one kid who told her that he needed to leave early and her reply was “Good Job! Go ahead”.

How is leaving early deserving of praise I wondered…

“Why Good Job is not Good enough…” 

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Ground Fantasies in Reality

This is somewhat a continuation from the previous post where I ended with the question “Does that mean we should not set big goals and dream big?”

Conventional self-help literature teaches us that we can achieve anything by just thinking positively, and if we are going to think ahead, we might as well think positive and think big!

We are often taught to ignore the cynics, get rid of negative thinking, and to “Dream the Impossible”. Friends or associates who offer pragmatic advice are often labelled as “dream killers” or “haters”.

“The substituting of a kind of ”positive hypnotism” for a previous habit of “negative hypnotism” may appear at least to have short-range benefits, but I have always found that the honeymoon ends all too soon.” – Tim Gallwey, creator of The Inner Game

Ironically, from my experience working with athletes and numerous research studies, “positive thinking” is one of the main culprits that often hinders the progress and potential of athletes.

What the Science Tells us…

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