Visualize Your Way to Success

October 24, 2005

By Patrick J. Ryan

Today, most sports psychologists would argue that as much

as 60 to 90 percent of success in sports is due to mental training. Of course, this is not to say that visualization is a secret "silver bullet" long sought by athletes. Athletic excellence still involves (and always will) the learning and practice of physical skills, and a degree of individual talent.

But beyond the necessary physical preparation, mental

practice can give the professional and amateur athlete

alike an added edge. Furthermore, it is important to

remember that sports is like an activity in that

visualization can help improve your skill.

There are essentially three basic ways that you can use visualization in sports (or any other endeavor).

In one type, mission or goal visualization, you imagine

already having achieved the desired outcome. In other

words, what would you see, hear, and feel if your outcome became a reality?

In the second type, mental rehearsal, you mentally practice

the steps necessary to achieve your outcome.

The third type, corrective visualization, involves the use

of imagination to mentally correct mistakes as soon as

possible after making them.

To illustrate how a normal, recreational athlete can use

each of these techniques, I will use a personal example. I

play in a competitive co-ed volleyball league; in the

division in which I play, the average age of the male

players is approximately 30. However, the average male age

on our team is about 50.

One of the reasons that we have remained competitive in

that division (we even won it once) is our use of mental practice.

Following is the ten minute routine that I personally use before each game. This is a routine that can successfully be used by you in whatever sports or activities you participate. However, like all of these suggestions, you must to go through the complete process if it is to be effective.

I sit in an easy chair in a quiet room and quickly go

through my relaxation routine.

I then engage in two kinds of mission/goal visualization. I first imagine what it would be like to again win the division. I see the final triumphant point scored, hear the cheers of my teammates, and accept the congratulations of the opposing team. Then I think about a specific goal for that night's competition. For example, I imagine how many games it will take to win (we play the best three out of

five) and what our winning score in each game will be.

Next, I mentally practice each of the specific volleyball skills needed to win the game. For example, I mentally rehearse all of the game's skills several times: serving, bumping, setting, spiking, and blocking. As I mentally rehearse each skill, I see my movements flowing, as if I am watching a movie or a videotape.

For several of the skills above, I also have a model --

someone else who performs that skill very well. I first see

him doing the skill, and then I picture myself doing it in

the same way.

When I make a mistake during the competition, I immediately

use corrective visualization. If, for example, I miss a

serve, I quickly close my eyes and mentally correct the

error.

If you adapt these techniques, you can visualize your

success (and attain it) in just about anything you want.

Note from Chet: Professor Ryan's 120-page report "Five

Steps to Personal Power" is one of the best I've ever seen,