Thinking Patterns
In this section, I’d like you to understand more about how your thinking affects your performance. Let’s start by looking at something that psychologists call “The Behavior Cycle”:
The Behavior Cycle tells us that our feelings, emotions, and behaviors begin with thought, therefore, if we can learn how to think better, we will feel and perform better.
Conscious and Subconscious Thinking
Thinking can be broken down into “Conscious” or “Objective” thinking, and “Subconscious” or “Automatic” thinking.
Conscious thinking is what we are “consciously” aware of externally (through our senses) and internally (our thoughts and feelings). Conscious thinking is objective because it is not based on our previous experiences, beliefs, or anchors. In golf, you could think of conscious thinking as being the part of the “Thinking Phase” of the Pre Shot Routine when you are taking in the facts about the shot in front of you – the yardages, where the hazards are, the wind, etc. This is based on reality not perception. However, the shot you choose and how you play the shot is not strictly conscious thinking as it is influenced by your memories and beliefs.
Most of our thinking is what is referred to as “subconscious” i.e., we don’t consciously choose to it, it just happens automatically.
Neuroscientists say that up to 95 % of our mental and physiological processes are subconscious, automatic, or done without us having to think about it. E.g., you don’t have to think to breathe, for your heart to pump or your food to digest. This is all controlled by the subconscious mind. We call it a “mind”, but it’s not in our conscious awareness and it doesn’t actually “think”.
Thinking Patterns
The subconscious mind is very powerful and smarter than any computer. Its primary role is to keep us safe and alive – it not only does this by maintaining our biological processes, but it also stores memories and forms thinking patterns around them (primarily as a survival mechanism). As you can see in The Behavior Cycle, this thinking shapes how we feel and behave in any moment.
When we learn a physical skill such as golf, it forms what are called “neural pathways” in the brain, which are the paths that electrical impulses follow to activate muscles to perform a specific movement. The more we practice something (correctly or incorrectly), the stronger and faster those pathways become.
A simple example of conscious thinking that becomes a subconscious thinking pattern is driving a car. After consciously learning the correct way to drive a car and obey traffic rules, you do it automatically. E.g., When you see your turn approaching, you no longer consciously think to yourself, “I should indicate now and press the brake pedal to slow down”, you just do it. Even though there is “thought” involved, you are not aware of it happening and we automatically get the physical action of indicating and pressing the pedal.
Thinking patterns work in the same way – how you think is shaped by your experiences, your interpretation and narrative about those experiences.
Thinking patterns become ingrained and reinforced over time. Throughout every day, every round and practice session we are shaping thinking and physical patterns for future performance. Practice doesn’t make perfect, it makes patterns.
Our thinking patterns are most apparent when we are under pressure, when we don’t have as much capacity for directing thought consciously. This is another reason that playing under pressure, whatever the result, is a positive as you get to learn more about who you are and how you think.
Something that will always be working against us when it comes to thinking is the brain’s negativity bias. As I said earlier, the subconscious mind’s primary role is to keep us safe but the downside of that is that it involves anchoring negative experiences deeper than positive ones, to keep us away from them in the future. The fact is our minds are designed to stop us from doing anything that might hurt us.
When we dwell on negative experiences and use negative self-talk repeatedly, we reinforce negative thinking patterns which make them more likely to show up in the critical moments. If left untended, the mind’s default will be to retreat to the easiest and safest option, preventing us from being our best performing selves. It’s easier to shy away from discomfort and tell yourself you don’t have what it takes, than to tell yourself you can push through it and succeed. This is where the “inner work” comes in which needs to be done daily.
New skills and better ways to think can be learned at any age. In his book “The Happiness Advantage”, Shawn Achor tells us that because of “neuroplasticity” (the brain’s ability to modify, change, and adapt), thinking patterns can be changed to help us be happier and perform better. To start this process, we need to do some self-examination to see how we currently think and consciously decide how we would prefer to think in situations that currently trigger negative thinking patterns. So instead of continuing a negative storyline, we create new positive thinking patterns which guide us towards our optimal performance state.
Changing Thinking Patterns
Step 1: Identification
The first step is to recognize what situations can trigger negative thinking patterns and what those thinking patterns are. Triggers are stimuli which “trigger” thoughts and feelings. They can come from our environment (e.g., a smell, a photo, a song, etc.) or our thoughts. i.e., choosing to think of something you fear will change the way you feel instantly. Write down your answers to the following questions:
- What situations can trigger negative thinking? Examples are:
- Hitting a poor shot
- Getting a bad break
- Playing with people who irritate you or who are playing better than you
- A bad round
- A tough tee shot
- Before a tournament
- What are the thinking patterns and feelings that arise?
- Why do you think those negative thoughts and behaviors occur? Are they valid thoughts or is it not possible that you can succeed?
- Let go of these negative thinking patterns and replace them with positive ones. How would you like to think in these situations? What are the thought patterns that will make you feel confident and powerful?
The next step is being aware of how you are thinking in the moment so you can pause and choose the responses you’ve planned, so you act accordingly. Developing awareness of how you’re thinking and being able to direct your thinking is achieved through a daily practice called “Mindfulness”.