See it, feel it, hear it, taste it, smell it, do it.
It was a great Olympics, especially if you’re Canadian. For ten days, we were all spellbound by the brilliance, the innovation and the courage of the world’s preeminent winter athletes. But here’s my question: what did you see?
I know that we all looked at the same events. But we all saw something different depending on what we’ve seen before and what we hoped to see again. Our perception was shaped by how much we understand each sport and the genius of each movement.
The athletes themselves saw, felt, heard, smelt and tasted their performance before anyone else did. Mental imagery has become a core discipline with Olympians, as it should be for all of us. After all, we’re all athletes in the game of life competing for the Gold against phenomenal competition.
According to the New York Times, February 23 2014, mental “imagery” is a multisensory endeavour that goes way beyond visualization. Emily Cook, the veteran American aerialist says, “You have to smell it. You have to hear it. You have to feel it.”
The Canadian team went to Sochi with 8 sports psychologists, the United States brought 9 and the French brought none. In many cases, the psychologists create imagery scripts that are highly detailed accounts of the competition process from A to Z.
There are two kinds of imagery – internal and external. Alpine skiers will use their hands to simulate the path of their skis. Other skiers thrust both hands forward , often while gripping poles shortly before the start, and see themselves skiing the course through their own eyes. This is called internal imagery. External imagery is seeing your race as if you were watching a video of yourself competing.
The New York Times states that even if a vast majority of athletes envisage the perfect run and never achieve it, most find imagery both reassuring and empowering.
So here’s my second question: what have you “imaged” in your mind? What is the success that you’ve seen, tasted, smelt, heard, and felt? What big event is coming up for you that you could prepare for through internal or external imagery? I’m literally watching myself deliver this video. When I wrote it, I saw myself delivering it. I could see, feel, hear, taste and smell your appreciation. Now it’s a reality. It’s a great experience.
Try it for yourself. Close your eyes. See, feel, hear, taste and smell your presentation or performance going exactly the way you want it to go. Go through a detailed internal script. Feel your confidence. Then crush it. This is Mike Lipkin and I’m glad I can help you go for gold.
