2+2=5??

Have any of you read George Orwell’s classic book “1984”? In particular the phrase “2+2=5”, the false dogma that people were made to believe by the ruling totalitarian government?
No problem if you haven’t read the book (I’m scratching deep down in my brain from my high school days to remember it!), but you’re probably thinking “Huh!? 2+2=4!!”

Here we can look at the idea that what we are led to believe, whether it be true or not, shapes our perception of reality. We can easily tell ourselves things that are unhelpful or untrue. In the book, people were told 2+2=5 often enough that they soon blindly believed it as fact (with a bit of persuasion from the government), but we all know what the actual truth is.

This kind of battle happens within our mind every day. Our “inner voice” tells us all kinds of things, from the obvious, to the ridiculous, to the absurd, to the useful. (Don’t worry, we all have an inner voice, you’re not crazy!) In sports psychology this inner dialogue is known as “self-talk”, and it plays an important part in how we perceive ourselves and the world around us.

When we are put under pressure, our mind typically reverts to becoming more negative and critical, leading to a slow erosion of our confidence, courage, and self-belief. This is partly due to neurochemical processes that make us view everything around us as a possible threat, but is also a conditioned response that can be trained in the practice room.

Our mind is good at identifying and storing information that is repeated, either internally in our mind, or hearing and seeing it externally. This repetition soon leads to these thoughts becoming beliefs. So if you are in the habit of telling yourself that “I’m not a good performer”, or “I can’t play this section of the piece”, or “my double-tonguing sucks”, then you become a self-fulfilling prophesy, and achieve exactly what you are telling yourself! If you think you can’t do it, then it won’t happen, so you’re right!

Elite performers and athletes make sure they monitor their self-talk and use it to build confidence, improve their skills, and increase resilience, courage, and focus. They are relentless and meticulous in what they say to themselves, and make sure their self-talk is as positive and beneficial as possible.

So the next time you are in the practice room, pay close attention to the conversations you have with yourself. Is your self-talk positive and constructive, or does it criticise, berate and taunt you for every mistake you make? Are you focusing only on the weaker aspects of your playing, or are you balancing it out with reminders of what you are doing well? Do you really believe that you can play amazingly well, or are your thoughts riddled with self-doubt and fear?

Start becoming more aware of your self-talk, and start to consciously use language that will help you to grow and improve in the future. The more you repeat this, the stronger your self-belief will become. The stronger your self-belief is, the stronger your performances will be!