The Champion's Mind: How Great Athletes Think, Train, and Thrive by Jim Afremow is another in the series of books I’ve been reading about the mental game that sets great performers apart. This book is specifically about athletes, but many of the concepts apply to bridge. The overall picture is similar to what we get from The Inner Game of Tennis and With Winning in Mind, but there are some unique takeaways.
One area Afremow focuses on is dealing with pressure. He believes that “A moderate level of anxiety or excitement is necessary for optimal performance.” So “Do not attempt to rid yourself of the anxiety; instead, channel it into performing well.”
Your mindset in these high-pressure situations needs to focus on the positive. “Think of this moment as your occasion to thrive.”
In order to prepare for high-pressure situations, “It’s very important to practice performing with this increased stimulation and learn to work with it. All coaches and athletes understand the importance of making a portion of practice time pressurized, realistic, and more competitive to help mentally prepare for competition.”
Work hard in practice so that you are prepared enough to turn off your anxiety in competition. “Think of the practice as the championship and the championship as the practice.” Along these lines: “It’s not about how much practice time you put in; it’s about what you put into practice time.”
What can we do in our bridge practice to simulate the adrenaline and pressure of the final set of the Spingold? I think this is part of why Zia says you should play for money. Without putting a fortune on the line, what can we do during our regular practice to up the stakes?
Taking care of yourself mentally—not beating yourself up—is essential. Afremow suggests a reverse Golden Rule:
“If a close friend or good teammate was not playing well or was dealing with difficulties, you would encourage, not criticize, him or her. So do the same for yourself by being your best friend on and off the field—no double standards allowed…practice the reverse of the Golden Rule: One should treat oneself as one would treat others!
Here are a couple of quotes Afremow shares that resonated with me:
Novak Djokovic: “[Among the] top 100 players, physically there is not much difference…It’s a mental ability to handle the pressure, to play well at the right moments.”
Jerry Rice: “Today I will do what others won’t, so tomorrow I can accomplish what others can’t.”
This book was good reinforcement of what I learned from the other similar books, and what many champions have been telling me in my podcast: it’s mental toughness and concentration that really set the top performers apart. There is a lot here that is applicable to bridge players, though a lot of it rehashes what’s in the other books. I just happened to read the others first, so there was not as much to take away from this one.