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Steven W. Noles, Psy.D.
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SLUMP - PROTRACTED
PERFORMANCE FAILURE
There
are times when all athletes fail to perform up to their potential or up
to their typical level of performance. Usually these times are
nothing
to worry about. The athlete should learn from the experience and
move on to become an even better performer. Occasionally,
however,
the expectations on the athlete have been implicitly or explicitly set
too high, sometimes by the athlete himself and sometimes by parents, by
coaches, by fans, and in the case of elite athletes by the media.
In cases such as these, the expectations should be re-examined and
changed
so they reflect the reality of the athlete’s skills and
potential.
But sometimes the expectations are reasonable yet not achieved over a
longer
period of time. When this protracted decline in performance
occurs
over a long enough period of time, we usually refer to it as a “slump”
or a Protracted Performance Failure. What exactly constitutes a
slump
or what marks the beginning of a slump is not clear. Is it two
bad
games in a row? Three? Four? And what exactly constitutes a
significant
departure from expected performance? Is it a slump if a
basketball
player who normally averages sixteen points per game scores only ten
and
twelve points in back-to-back games? While knowing exactly when a
slump begins or what exactly constitutes a slump is difficult if not
impossible,
every athlete and those close to him/her know when the athlete is in
a slump. In other words, a slump may be hard to define, but we
know one when we see one and it is not a pretty site.
The
causes of a protracted performance failure can be many and quite
varied,
but this phenomenon almost always involves a significant decline in the
athlete’s self-confidence. She develops a lack of confidence in
his
skill level, in his techniques, in his potential. Often she will
start to tinker with her techniques, with her form and this will
undoubtedly
lead to other problems that will maintain the slump. In fact, one
of the ironic aspects of a slump is that almost everything an athlete
tries
to do to combat a slump seems to make it worse. It is like
nothing
will ever help and this creates a vicious negative downward cycle:
There
is an initial performance failure or two, confidence begins to slip,
performance
declines even further, the athlete makes a slight change which hurts
performance
rather than helps it, confidence drops a little more, performance
remains
weak or slides down further, and confidence declines too and so on and
so on and so on... During a slump, everyone has a solution to
offer
and most athletes are so eager to get back to the previous level of
performance
that they are willing to try virtually anything and everything to
do so. However well intentioned these solutions might be, usually
they are not helpful. Have you ever witnessed a young child
trying
to master some athletic skill receive instruction and helpful hints
from
several different coaches? Usually what happens is that the brain
gets so overloaded with ideas and techniques that the athlete cannot
think
straight much less perform well. Any one idea by itself might
have helped
but together they serve to hurt the athlete’s effort and in many ways,
albeit unwittingly, serve to strengthen and prolong the slump.
So
what can be done? If you find yourself in a slump or if you know
an athlete who is in a slump, try these ideas and see if they help.
First,
the athlete must determine from whom he or she is going to take
instruction
and get advice. Identify who will give the instructions
(coach) and who will help implement and practice them (assistant) and
stick
with those people and their ideas for awhile. The slump did not
occur
overnight and will not go away over night; believe in the people whom
you
have chosen to help you.
Second,
politely ignore all the rest of the people who offer advice. They mean
well, but for right now it is not what you need. Since it may be
necessary to seek their advice later, it is important to be
polite.
If we have been polite, we can always go back to that person and ask
them
to explain their idea again and, trust me, they will be more than happy
to explain it to you again.
Third, the athlete
must first return to basics.
He must not try to do more than he is capable of doing. She does
not need to try harder, because she is probably trying too hard
already.
Fourth,
it may be helpful to have her review videotapes if possible of her best
performances in order for her to view those basics in action. Let
her see how she looked when she was being more successful. If
videotapes
are not available, try having him simply talk about his best
performances
over the past year; have him try to visualize those games in his
mind.
Try to help the athlete recreate the same swing, the same stroke, and
the
same follow-through that was used when he performed at a higher
level.
Fifth,
try to re-institute the idea of having fun. Set goals for having
fun. She needs to relax and this is easier to do when she is
having
fun. Examine why she plays sports; why did she start playing
sports
and more importantly why does she continue to play this particular
sport.
Sports must always be kept in perspective. A slump is not
a matter of life and death, so relax, have fun, and see what happens.
Sixth,
if all this fails to help the athlete come out of the slump, it may be
necessary to consult with a professional for some additional ideas and
to assess if the cause of the slump has more to do with emotional
issues
which will require specific intervention. If you would like some
additional ideas or if you would like to arrange for a consultation,
give
me a call. |