Colburn comments
We're all well-acquainted with the description of an athlete being "in the zone."
It's that special time when, for whatever reason, an athlete suddenly becomes, for a time, invincible, relentless, unstoppable.
Athletes "in the zone" can seemingly do no wrong. They score at will, defend like demons, and leave crowds cheering and opponents sprawling in the wake of their momentary brilliance.
Teams can find themselves "in the zone" as well, as evidenced by periods of dominance over an otherwise equally-matched opponent. Basketball squads that go on 20-4 scoring runs often fit the bill in that regard.
So what exactly is this "zone" of peak performance athletes and teams magically find themselves in?
Sports psychologist Karlene Sugarman, in her book "Winning the Mental Way," describes seven characteristics of being "in the zone," and her framework is as good as any I've seen on the subject:
1. Relaxed. Research has shown players striving for peak performance shouldn't be highly keyed-up. Instead, athletes "in the zone" are relaxed, with a subtle balance of intensity.
2. Confident. Players "in the zone" expect to be successful, and don't let minor setbacks get in the way of having complete faith in their abilities to come out on top.
3. Completely focused. The only thing players "in the zone" have in mind is the immediate task at hand. Previous plays aren't even memories, so consumed are they with being in just one moment.
4. Effortless. Mind and body work in perfect unison to make everything feel easy, smooth, graceful. Everything a player does feels simple.
5. Automatic. A player "in the zone" is on auto-pilot, acting on instinct, not analyzing every step or move. Thinking in sports can be toxic — to achieve more, those "in the zone" think less, or not at all.
6. Fun. Players "in the zone" inhabit a realm of pure joy. The satisfaction they get from their sport shines through clearly, as if they were children full of innocent delight. Players who don't take joy in their sport will never find the "zone."
7. In control. In charge. In command. Master of your own destiny. These phrases are the hallmarks of players "in the zone." Players control their bodies and emotions, and not the other way around.
Look closely at a team that's struggling, and chances are that team has challenges with most, if not all, of those seven attributes.
Struggling teams aren't relaxed, lack confidence, have difficulty maintaining focus, nothing is effortless, nothing is automatic, they feel out of control, and they're definitely not having fun.
That surely isn't a prescription for a winner. It's hard to know where to begin to turn a team like that around. If I were coaching, I'd probably choose to work first on being relaxed and focused on the moment, and try to build from there.
Then again, I might just pull out the wallet and spring for not only a sports psychologist for the team, but a therapist all my very own.
