Chapter Tactics is a 40k podcast which focuses on promoting better tactical play and situational awareness across all variations of the game. Today the guys talk about the mental strength and will top competitors need to compete at the highest level.
Show Notes:
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- Intro by: Justin Mahar
Really, really good discussion guys. Super interesting and lots of great points.
Because a whole bunch of studies have shown that a person can really only focus on one thing at a time, one of the golden rules of competition psychology is not to try to win. It sounds counter intuitive, but if you’re thinking about winning it’s a distraction from what you need to do, and it throws you off if things go wrong. If you miss your target, don’t think about the miss, don’t think about how it affects your score. It’s done, and it’s a distraction from the next shot. Focus on what you have to do, take your shot, and then let it go and focus on the next one. I don’t even check my score during an event, and I don’t let my team do it either, we have admin staff to make sure the scores are recorded correctly but they’re forbidden from sharing the scores with the team.
My goal is not to win the match, my goal is to take the perfect shot every time.
Likewise for 40k, I would say manage your focus, keep your objectives achievable and within your control, and if the dice go against you then let it go and focus on the next thing you have to do.
Another little trick is to look for things to reinforce, like Brandon said about screening with his company commanders. Don’t just learn from your mistakes, learn from your successes. It’s important and one of the things that makes a good competitor, because if you only focus on the times you made mistakes you tend to subconsciously reinforce those behaviors. Take notes, study them, and learn.
Finally, *believe* that you are the kind of person that wins. It sounds corny, but it does wonders for your confidence, and confidence is really important, like Pablo talked about with his MtG example. Leave notes for yourself around the house that say “I win tournaments”, even if you’ve never done so. Everyone that’s ever won anything had a first.
Sorry if I’m rambling, I could probably go on about this for days because it’s a huge subject, but I’ll leave it at that.
I’m going to re-listen to this episode next time I’m getting ready for any kind of competition. Thanks again everyone.