| Awareness Brings Its
Own Reward:
Teaching a young child to ski is easy - put them on skis
and point them downhill. If you want them to turn, put something
in the way. If you want them to keep skiing, offer loads of
encouragement.
Adults, though, are a bit tougher.
Unlike kids, they have the dubious benefit of experience.
"The last time I hit ice……….*@***!!"
Or "Whenever I'm in deep snow I…….*@***!!".Adults are also
bedeviled by theories, explanations, prejudices and judgements
that all get in the way of the one thing that could help bring
about massive improvement - the ability to bring non-judgemental
observation to the process of learning. This is a difficult
thing to do. But it can (and does) have an impact on all the
challenges we face - and not just on a black run or in powder
snow!
The Inner Game, initially developed as a method of teaching
tennis, is an approach to coaching that helps us re-discover
the joy of learning - not by rote of conventional instruction
- but through a process of increased awareness and learning
the skill to develop "relaxed concentration" - a state that
in modern sporting parlance is often called "the zone".
It is an approach to coaching that has found favour in almost
all sports (Ernie Els and Thomas Levett, first and second
in The Open this year, both use the same Inner Game Coach)
and we want to offer this experience to our clients again
next winter.
It is also happens to be the most enjoyable and invigorating
way to learn new skills. |
