Columns & Departments:The Mental Game

The field lights shut off all at once so it must be around ten, but the moon is bright and high and the trades are blowing just right. We’re having a few beers after a killer Ultimate game and we’re talking about…well, we’re talking about Ultimate.

“Great game,” says Kristi as she cracks open a beer.
“Classic,” adds Mike, who is essentially sincere but at the moment clearly pandering to poach a cold one off Kristi.
“What is it about this game,” I ask, “that makes it so good when it’s good?” “Winning,” Steve quips. “It’s always a good game when you win.” Kirk shrugs. “I don’t know,” he says. “I’ve played in plenty of games where we’ve won but the actual game really sucked.” “Okay,” Steve relents, “then maybe it’s playing with me that makes the game good.”

“Ah-h, I don’t think so,” Kirk says. “But I do agree that who you play with makes a big difference and the level of competition is a factor too.” Mondo leans in and says, “You know, winning comes and goes, but when you play really well - that’s when it’s a good game.”

“I agree,” says Kristi. “A good game for me is measured by how hard and how well I play.” “Well then,” I ask, “ what is it that defines playing well?”

Amidst the subsequent kibitzing and coarse jokes, a number of elements emerge as to what it means to play a good game. These include things like being focused, trying hard, not making stupid mistakes, being in a zone, playing better than usual, not getting distracted and having ones head in the game.
“What it is,” Mike says, tossing a disk over to Kirk, “is your whole team groove. That’s when it works.”
Flow is a parsimonious notion that reflects the synergy of a hundred different components. Individually, it’s when specific variables work in sync to make every other factor better than what it would be alone. And then there’s team flow where individual flow and team dynamics mesh.

There are people who believe that flow is mostly good mojo and that flow happens, or doesn’t, more or less by itself. But, in truth, flow is an experience that can be cultivated by learning to control internal experience.

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi discusses the path to flow in his book, Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. The following are an adaptation of these steps to the game of Ultimate.

1. Play Ultimate as a game, not as a struggle.

On the field, remember that ultimate is a game that is best when approached both competitively and playfully. There are clear goals and challenges and you get immediate feedback. This provides the opportunity for total concentration while merging action with awareness.

2. Be aware of your own powerful goals.

As you play ultimate, remind yourself that there are deeper goals that drive your efforts. Ultimate allows for the expansion of the self through direct and immediate experience.

3. Focus.

Release your mind from all distractions, both within and without. Focus your entire attention on the game itself.

4. Surrender to the Process.

Let go. Don’t strive or strain to win the point or make a great play. Instead, remain highly focused and enjoy the process of the point and your team.

5. Ecstasy.

This is the natural result of the preceding four steps. It will hit you suddenly, by surprise. But there will be no mistaking it.

6. Peak playing experience.

Your ecstatic state will open vast reservoirs of resourcefulness, creativity, and energy. Your quality of play will elevate as you find harmony between skill, competition, and the pure enjoyment of Ultimate.

Part of flow, of course, comes from physical conditioning. The ability to become totally absorbed in the game is facilitated by ones strength, flexibility and agility. It is critical to be hydrated, nourshed and well rested. But, everything else is mental. Given a similar level of physical ability and skill, the difference in a game often comes down to who can hold it together mentally. So, it makes sense to further parse out the elements of flow. That’s what I’ll be doing in this column. We’ll take a look at ways to augment physical training with psychological techniques like self-regulation, stress management, positive thought and energy control, mental rehearsal and concentration. In fact, the next column will be entirely devoted to the concept of focus and how to concentrate better in a game.

I’ll need your input though. Otherwise, my very skewed sample will continue to include only the musings of my inebriated friends. So, let me hear about whatever thoughts you have about concentration in Ultimate or things that help you to focus or things that you find especially distracting during a game.
A hui hou.

—Dr Leigh W. Jerome
Dr Leigh is a psychologist, writer, and avid player living in Hawaii.