The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance

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Once we find out what game we are playing, we have to figure out what winning means to us. What’s most important is to disentangle winning and losing from our understanding of our self-worth. The worst kind of competition is usually when the participants are using it to derive their self-worth. The "inner game" is based upon certain principles in which an individual uses non-judgmental observations of critical variables, with the purpose of being accurate about these observations. If the observations are accurate, the person's body will adjust and correct automatically to achieve best performance.[5] Gallwey was one of the first to demonstrate a comprehensive method of coaching that could be applied to many situations, and found himself lecturing more often to business leaders in the U.S. than to sports people.[6] Letting go of judgments does not mean ignoring errors. It simply means seeing events as they are and not adding to them.

Gallwey, W. Timothy (2000). The inner game of work. New York: Random House. p. 27. ISBN 0-375-50007-3. But of course the instant I try to make myself relax, true relaxation vanishes, and in its place is a strange phenomenon called “trying to relax.” Relaxation happens only when allowed, not as a result of “trying” or “making.” While observing a tennis match, it’s obvious that most competitors are physically straining in unnecessary ways—their faces tighten or they curse at themselves. This is a manifestation of an inner self that is not well-calibrated and an ego that is working too hard for control, leading to physical reactions.Gallwey, W. Timothy (1981). The Inner Game of Golf (1sted.). New York: Random House. ISBN 0-394-50534-4. What I really wanted, I realized, was to overcome the nervousness that was preventing me from playing my best and enjoying myself. I wanted to overcome the inner obstacle that had plagued me for so much of my life. I wanted to win the inner game. Most of us don’t even know there’s an inner game being played, much less that we’re losing badly. Time to suit up. On Potential

While Gallwey’s examples are concerned primarily with tennis, his categorizations work for many things in life. In this exercise, you’ll consider your own motivations. It is interesting to see how the judgmental mind extends itself. It may begin by complaining, “What a lousy serve,” then extend to “I’m serving badly today.” After a few more “bad” serves, the judgment may become further extended to “I have a terrible serve.” The, “I’m a lousy tennis player,” and finally, “I’m no good.” First the mind judges the event, then groups events, then identifies with the combined event and finally judges itself.Anxiety is fear about what may happen in the future, and it occurs only when the mind is imagining what the future may bring. But when your attention is on the here and now, the actions which need to be done in the present have their best chance of being successfully accomplished, and as a result the future will become the best possible present. So” Why not stop judging all together and simply notice things as they are, yourself included? On Identity It’s obvious that there’s more than tennis happening on the court—players are constantly talking to themselves, talking to each other, getting exasperated...the list goes on. Highly recommend this book to everyone, sure will be revisiting it to understand deeper the ideas presented in such a metaphoric way!