Posted by Mike Keyes on August 24, 2000 at 18:37:09:
In Reply to: a book on the mental aspects of training posted by Douglas on August 24, 2000 at 16:18:16:
: There is a book and a series of tapes by a guy whose name I think is "Hickley" about the mental aspects of training. I heard exerpts of the tapes during an Ontario Pistol Team meeting. I'd like to get my hands on a copy of either and I'm wondering if anyone has heard of this material. thanks
It took a while, but I found it in my library. You are looking for "Mental Training" by Bob Hickey. It was originally published in 1979 for rifle shooters in alaska. bob gave me a copy of the book at one of the US shooting team training sessions. i don't know if it is still in print as I've been out of the mix since 1984.
The address on my book (for getting copies) is Totem shooters Supplies, PO box 222, Eagle River, AK 99577
Posted by JP O'Connor on August 25, 2000 at 12:17:32:
This topic has come up before with limited useful dialog in spite of the fact that a few readers appear to be very interested in learning more. I have received some private emails from TT readers encouraging me to discuss this topic so here and now is just as good as any given my limited time!
I'll give a suggestion on the book topic first and then put my two cents worth in on this topic from my USA perspective. Mileage may vary for our overseas friends.
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If you really want to understand the total game - regardless of your endeavor (shooting, golf, musical performance, tennis, motorcycle racing, etc.) study this book:
Body Mind Mastery by Dan Millman
Among other things, he makes a distinction between the mental aspects of the game and the emotional aspects of the game. Nope, they are not the same. Just as the physical and technical aspects are closely related yet different, so too are the mental and emotional. Ever hear that before? Most haven't!
Warning, the book has a very "Eastern" frame of reference so has been found difficult by those unwilling or unable to handle a very different approach than that taken by the "Western" mind. In fact, when coaching a good friend of mine (sometimes seen on TT) we joke that I'm out in "fruitcake land". In spite of this, he sees that it is an approach that will work.
If one is open to the different frame of reference, the book is well written, an easy read (though you will re-read it many times!), and clearly explains the concepts and how to apply them.
Guess what folks... that's where it's at!! My friend is one of the folks I know who have not been able to get through the book at all. Others have and love it! I'm in the process of developing a seminar series on it for the shooters that I coach (mostly here in Atlanta, some around the country) so that it can be presented to them from a more "Western" point of view while still conveying the content and meaning. Even my shooting mentor (mentioned below) wants to attend the seminars.
Although the book never mentions shooting (or many of the other activities listed above) it applies 100% to this sport. While Hickey and Bassham are well known in our sport, their stuff doesn't go far enough. (No flame wars here... I'm not the only one of this opinion.) Their stuff is good though, especially Lanny's. They just don't go far enough.
It was when I went outside of our sport (partially as a result of one of my lengthy conversations with Dan Durben - where, among other topics, a discussion of mental and emotional aspects occurred) that I found the really good stuff. Millman's book is one of the best though by no means the only good resource.
If you find that you can't take in the book's content, set it aside and find other books (outside our sport please!) that are accessible to your frame of mind. Knowledge is useless unless it is available in a form the student can understand. (More on this below.) Then, in time, you will be able to understand Millman's approach.
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I have found that many really good shooters (including more than one Olympic gold medalist that I have discussed this with) have developed all of the requisite skills (physical, technical, mental, emotional) on their own or with the aid of others without learning the underlying theories. That is fine... they are "natural" or developed the skills over a long time period without really understanding them fully and did or do well. There is nothing wrong with that approach for the few that either are really "natural" or who have the luxury of years and years of full time work in the sport. One of the Olympic champions mentioned above even admitted to me, years after he won his medals, that he had only recently seen how different the process is for others than it was for him. We have had a number of interesting coversations since then. The other Olympic champion had an approach based on natural abilities and years of hard work which developed the skills he lacked, yet without giving him an understanding of how they work. He knows how to shoot exceedingly well yet has limited abilities to teach it. Nothing wrong with that unless you want him to teach you. Thus:
Just because someone is good at something doesn't mean they can teach it! In fact, they likely don't understand how they do what they do so can't teach it to someone who is not a "natural" themselves. That leaves the rest of the shooters in a bind. Aha! The quandry!
Years ago, I had the priviledge of meeting and talking one on one with Arthur Ashe. He was of the opinion that mental and emotional skills (there's that distinction again!) could be taught and learned just as physical and technical skills could be. His father had taught him in this manner, as I recall. The problem is that our "Western" society does not understand this, so we are not in tune with this kind of training. "Don't mess with my head!" OK, I won't mess with your head... figure it out on your own. ...it happens all the time.
There are other excellent shooters who have figured this out and who did learn the skills (and sometimes even the underlying theories) since they weren't "natural" like others. They can become excellent teachers. There are still others who also understand, but haven't developed their own game fully, who are excellent teachers.
Just because you shoot better than someone doesn't mean they can't teach you something. Just because they do shoot better than you doesn't mean the can teach you. It isn't the score... it is the approach, the process, and the mind set.
Two examples from my own experiences:
1) My shooting mentor (yes, more than just a coach) is very good at prone rifle (and was at 3P in his younger years). He was able to teach me a great deal because he understood his own process even though he didn't know the theories. But he understood his process! Plus, he has a gift for teaching. When we both started shooting air pistol we discovered two surprising things... I was really good at it and he wasn't. He has a hard time breaking 500/600 even with his skills. It is due to a physical condition. Does this mean he can't teach me things to help my pistol game. Nope! In fact, I asked him to be behind the line for me during Nationals and he helped me during the air pistol match a couple of times when I left the line. Similarly, I was able to help him with some details in prone in spite of the fact that I only hold an expert card. (He has many 1600/1600 outdoor scores to his credit... I'm barely to the lowest scores of the master class.) The only people I've found so far who fully understand the kinds of things I'm discussing in this post - at the deepest levels - are my shooting mentor, the Olympic champion mentioned above, and Dan Durben. Guess who I listen to! Others I've met have some of the ideas but not nearly to the same degree. Most others don't understand at all. Of course, I'm sure there are others in this country in this sport who do... but - with the possible exceptions of a particular college coach and a certain pistol shooter I've met - I haven't found them yet!
2)
About two months ago, I had the distinct pleasure of meeting a very good rifle shooter who wanted some information about the Noptel system she has access to. Later, we agreed that she would send me her shot files and I would do more analysis for her. In the course of our conversations, she sensed that I had a different approach to the game and... long story short... before I even knew what happened we had agreed to work closely together on taking her game to a much higher level. I have never shot at her level, yet she understood that there are things she needs that I can teach her. She shoots about 390/400 in air rifle and you will see her in USA Shooting Sports and the American Rifleman in the next month or two because of her Camp Perry accomplishments. The kid just turned 16 and has had good physical and technical coaching for the last few years. (I cannot and will not take any credit for her successes so far. Those successes are based on her coaches and on her own hard work and dedication.) Now she wants to go beyond that, and beyond her already strong and natural mental and emotional skills, and feels that I can teach her the things she needs to go farther. This in spite of the fact that I told her I might never shoot a better rifle score than her and that I'm just learning some of these things myself. For example, she liked the new standing position that I taught her so well that she decided to use it at Camp Perry this year even though she admits that it will be several more months before she is fully in tune with it. I was quite hesitant about her using such a big change for such an important match - but she knows her self quite well and she knew it would be better for her. Normally I would not have liked a shooter doing that, but it was obvious to me that she has some very good self-awareness skills and so I trusted her judgement. (A coach needs to know how to do that... it was difficult!) Happily, it did work well! Now we are working on other aspects of the game such as inner position, a concept which she had not previously been exposed to.
The points here are not about me or anyone else; rather they help illustrate that one needs the total package (physical, technical, mental, emotional), that all four kinds of skills can be learned, and that a person's score isn't the best way to chose a teacher.
Judge a teacher not by what they know...
Judge a teacher by what their students know!
When was the last time you saw the US Olympic gymnastics coach on the beam or doing a vault? Why did they drag him out of retirement yet again a few months ago? Because his students get it!
Which brings up another point. If a teacher or writer puts the information in terms that sound more like a PHD thesis and are incomprehensible to the student... run away! Repeat after me:
Judge a teacher by what their students know!
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In summary:
It's fun to tinker with the toys (as can be seen by most of the posts on TT), but the toys so often distract us from what really matters if one wishes to reach ultimate performance. Shooting strictly for fun and playing with the toys is perfectly fine for those that wish to. (Hey, it's a lot of fun! I enjoy it at times!) For those that wish to win gold it takes an entirely different approach. (A solid dedication to one's goals and lots of hard - but smart - work are required as well!)
Hopefully this rather disjointed stream of consciousnes post has been of some small value to a few readers.
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