The Competitive Mind — The Road to Mastery

You might have heard the oft repeated phrase that it takes a person about 10,000 hours of dedicated practice to become a master in any given skill. This idea was popularized by Malcolm Gladwell in his book Outliers: The Story of Success, and though many disagree with his assessment, we can all agree that learning a new skill takes time and effort.

Whether you’re learning to accurately shoot a bow or become a master poker player, there’s a learning curve. Having said that, there’s nothing to say we can’t study the brains of high performance competitors to try and determine what exactly they’re doing differently than a novice. In fact, leading sports psychologist James Hazlett did just this by taking a series of beginner, intermediate, and expert poker players and studied their brains using an electroencephalography (EEG) headset while they played.

Here are some of James’ key findings:

  • Managing emotion is a key factor in our ability to perform at a consistently high level in any competitive sport.
  • In a competitive environment, experts and more experienced players show a more consistent level of engagement versus a beginner.
  • Self control and patience are crucial to success in competitive support.
This is an Emotiv, the consumer EEG used in this study.
This is an Emotiv, the consumer EEG used in this study.

The report is quite dense, so I’ve included just the key points in this article. If you’re interested in reading about the entire body of his findings, then head over to www.yourbrainonpoker.com to see the results visualized in a fun and compelling way.

Now, what does this mean for the average person trying to improve at a new skill?

Drawing from my own experiences as a rock climbing enthusiast and hobbyist tinkerer, I’ll echo James’ findings that emotional control is key. Learning a new skill is often frustrating and sometimes not even very rewarding, but we can make it so much easier on ourselves by staying calm. As my climbing ability has improved, I’ve realized that I’m now much more calm when I climb.

One could say, well, that’s because you’ve had a lot of practice! While that’s true, I’ve found that I’ve been able to apply this “calm” to other new skills without having to grind through years of training first. The skill transfers… just something to think about.

But enough from me, what are your thoughts?

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Chad

Chad is the co-founder of Unfinished Man, a leading men's lifestyle site. He provides straightforward advice on fashion, tech, and relationships based on his own experiences and product tests. Chad's relaxed flair makes him the site's accessible expert for savvy young professionals seeking trustworthy recommendations on living well.

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