THE ZONE - HOW NOT TO DEFEAT YOURSELF

My last article on hockey and The Zone was
in "THE TENNIS PSYCHOLOGIST" blog.

Tennis is a game in which the mental aspect
of the game has to be tuned...sharpened to a fine point
which is essential for fast reaction.In fact, the word, "sharpened" is incorrect. The mind must be emptied
of all content, until only focus remains.

Tennis is a game in which keen awareness is essential;
it's one on one. Utter attention across space is necessary.

But hockey is really not that different. When you watch
a great goal scorer sweeping down towards the net , like an eagle, you'll notice there is no hurry about his movements, only utter deliberation, intense focused sight.

Great speed, perhaps, but no hurry. Fluidity rather
than hurry.  The no mind, the empty mind allows great co-ordination to arise without impediment.

And a sense of NO TIME...

This calm in the midst of frenetic activity
is MIND which partakes  of the ZONE...

WINNING OR LOSING
LEARNING HOW TO STAY IN THE ZONE
this is what sports is all about.

I have become knowledgeable in this study, 
having lived at  high intensity  for  most of my life.

Because of the extremes of my own personality,
it was necessary for me to learn how to sit still
and watch the river flow within me, watch as the muddied
stream slowly, slowly turned clear again.

Working  hard, trying hard, this was not difficult
for me. What was difficult for me was learning
how to not try - how to let the river flow on
its own, how to leave well enough alone,
and not try to control the country of the soul.

Make no mistake, whether the activity you pursue
is music, or sports, or courtroom battle -
these activities can best be carried out in a state
of no mind... an intense state of utter attention
without specific content. 

Thoughts like: "I wonder who Mary's with now?"

                                                 or: "The coach is going to hate me for that
                            last move."

or: "My whole family is gone..."
or: "I'm going to break that fucker's neck!"

All these thoughts hinder fast reaction.
When you think about it - and if you're a professional
athlete you'll already know this: extraneous thoughts
slow reaction time.

Right now I'm only talking about instantaneous thoughts.

But there is a whole way of thinking that can screw you
up deeply --- an unconscious wave of negative thoughts ...
and these waves repeat and repeat, the same stream
of ugly self-destroying thoughts... over and over
again.... this is THE NEGATIVE SCRIPT...

MOST PEOPLE HAVE THE NEGATIVE SCRIPT TO SOME DEGREE... 

And this will screw you up - whether you're performing in the rink, in the courtroom, or on stage - you do not need
the negative script.


NOTES:

 Hang onto #38 MacLaren.
Do NOT trade him.  

 RE: David Boland's Injury. The Leafs' Season died with his
       injury.I'm not saying it was deliberate, but...
       It occurs to me, the rules should be changed --- Any
player who causes an injury to another that causes him
to lose over one month of play, should be made legally
liable. The injured player ought to be able to pursue
a civil suit against any player in the NHL who causes that lengthy an injury.
       You'll see long-term injuries fall off in number,
considerably. And you'll see deliberate moves to injure
fall off to nearly zero.
        With a civil suit, the situation is much more serious
than a mere fine in punishment. A year's lost wages,
if the guy's getting paid $3 million a year. That hurts
a whole lot more!