The main reason why Stephen Curry is one of the best basketball players and athletes in the world is his ability to get himself into a state called flow where optimal performance happens. By flow I mean the scientific term coined by Prof. Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi, a renowned psychology professor who has done extensive research on this phenomenon. Flow is a state of mind where optimal performance can happen, where an athlete with (very) high skills faces high challenges and as a result goes beyond what they seemed capable of, a state where they are not (really) in control of what they are doing and what is happening. If you want to find out more about flow, have a look at the TED talk 'Flow, the secret to happiness' by Prof. Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi and read the following article about Prof. Csikszentmihalyi and his research. Both sources will give you a good overview of what flow is. Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Challenge_vs_skill_Commons.jpg The diagram above can explain why Stephen Curry is generally performing at such a high level and why he was so phenomenal during his MVP season. The diagram consists of two axes, the x-axis indicates the skill level and the y-axis indicates the challenge level.
The reason why Stephen Curry is so good at what he is doing is that the emotions he feels while playing basketball are generally in the upper right quadrant of the diagram. He possesses high skills (not talent, but skills that he acquired through hours and hours of hard work) and is challenged to a high or very high level on the court. And this is the basis of getting into flow. Technically, any person can get into flow but it happens very frequently to athletes because the environment they perform in is conducive to flow. Talent can make it easier to reach flow but only if an athlete puts enough effort into developing their skills. With this diagram you can also explain why at certain points in a game or a season, Stephen Curry might not perform to a level that he is capable of. If the skills are high but the challenge level is low an athlete will feel boredom and thus not feel very involved in the task. If an athlete’s skill level is medium or low for a specific task, the athlete will also not be able to get into flow. The most important aspect to consider in order to really read this diagram correctly is that the skill level on the x-axis is actually a combination of the real and factual skill level and the skill level an athlete perceives to have. That means, that if an athlete has high skills but does not believe in their skills, they are less likely to get into the zone of optimal performance because the emotions they feel will not allow that to happen. Confidence in his skills plays a tremendous part why Stephen Curry can achieve what he does. He truly believes in his high skills to play at such a high level. And he also seems to be aware of the difference between confidence and arrogance. An athlete who wants to consistently perform at their highest level cannot afford such feelings because they are not conducive to optimal performance. Believing in yourself and your skills, however, is a must to achieve that. And Stephen Curry does this to perfection and that is also why he is developing and improving at such a fast pace and why he always seems to reach new heights and do things that surprise everyone. Something that might also happen to Stephen Curry, because he is only human, is that at times an athlete’s skill level might not be enough to handle a very difficult task at hand and that is why they might slip out of flow. In order to get back into flow, they would have to find a way to adjust their skill level and/or their perception of the same, many times it is actually only the latter. This can happen during a performance by adjusting their skills or by approaching tasks with more confidence in their skills or by working on their weaknesses after the competition has ended. If the challenge level is low, an athlete with high skills (real and perceived) might experience feelings of boredom which will prevent them from achieving their best. This is also true if the challenge level is only medium which creates a feeling of control. They will be able to do well in this state but cannot achieve their best. In order to do that, their high skill level has to coincide with a high challenge level. Results of a low or medium challenge level might be easy and avoidable mistakes or when an athlete is not completely ‘focused’ and loses concentration. The same might also happen when an athlete faces challenges that are beyond their skill level, when their real and perceived skill level is low or medium for a task they need to accomplish. Then it is impossible to get into flow and achieve their best because even adjusting the challenge level is not going to create the psychological state of flow where optimal performance can happen. This diagram also shows why having or showing (extreme) emotions is not really helpful for optimal performance in a competition. Having a clear head and balanced mind will help an athlete reach flow more easily and more often and thus make it possible to reach the state where optimal performance happens. Of course, reaching flow is not as simple as knowing how to read a diagram or knowing about its technicalities. That is why many professional athletes also have coaches with an expertise in sports psychology / positive psychology and if they do not have one yet, they should definitely hire one. What is encouraging to know for us mortals is that you do not have to be a professional athlete to reach flow. And the best thing about it is that it does not cost anything, it is for free. I use the knowledge about flow and positive psychology to help my students achieve their best at school and in learning a foreign language and have written a different blog post about how this knowledge can be used in the field of education 'The Right Frame of Mind to Achieve Your Best - At School'. Stephen Curry definitely does not need any help with getting into flow. He is a master of flow and is aware that his own mental strength is more important than his physical strength or limitation thereof. You will be amazed of how Stephen Curry will be able to develop and improve in the future and so will I. FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK: DNK TUITION Comments are closed.
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AuthorDavid Koch- Language Teaching Expert Follow Me
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