Win the Game of Life with Sport Psychology | Jonathan Fader | TEDxRutgers

Summary

In this engaging talk, a sports and performance psychologist shares insights from his 15-year career working with high-level athletes, including those in the NFL and MLB. He confesses his own nervousness to deliver the talk, using it as a segue to discuss the pressures faced by athletes and how they can manage stress. The speaker introduces techniques like mental rehearsal, self-talk, and mindfulness meditation to help individuals perform better under pressure. He also humorously demonstrates the importance of being present in the moment, using personal anecdotes and interactive exercises to emphasize the universal applicability of these strategies to everyday life.

Takeaways

• 😀 The speaker is a sports and performance psychologist with 15 years of experience working with high-level athletes.
• 🏆 The speaker shares techniques that have helped athletes in the NFL, MLB, and the New York City Fire Department to perform under pressure.
• 🧠 Understanding the nature of being human is crucial for managing stress and anxiety, which is a common challenge faced by everyone, including high-performers.
• 💃 The speaker uses humor and interactive activities to illustrate how people naturally worry about being judged and how this affects their performance.
• 🏋️‍♂️ Mental conditioning is as important as physical conditioning for athletes, and it involves techniques like mental rehearsal, self-talk, and mindfulness.
• 🌟 High-performing athletes like LeBron James use mental conditioning techniques to stay focused and perform at their best.
• 🔥 Firefighters in the FDNY also use these techniques to manage stress and be present in high-pressure situations, like fighting fires.
• 👃 Breathing exercises are a key tool for managing stress and staying in the moment, which can be applied in various challenging situations.
• 📚 The speaker's book, 'Life as Sport', provides insights and techniques for using performance psychology to enhance everyday life.
• 🎤 The speaker emphasizes the importance of a playful approach to life, using humor and light-hearted activities to demonstrate how to manage stress and perform under pressure.

Q & A

What is the main theme of the speaker's talk?

The main theme of the talk is the importance of mental conditioning and mindfulness, particularly how techniques used by high-performance athletes can help anyone manage stress and perform better in various aspects of life.

Why does the speaker feel nervous despite being a performance psychologist?

The speaker feels nervous because being on stage in front of an audience creates a natural pressure to deliver effectively. This nervousness is a common human experience, even for someone trained in managing stress and performance.

What personal experience does the speaker share about working with high-performance athletes?

The speaker shares an experience of working with the New York Mets during the 2015 World Series, describing the stress and distraction of worrying about the outcome and the players’ performance.

What common human reaction does the speaker mention when under pressure?

The speaker mentions that under pressure, it’s natural for people to get caught up in their thoughts, worry about the future, and be concerned about how they are being judged.

What is 'mental conditioning' according to the speaker?

Mental conditioning is a set of psychological techniques, such as mental rehearsal, imagery, self-talk, and breathing exercises, that help individuals prepare their minds to handle pressure and perform effectively in high-stress situations.

How does the speaker connect the concept of mindfulness to his own life?

The speaker shares a story about his parents practicing mindfulness meditation and how he initially found it strange, but later, during his psychology studies, he realized its value and began incorporating it into his life and work with athletes.

What example does the speaker give to show the application of mindfulness by an elite athlete?

The speaker gives the example of LeBron James, who practices mental conditioning, including mindfulness, to prepare himself for critical moments in basketball games.

How does the speaker use breathing techniques in stressful situations?

The speaker explains a breathing technique that involves inhaling for four seconds, exhaling for four seconds, and then pausing for two seconds. This technique helps calm the mind and bring focus during stressful moments.

What role does humor play in the speaker's presentation?

Humor is used to engage the audience, reduce tension, and illustrate points about stress and human behavior, such as when the speaker pretends to choose someone to freestyle rap, only to reveal it was a joke.

What is the speaker's ultimate message about life and performance?

The speaker's ultimate message is that life should be approached like a sport, where we use mental conditioning techniques to stay present, manage stress, and perform to the best of our abilities in all aspects of life.

Outlines

00:00

🎤 The Pressure of Performance

The speaker, a sports and performance psychologist, begins by expressing the natural nervousness of being on the spot and the pressure to deliver. Despite working with high-level athletes in the NFL, MLB, and the New York City Fire Department, the speaker admits to feeling the same anxiety. The talk aims to share techniques that have been helpful for athletes to manage such pressures. The speaker humorously engages the audience with a dance prompt, highlighting the natural human tendency to worry about being judged, which is a theme throughout the speech.

05:01

🏋️‍♂️ Mental Conditioning for Athletes

The speaker discusses the concept of mental conditioning, which is as important as physical conditioning for athletes. Techniques such as mental rehearsal, connecting with internal motivations, self-talk, and focused breathing are highlighted as crucial for peak performance. The speaker shares personal anecdotes, including a humorous story about their 'hippie parents' and the influence of mindfulness meditation, which they initially dismissed but later embraced as a powerful tool in their work with elite athletes like LeBron James.

10:01

🚒 Applying Techniques in High-Stress Jobs

The speaker extends the discussion to real-life high-stress situations, using the example of their work with the FDNY. They describe how firefighters are taught similar mental techniques to manage the extreme pressures they face. A personal experience of entering a smoke-filled building during a training exercise is shared, where the speaker used the breathing technique to stay calm. The narrative emphasizes the universal applicability of these techniques beyond sports, for anyone facing stress and the need to perform under pressure.

15:03

🎭 Embracing Life as a Sport

In the final paragraph, the speaker uses humor to illustrate the stress response, pretending to pick someone from the audience for a freestyle rap, which creates a moment of tension and laughter. The speaker then transitions into a playful rap, using a mango as a prop, to demonstrate the concept of being in the moment. The talk concludes with an invitation for the audience to approach life as a sport, applying the same mental conditioning techniques to enhance performance and enjoyment in all aspects of life.

Keywords

💡Sport and Performance Psychologist

A sport and performance psychologist is a professional who specializes in the mental health and well-being of athletes and performers. They help individuals optimize their performance by addressing psychological factors that can influence their success. In the video, the speaker is a sport and performance psychologist who has worked with high-level athletes in the NFL and MLB, as well as with the New York City fire department. The role is crucial in helping individuals manage stress, enhance focus, and improve performance under pressure.

💡Mental Conditioning

Mental conditioning refers to the process of training one's mind to improve focus, resilience, and performance, particularly in high-pressure situations. It is akin to physical conditioning but targets the mental aspects of performance. The video emphasizes the importance of mental conditioning in sports, comparing it to 'squats for the soul' and 'curls for the brain.' Techniques such as mental rehearsal, self-talk, and mindfulness are discussed as part of this conditioning.

💡Mental Rehearsal

Mental rehearsal is a technique where individuals visualize themselves successfully performing a task or action before they actually do it. This helps in preparing the mind for the real event, enhancing confidence and performance. In the video, the speaker mentions using mental rehearsal with athletes to help them prepare for their performances, making it a key component of mental conditioning.

💡Self-Talk

Self-talk is the internal dialogue that individuals have with themselves, which can significantly impact their mindset and performance. Positive self-talk can boost confidence and motivation, while negative self-talk can hinder performance. The video discusses how athletes are taught to use adaptive self-talk to manage their thoughts and stay focused under pressure.

💡Mindfulness Meditation

Mindfulness meditation is a form of meditation that focuses on being present and fully engaged in the current moment. It involves paying attention to one's breath, thoughts, and sensations without judgment. The speaker in the video recounts how mindfulness meditation was initially seen as something only 'hippie parents' would do but has since been recognized as a valuable tool for managing stress and enhancing performance, even among elite athletes.

💡Breathing Techniques

Breathing techniques are methods used to control and regulate one's breath, often to reduce stress, increase focus, or improve performance. The video provides an example of a specific breathing technique where the speaker instructs the audience to inhale for four seconds, exhale for four seconds, and then pause for two seconds. This technique is used to help individuals stay in the present moment and manage stress.

💡Life as a Sport

The concept of 'life as a sport' is a central theme in the video, suggesting that life's various challenges and experiences can be approached with the same mindset and techniques used in sports. The speaker encourages the audience to view life as a series of performances or games where they can apply the principles of sport and performance psychology to enhance their experiences and outcomes.

💡Adaptive Behavior

Adaptive behavior refers to actions or responses that are constructive and appropriate for a given situation. In the context of the video, adaptive self-talk and the use of breathing techniques are examples of adaptive behaviors that help individuals manage stress and perform better under pressure.

💡High-Performance Athletes

High-performance athletes are individuals who excel in their sports, often at a professional or elite level. The video discusses the speaker's work with such athletes, highlighting the psychological aspects that contribute to their success. These athletes use mental conditioning techniques to enhance their focus, resilience, and performance on the field.

💡Stress Management

Stress management is the process of identifying and coping with stressors to reduce their impact on one's mental and physical health. The video emphasizes the importance of stress management in high-pressure situations, such as sports competitions or emergency scenarios like firefighting. Techniques such as mindfulness, breathing exercises, and self-talk are presented as tools for managing stress effectively.

💡Playfulness

Playfulness is the quality of being light-hearted, spontaneous, and willing to engage in fun or games. The speaker in the video encourages a playful approach to life, suggesting that it can help individuals stay present and enjoy their experiences more fully. The playful element is also used to engage the audience and demonstrate the power of humor and light-heartedness in managing stress.

Highlights

The speaker, a sports and performance psychologist, admits to feeling nervous despite their expertise.

Shares experiences working with high-level athletes in the NFL, MLB, and New York City Fire Department.

Mentions the stress and pressure that come with working in high-stakes environments like the World Series.

Introduces the concept of mental conditioning as a new field in sports psychology.

Discusses the importance of mental rehearsal and imagery for athletes.

Emphasizes the role of self-talk and internal motivation in high-performance sports.

Teaches a breathing technique to help control anxiety and stay in the moment.

Narrates a personal anecdote about learning mindfulness from 'hippie parents' and later in a professional context.

LeBron James is cited as an example of an athlete who practices mindfulness and mental conditioning.

Describes a collaboration with the FDNY to develop mental performance initiatives for firefighters.

Shares a personal experience of using breathing techniques during a fire training exercise.

Encourages the audience to use the same mental conditioning techniques as athletes for everyday life.

The speaker's book 'Life as Sport' is mentioned as a resource for performance psychology techniques.

Playful interaction with the audience using a 'ball of death' to illustrate stress and anxiety.

Concludes with a freestyle rap, demonstrating the use of the breathing technique in a high-pressure situation.

Invites the audience to live life like a sport, applying sports psychology techniques to everyday challenges.

Transcripts

[Applause]

thank you thank you so much for having

me here today so it's a little strange

up here you're unlike on the spot

literally and it's really natural in

that moment on the spot to feel your

heart race to have your thoughts go wild

it's really natural to feel that

pressure the pressure to deliver an idea

where it's spreading

so natural but I've got a confession to

make

I'm actually that nervous I'm gonna tell

you a secret about why you see I'm a

sport and performance psychologist I

should be able to do this in fact I've

spent the past 15 years my basically my

whole career working with high

professional high level athletes in the

NFL in MLB with the fire department in

New York City but today I have a really

special opportunity I have the chance to

share these techniques ones that helped

me with you here today but first just a

little bit about what it's like to be a

sports psychologist working in the NFL

working with MLB you know it's been in a

just an amazing pleasure and it's been

just so fascinating an honor to work

with these high-performance athletes but

it's also been really humbling and it's

also been stressful we stress out about

things like for example when I went with

the New York Mets to the 2015 World

Series should be yeah come on give me

yeah give it up a little bit

I can remember sitting there on the

sidelines really feeling like I should

just be there in the moment but I was

distracted I was worrying what's gonna

come next are we gonna win are we gonna

move on are we gonna advance what's

gonna happen the players that I care

about here we all worry we get in our

heads in a lot right if you worry about

things relationships as a climate the

political state your life if you worry

let me hear you say I do it's natural to

be human but there's things that you can

do to get better at dealing those

thoughts in our heads and I'm going to

teach you how athletes do it today but

first we have one task and that's really

to understand the nature of being human

all here together so in order to do that

I need to go on a little ride with you

guys if you're ready let me hear you say

I'm ready alright everybody stand up

yeah you're in the right place ready

here we go if you're ready to feel what

it's like to be a human I want you to

hear I want to hear you say dance

[Music]

[Music]

[Music]

okay okay okay yeah you want to continue

I love it all right I ready just give me

a second everybody you can take your

seats it's hard to see with the lights

but I was able to see three well-known

dances here they are the full commitment

you guys are ready for Saturday night

but then there was this other dance it

was like the UH

does this count does this channel and

there's a third dance the most famous

dance of all the one we're doing all day

long every day everyone in here is doing

it it's this how am I being judged right

now

who's watching me am I good enough I'm

in my head right now natural it's

natural to be that way as humans our

central nervous system develop to be

that way as we were evolving over

600,000 years we had to notice one thing

the predator the tiger the lion that's

how we had to notice the negative thing

we had to notice it or we wouldn't

survive we wouldn't evolve but as a

high-performance athlete and yes you and

me up here on this red Ted dot we have

to learn ways of dealing with the fact

that we're always in our heads always

worried about what's gonna come always

worried about what's to be and I'm gonna

teach you some of those ways we're gonna

talk about it together but first how do

athletes condition themselves well we

know about how they condition themselves

they do things like jump rope right

physical conditioning they lift weights

certainly they do that but over the past

15 to 20 years is a new field that's

developing mental conditioning this is

squats but it's for your soul

these are curls but it's for your brain

so the things that we do with athletes

are things like mental rehearsal imagery

to rehearse what you're going to do

before you get there in your mind super

effective research that show also we

help people to get in touch with their

internal

privation there why and to remind

themselves of that we help athletes to

talk to themselves in an adaptive way

self-talk and we also focus on our

breath and on breathing but you can't go

to the gym to do this kind of work in

fact there's no weight that you can

actually pick up to do this kind of work

in fact there's one weight you must put

down to really do this work well it's

this one you've got to put it down

this is actually my phone and to remind

myself to get into the moment to be in

the moment I have this word on my phone

because I need a reminder I'm human too

I forget I get caught up and worry

caught up in thoughts about what's gonna

happen with this talk what's going to

happen in my life in my relationships

and most of us in this room can

certainly relate to that feeling so it's

about paying attention to the moment so

how do you do that how do you pay

attention to the moment I want to tell

you a story about how I learned it the

first time I paid too much attention to

the moment these right here are my

hippie parents yeah give it up for my

hippie parents

I love them so much and one time but

think about hippie parents see see is if

they're not that great at locking their

bedroom door so I go over to the bedroom

door I'm like seven ray right and I open

the bedroom door and I walk in on them

they're they're they're breathing

they're meditating and it starred me I

mean I wanted to put that away my

parents were weird right they're so

weird they're doing this thing this

mindfulness meditation it's so strange I

don't want to tell anyone about it no

one I want to hide it away hide it away

never tell anyone until about 15 years

later I'm going to the University of

Washington to get my doctorate in

psychology and I get there and I meet

these luminaries these professors in the

field of psychology and I go to this

faculty meeting as a graduate student

and I go and I opened the door seeking

to see the people that are gonna teach

me everything about performance about

managing stress about psychology and I

opened the door and they're meditating I

was shocked

what and I had to confront at that one

moment the thing that none of us in this

room none of us should ever have to

confront that my parents were right all

along you might say fader okay you do

this meditation yourself you do with NFL

athletes you do with MLB athletes you do

with firefighters but you know maybe

that's just for your hippie parents it's

not for me

mindfulness meditation is that really

what an elite athletes gonna do when the

game is on the line someone whose are

the best they're filled are they really

gonna do that I wonder you don't have to

wonder

it's the last time out he has played the

entire game

he would have played the entire game in

Game six if it wasn't a blowout so what

is LeBron James arguably the most

talented active basketball player of our

time what is he doing in that moment

he's now here's another question for you

is this the first time that LeBron James

has done this no he is doing mental

conditioning he's working on his mindset

all the time so when he gets to the

moment that counts

he's gonna be ready just like we can we

can work on our mindset we can train our

brain using performance psychology and

sports psychology techniques to be ready

for that moment when it comes in your

life your big date some of you the way

you're dancing look I gets tonight

your interview your test your meeting

this is one of the ways to get there but

you might say you listen fader he's an

athlete my life's not a game right my

life is I got things on the line here I

have real life problems you know it's

not real life I say tell it to these

guys these are my colleagues at the FDNY

and it's been a tremendous honor to work

with them to help to develop the mental

performance initiative where we teach

firefighters in the eleven thousand

four-person firefighting service of FDNY

how to use these techniques to be in the

moment more and that's Jason Bresler on

the left that's me in the middle and

chief Ginty to the right and really what

we work on is helping them to learn

those techniques self-talk breathing so

they said fader listen you want to come

work with us you got to come you think

you're mr. mental toughness come work

with us so they call me and they just

call me up they said we need you to come

today to the rock I'm like the rock how

do I get to Arai do I swim like ha ha

has his work turns out the rock is a

training center in Randall's Island in

the middle of the East River in New York

and they light buildings on fire and

they actually have real purposeful

practice to train firefighters so they

bring me in they have they put on the

bunker gear here

and I went in I was really prepared but

when I got into this burning building

the thing I wasn't prepared for was the

thing that's most lethal in a fire smoke

I got in there and the smoke hit me I

couldn't see anything it was really

frightening and I had my oxygen on they

told me like you don't want to just rip

that oxygen mask off it's an instinct

and I was like not it's not gonna happen

of course it did all of a sudden I got

in my head started thinking it started

my heart started racing but I had two

things in my head from the work I do

with athletes to help get me back into

the moment one was breathing and I'm

gonna teach you how I did it right now

if you're ready to learn it say I am so

what we do to keep our breathing and

control is we breathe for seconds in

four seconds out and a two second pause

inhale for four exhale for four two

second pause we'll start on the count of

three if you're ready let me hear you

say I'm ready one two three

inhale two one thousand three one

thousand four exhale to one thousand

three one thousand four pause inhale two

one thousand three one thousand four

exhale two one thousand three one

thousand four now you have something to

go to in those moments in those fires in

your life tough discussion can go to

your breath tough meeting can go to your

breath test you can go to your breath

game you can go to your breath TED talk

that breathing that self-talk helps me

in all different areas of my life what I

said when I was in that fire the way I

was talking to myself was I was just

saying here and now to help guide myself

back to the present moment here and now

in any moment that you're in and you

know working with NFL players it's funny

because you know they'll just grab you

in the locker room so an NFL player

grabs you it's kind of like you're like

one of those stuffed animals in a crane

you know when the in the super in the

amusement park in skirts they come up

and grab a fader yeah fader that's

breathing technique that you hope that

you show me is really helpful and here

I'm like wow actually I'm good at my job

I'm like wait I'm trying to go back in

the plays that he was involved in

what is he talking about which one did I

help him in yellow Freder see I was with

my wife and I was about to get in an

argument and I use your breathing

technique and it helped calm me down so

once I got over there the little ego

blow that it wasn't about football I

realized one of the most powerful things

that I'm talking you guys about these

techniques are for all of us we can all

use the same techniques that athletes

use in their life to be the best in the

field in all of the different situations

where we experience stress and pressure

my belief really is that life as a sport

in the sense that we're playing a sport

or where we're giving a performance when

we're playing chess when we're playing

violin all these beautiful moments that

we have we don't endure it we don't try

to get through it we play it we're

really there and the techniques of

mental conditioning of sport and

performance psychology breath meditation

and mindfulness self-talk mental

rehearsal can really help you they're

the ones I wrote about in my book life

as sport in which I tell people you all

and try to share with you what's really

been helpful for me to be on all the red

dots that I have in my life both

personal and professional but the word I

used was play to be playful and I want

to just come back to that for just one

minute what I do is I bring something to

every team talk I do when I work with an

NFL team or an MLB team or any corporate

event or whoever I'm talking to in

academia with doctors I bring this bingo

ball except I call it the ball of death

and what I say and what I do is I say

this has all your jersey numbers in it

and I'm gonna pick someone at random and

that person can come up on stage with me

and freestyle rap in front of everyone

can you imagine or come up and tell a

joke in front of everyone I mean that

dot moves from six feet to being

throughout everyone here but I don't

want to talk about it I actually decided

that we're gonna pick someone here at

random to come up here in freestyle rap

with me up

stage you just come up here we're gonna

we're gonna we put seat numbers here

those doors are locked can we lock those

doors we're gonna we're gonna pick

someone here random to come up and rap

on stage with me so three lucky people

your numbers are on your seat just let's

make sure you check your number right

now I'm just I'm just kidding guys

oh my god right oh my god oh my god not

me

no I don't want to touch that die

there's a predator there's a lion get it

away get it away right that is stress

and the more you use these techniques

for every moment not just freestyle

rapping not just you know when you're on

the field of play but it's all a field

of play life is a sport I feel bad that

was mean does that mean who said oh my

god that was mean right okay you know

what you know what I think I owe it to

you guys to freestyle rap what do you

think right like I mean I I I actually I

I really put you on the spot terrible

right and I owe it back to you guys so

in in the last kind of minute here I

just want to give you guys something

which has to be playful so I just need

from the front rows here fruit okay

raise your hand yes mango okay

[Music]

baby goodfeel let's take the mango peel

and eat that fruit take the loot oh my

god it's not a mute this is happening

right now

come on now I'm talking about breathing

exercise if you do it then you'll feel

why oh yeah maybe a surprise so let's do

it together everybody if you're in it

all kinds of weather oh my god it's time

to stop imaginary Mike drop

guys this is the sign of New York Giants

locker room let's stay in the moment

and let's do it together I invite you to

begin to live life like a sport thank

you

you