Not Afraid to Feel
In a recent 60 Minutes interview with Novak Djokovic, he quickly points out to the interviewer that his “gift of mental strength” is not a natural gift or talent, but rather a trained skill that he consistently trains and develops just like any other part of his game. He talks about the internal “storm” brewing beneath the surface, the myth of a “positive mindset”, and beautifully articulates our shared human experience of having moments of fear and doubt.
In the neurophysiological language of The Play Zone, it’s not about stopping our adaptive bodily reactions from occurring, or ignoring and repressing the emotions, fears and doubts that might emerge as we shift through a variety of physiological states when we encounter challenges on and off the court. Instead, it’s about relating to what’s going on inside of us in ways that help us to realign our physiology to support our values, intentions, the expression of our skill set, our highest potential, and how we really want to show up in the world.
Even the champions experience doubt, uncertainty, fear and that feeling of not being good enough. This is what it means to be human. The difference is that they don’t get stuck spiraling in the destructive stories, negative emotions or intense bodily reactions and instead they efficiently recover, regroup, reset and ultimately “reconvince” the very primitive survival networks in the brainstem that they are prepared, in control, and ready to play!
More to think about…
It’s interesting when you think about the differences between Djokovic and Federer and Nadal. Nadal is so ritualistic in his approach to managing the big moments, his emotions, and his bodily reactions to the pressure. Federer on the other hand had this ability to be effortless and graceful, which emerged naturally from his physiology when he was comfortable and in control. At the same time, his grace and fluidity became a resource for him, which led to to even more confidence and control. However, in the really big moments, and when Fed’s body would get really tight or he’d start missing shots or shanking backhands, he almost looked perplexed or confused. It was like he didn’t get what was happening, and he didn’t understand how his body wasn’t cooperating with his intentions. From my perspective, he didn’t know how to relate to what was going on inside his body when things started to fall apart for him.
That is the big difference between Federer and Djokovic. Djokovic totally understands what’s going on inside his body. He is fully aware of it, and he’s not afraid of it. Federer never really tapped into how to relate to his body when it was taken over by survival, or taking over in order to survive. In a way, he was lost. And he’s not alone. Many natural athletes and champions across a variety of disciplines seem to have an innate capacity for optimizing their performance in the pressure moments. They do this without conscious awareness, without deliberately doing anything, or without an understanding of how they manage the nerves while everyone else gets overwhelmed by the same situation. This works until it doesn’t.
Djokovic is not only aware of what he’s feeling inside, he knows how to intentionally manage what’s happening in his physiology in a way to sometimes “weather the storm” of the opponent, or to climb back out of self doubt, self destruction and a body that doesn’t feel safe and comfortable. Often, he deliberately navigates his bodily reactions, his feelings, his emotions and his metabolic output with awareness and intention, and he eventually climbs the performance hierarchy and turns his struggles into confidence, energy and PLAY!
Here's a link to the 60 minutes video of Novak Djokovic - well worth the 12 minutes…
https://youtu.be/iBxprBcvpSA?si=wKD9tJqBro1Jo-D1
Summary of the key points made by Djokovic related to The Play Zone:
The idea of maintaining a positive mindset is misleading. From a neurophysiological perspective, mindset sits on top of the more primitive survival networks being managed subconsciously at the level of the brainstem. If those adaptive survival circuits get triggered into a reactive, defensive state, or begin to interpret the conditions as overwhelming or “life threatening”, our access to higher levels of cognition, creativity, problem solving and a positive mindset are compromised.
The concept of being “locked in” isn’t an accurate depiction of what’s actually playing out emotionally, psychologically or inside the body. Our bodily state can rapidly and reflexively shift into a state supporting confidence, focus and play, and at the same time, can be triggered into a state oriented toward attacking, defending or protecting. These shifts are reflexive, adaptive and triggered beneath conscious awareness or control, however we can become aware of our state shifts, and relate to what’s happening inside of our body in ways that help to realign our physiology and psychology to support our values, intentions, goals, resilience, relatability, and performance.
When asked about the “mental strength” that truly separates him from all the rest, he points out how much he works on developing his “mental strength”, how it’s not a gift or natural talent, and at the same time, when he mentions the techniques he uses, he talks about managing his breathing, body and emotions, while putting aside the idea of maintaining a positive mindset. What he’s essentially saying here is that “mental strength” emerges out of the physiology, and it is through our capacity to manage our physiology, and regain control of our adaptive reactions to the challenges we face on the court, we actually optimize our “mental strength”.
Another key point that Djokovic touches on lightly in this interview relates to his comments about how there are many people talking about how he thrives in “hostile” environments where the fans are rooting against him and cheering for his opponent. Despite what might often play out in his favor in these environments, he shares how much better he feels and performs when the fans are on his side.
Lastly, Djokovic shares the gratitude he feels for his children being old enough to witness what he is doing on the court. Although he doesn’t talk about it in this interview, he looks to his son and daughter throughout his matches for support and encouragement. Through their facial expressions, body language, fist pumps, and the sounds of their voices, they are lifting him when he needs energy and confidence, and calming him down when he feels anxious or agitated. In the biggest moments, he doesn’t feel alone out there in his body. Instead, he feels comfort, connection and safety knowing that his coaches, friends and family, including his children, are on his side, and with him no matter what happens. This is a GIGANTIC cue of reassurance, trust and support that might be the most potent performance enhancer of all time!
Although this might sound soft, this is grounded in hard science. Functionally, the neural mechanisms that enable shifts in our breathing to directly impact heart rate to modify oxygen perfusion and metabolic output, are the same neural mechanisms that enable us to communicate to one another through the intonation of our voices, facial expressions, body language, muscle tension, movements and postures. Functionally, the cranial nerves that regulate the striated muscles in our face, neck and head that coordinate communication through voice, facial expressions and body language are connected interneuronally in the brainstem to the vagal regulation of our heart, lungs, internal organs and bodily systems. Hence, exchanging cues back and forth between trusted teammates, supportive coaches, and cherished loved ones is so impactful on our performance because this has a direct and immediate influence on how our physiology is being regulated by our nervous system.
