Less
Is More:
Why Trying Hard Can Cause Errors
A
well-known
Zen principle
is "less
is more" -
and never has
a truer statememt
been spoken
about golf.
In
an amazing
paradox -
the harder
we try in
golf, the
more we engage
our much
weaker 'conscious'
mind during
our play -
instead of
the hugely-powerful subconscious,
which strangely
enough, is
activated
when we try
less!
This
is what makes
golf such
a great challenge
- we
need to use both minds
in order
to be successful. We
use our conscious
mind to create
our intention
(or goal),
but we then
need to be
able to switch
it off, and
use our subconscious
to make the
stroke!
The
players who
have the
toughest
time are
those who think
too much -
as this is
an activity
of the conscious
mind, which
will always
ensure that
things go
wrong! The
conscious
mind does
not know
how to hit
the ball;
it has an understanding of
what to do,
but it is
the subconscious which
contains
an archived
record in
your memorybank
of the every
single shot
you have
ever hit
in your lifetime
- this is
where your experience truly
resides.
Yes
it's true,
it remembers everything -
about every single
shot -
including
the exact
'video' of
each stroke,
the feel of
the shot,
the lie you
had, the
rhythm, backswing
and follow-through
you used,
the result
you achieved,
the ball
you used,
the score
you made,
etc etc.
Most
of this information
is never
accessible to
us consciously,
as human brains
have been created
with a reticular
activating
device -
to ensure we
are not overly bombarded with
thousands of
useless pieces
of information
- which
also blocks
your conscious
mind's access
to the archives
of your golfing
experience.
This
is why you
must never try
too hard -
or else you
will be accessing
the least-informed of
your two
minds to
hit the ball.
By
contrast, your
subconscious
knows exactly how
to hit each
shot perfectly
- yet it is
only very
occasionally we
allow it to
access our
game! The subconscious
is activated
when the conscious
mind is basically
switched off
- which automatically
relaxes our
mind and body,
allowing our
strokes to
flow much easier. This
is why so many
players play
better in the
relaxed atmosphere
of practice
rather than
in competition
- this is when
they use their
subconscious!
So
it is always
better to err
on the side
of detachment
and relaxation rather
than over-trying
- especially
in practice
- the place
where you master
your strokes
and mental
approach for
competition.
Keep this in
mind and see
if you can
incorporate
this method
into your game.
