The Zone and Previsalization

So....." Being in the Zone" as referring to Sports,  is having to a point, so practiced your sport that it has becomes instinctive (without thought) and the Subconscious mind is allowed to take control and do the action.   Simple?  Remember that when you think and tell yourself what to do, the Subconscious mind is shut down. The "Zone" is the ability to go "Mindless" or be in a "Void" or " Absence of thought".

 "What is The Zone?  The Zone is intangible. It is that ideal - that place - that state of mind - where performing is easy, your actions are effortless, and your results exceed all expectations." This would be sufficent explaination by the author Jon Gorrie for his book "Performing in the Zone" as he described it on ebay.com. We are told that "Actors, musicians, public speakers, dancers, models, sports-people, entertainers, and singers -we're all performers. We all receive training, practise for countless hours, enter our performance environment, and sooner or later, for better or for worse, we get affected by the performance situation". His book suggesting we develop our abilities and after sometime our performance is a natural prefection of our ability. "We experience performance arousal - a phenomenon which can either get us into The Zone or cause devastating performance anxiety." the author  explains of the need to " control  your performance arousal instead of letting it control you" 

Things like Performance arousal or performance anxiety should not be underestimated but I think we need to understood the conflict and fear of  letting the subconscious mind take control and attempting to maintain control, while we ignore the efforts by conscious mind to regain control.  In the zone to me, means turning control over to the subconscious mind which does a lot more than just perform muscle coordination. The mind (subconscious) is always analysis the results and evaluating why they were not what we expected. 
      This is the last of 8 blogs on using the Subconscious and the action of visualizing your bowls delivery; before, during and after the delivery or shot.   Unless you normally read the last pages of a book ,to know the ending, and then go back to the beginning; will often prevent the development of an ability through steps of progress.  In wanting to develop you subconscious performance (or being in the zone) I suggest that you  go down the list of blogs and find the seven blogs on the Zone or the development of the Subconscious; and start at the first blog. One things about a book on this topic, as a lot material has been presented by a lot of people of other perfections of self, in Lawn Bowls like Golf we want to be One.

Another book I crossed in research on the net is by Ray Mackay Phd. In the Previous Blog  the last exercise presented, seem a bit simple-minded; but it works in becoming aware of your subsconscious self.  I  often use this method to teach how to add-on and take-off  weight when teaching Blind Students to Lawn Bowls. This is because the visually impaired who is learning to lawn bowls; does not see their bowl as it rolls up the green and often only see the image of a delay roll of their bowls in their mind. For this reason, even with visual Lawn Bowls students, the thought of wanting to remove weight or add-on; as to a physicial change, is as very strong direction given to the subconscious mind.

Many lawn bowlers on returning to the mat,  see, in their mind, the previous delivered  bowl rolling up the green as a memory; and believe they must do something physicially different to get the result and eventually change their routine. This is a mistake. Feedback was this analysis immediately after the bowl rolled and decisions made then. The subconscious mind knows what you want to now do and rather than have a physicial command to the muscles get into the habit of communicating to the subconscious mind what you decided. Think the action.

 However, the error of this as an exercise was that any verbal communication does not work with the subconscious mind. Language is a slow conscious communication and inhibits the subconscious mind.  In your understanding of the ZONE  Principle and how to put  yourself   " in the Zone" ; it is more important to get the subconscious mind involved in your actions and letting it do the shot.

 This applies not only at the time of delivery but also during the complete loop of delivery, analysis and feedback. Communicate what you are  Seeing,  analysing  and data you are collecting from the feedback to the subconscious mind and what is expected in the improvement of the next shot.  The subconscious mind follows these thoughts of the conscious mind and is always listening but I have found it is lazy and often have to be remained of our thoughts toward the new expectation.

      "Previsualization" is like a type of communication with  the subconscious mind  which will put us in the zone,  Just thinking of  what we expect is not enough, and as we  visualize the action and our expectation of the next bowl to be rolled, we reveal that we have confidence that it will be done. (by the subconscious mind)  Lack of confidence is a battle of conscious and subconscious mind over who has the control and we are always attempting to control or made changes in our routine to get that result. No, If you are losing balance during delivery, think why and the subconscious mind will stop that action from happening on the next delivery.

                          I will briefly go back a few blogs to compare the  Archery's athletic who are in the Zone. After they have developed the correct techniques for shooting the bow, they just has to find a void in thinking where they can allow the subconscious mind to do its thing, for a split-second, because it is in that micro second  that the bowstring is released and the arrow is let fly unknown it happen. (Time and time again for all 144 arrows toward the gold spot).
        There is the exception, In the instinctive  archer or bow hunter, which does  not using a sight, or any technical aiming aids; they do not stand on a shooting line, bow strung, arrow ready to let fly and drop mental into the zone.  The instinctive shooter has learned to throws the arrow with his bow. His action and the mind's control of it; is not much different than the baseball player throws a baseball. Both athletics have  incorporated into their subconscious, the action of throwing. Actually, an instinctive archer is also throwing  his arm outward like the baseball player during his back swing; and both   uses a visualisation of where they intends the ball (or arrow) to go.  He thinks it and he does it... Or better ."He thinks and It happens because of the subconscious mind".

      In the previous blog there was an exercise to development of  the feeling of knowing when the subconscious mind is in control... Communicating with the subconscious mind has several levels and to identify the subconscious mind's presence will often to the new student seem like a strange feeling of "out-of-body" or in "the Absence of Mind" Zone. Once you know what these feelings are, you accept to be there and you feel it without worries. If you are in the Zone, you know it and lucky if you are not distracted or forced out of the zone with a thought.

 Everything we do in Bowls is being watched and communicated to the subconscious and  like the horse and rider combination; during a riding competition, where one is doing the work and the other is doing the instruction; we must be in balance with our subconscious mind. Our subconscious mind, knows what and how to do that bowl delivery, but also we  need to know how to relax and let it happen and that we have correctly instructed and told the subconscious of  our expectations, 
  These blogs have been about the conscious and subconscious mind... Others call it The zone of Perfection.

         You have just rolled a great bowl which draws to the head and stops short. You need to add a bit. Yes you can use techniques like longer step, wrist flick, more swing to increase that extra weight., but with the subconscious mind it is more "What Happen ?"  "Why?" and "Ok, you can do it...Do it"

 This is where visualization is involved..When we left the mat, after the delivery, we were thinking of what happen and what we will want to correct. Now back on the mat ready to bowl we do a quick instruction to the subconscious of these instruction of improvement needed for a better bowl.  we incorporate these thoughts with the pre-visualization and let the subconscious mind do it.

    .Visualizing the Bowl roll involves a state of mind  which allowing the subconscious to see what  we visualize as to how our bowl will roll (imaginary).This thought is a communication which direct the subconscious to roll the bowl to the spot wanted. We the roll in our mind before we do it  and we know with  "Confidence" that it will happen...

   "Previsualization is a routine of seeing the action in a visual thought in your mind a few times before we deliver the bowl to the green. A more detail thought is an instructions to tell the subconscious how the bowl will roll and what changes we need to make to correct our previous error. However, it is also a method of transferring control to the subconscious mind, at the end of the actual though image, and not knowing  that it has happen..Here we see (in the mind) the bowl rolling up the green, roll pass those frontal bowls and roll up and fall over at the jack. And we do it a second time to be sure of the instruction and even to add corrective thoughts to that image.  By the third imaginary image we are not aware the bowl has been delivered and now we see that the bowl has been rolled by the subconscious.

 Where it become important, is that we are staying in the Zone. (not taking back control from the subconscious mind) until the delivery is finished. Yes, we want to be able to stay in the zone for the total few micro-seconds of the delivery.  From the back swing to the roll and release.

 If we have our routine down pack as to rolling our bowl, all we need for the subconscious is a point of transfer.  This  third visualization of the imaginary bowl defines that transfer.  For beginners, it is necessary to see it,, 1 time, see it again, 2nd time, and 3, see it happening.

     We all make mistakes and the discouragement of a mistake is a change of mind set.  As I watched Ryan Bester's World bowls Single final I learn that the determination of trailing by several points is a big Zone motivation booster for him. With the subconscious, the more the task seems impossible, the more it amazes you in that it can do it perfectly. Ryan seem to allow his opponent in a few game to get a jump of points on him. Sort like giving an extra load of work to the subconscious mind to do.

  . In poker we hear the term "A tell" meaning an action or twitch which tells something about the player's thought.Update Oct 29th 2023 This Toe-tapping Tell is seen in the Australian National lawn Bowls Singles Final by Cody Parker Western Australia in the Youtube Video. Same action to tell the subconscious the distance..   In the petanque video , on youtube, the shooter, who is practicing a takeout shot, can be seen to visualize (or Previsualize because his action is before doing his actual shot) and perfirns a mental action where he imagines his action of the throw and the takeout  actually hitting the target; in his mind as he is recalling the memories of previous shots. his shot by his left foot . This "tell" can be seen as a swing arm, a toe tap, a eye movement or just a finger.

 That short twitch of his toe, is his thought during the visualizing of the coming action of the thrown ball  instruction to the subconscious and the thought back to himself . (we also see that he does the communication (Twitch) several times)  He is like the rider on the horse, where he  stays  in control but also allow the action to be done as it is wanted. This same  sort of action is done in the predelivery action of Lawn Bowls atheltics like Karan Murphy the Australian Singles World Bowls Champion.

 We talked about confidences and I will tell you.. the subconscious mind has a big ego. It can not accept it did a mistake, so when it make a mistake and at these times, we see how it sometimes gives us the wrong conclusions.   This is important, because doing it "Instinctive" is letting the subconscious do it. But it can be a problem when the mind (subconscious) does not have enough information. We said that we have become overconfidence, but in the following example the mind created a gathering of information it needed from memory.

  I was helping Alex, from Montreal prepare for the World Petanque Championships and build more in the Zone with concentration.  It was important he know the limitations of the total concentration on his ability and skill.
 He was doing Petanque takeout, which is the normal practice (carre every 3 of 4)., So, I asked him if he had a Cochon (jack of petanque) and walked up and placed it behind the ball he was shooting to take out.  He first thought that this practice would be to takeout the ball without moving the cochon. A sort of  shot where he hits hit target ball on the left or right side; which is harder and often practice ".No" I told him (and his subconscious mind listen) as I explained. "You know the cochon is behind the ball, shoot just over the top of the ball,  and take out the cochon.  You can do it". (Alex was confidence the yellow jack (cochon) was behind the target ball, which he had been shooting. So after a few tries he made the shot and his takeout shot went over the top of the target ball to hit the yellow cochon behind it. (as in phot right )
    One problem,  I had not placed the cochon there and it was in my hand.  In his frist two attempts he was too high and he knew it. On the 3rd shot he knew that his shot had succeed in just  passing over the petanque ball and hitting the jack (if it had been there).  He was sure he had seen the jack fly to the left and went to where he thought it was and began to look for it.  After a few minutes I showed him the jack in my hand and explained.  
  "The subconscious mind had seen the shot done several times before and always the jack fly left or right,  in a different direction when it was hit...  so when the shot was done correctly, it (the subconscious mind) convey to the shooter (Alex) that it had seen the cochon fly to the left.  Although it had not. Alex was so amazed when he realized what had happen and the jack was in my hand (I showed and explained it) that he sat down  and interrupted his practice.  A big lesson on not accepting all the information that the subconscious mind transmit to you.  Don't get lazy by not doing the post-delivery analysis.  That year Alex placed 3rd or 4th in the world at the World Petanque Competitions.
 .                   Confidence is good,  but when in the zone and allowing the action to happen, always go back to your routine of analysis and feedback.  The need for this is that it is both necessary for an athletics's development and the subconscious mind needs this awareness of expected correction or errors which were made.

. In the indoor match between Australia and New Zealand if you watch the video you will see the tell (pre armswing) of the auzzie. 2010 BCIB - PBA Indoor Challenge Singles video
  Same with seeing distance, we calculate distance by the subconscious feeling  the tension of the muscles of the eyes being focus on the bowl or jack at a distance.  But the subconscious can not say 25 meters unless you have a method of calculating  the distance..  Like how far is  the jack within  the boundaries (for a long jack) or  how far over minimum distance is the jack?  You can actually visualize yourself walking from the hogline to the jack and counting the steps and develop it very actually. Or on a long jack you can watch the player behind the jack coming to the head and count their steps.
  If the conscious mind does not do these calculation then the subconscious mind will not do it.  Stay in control.. otherwise being over confidence and begin making mistakes.
    In closing,  I suggest if you have read all the 8 blogs and are interested in this strong force in your bowls development, you do not abandon any part of your present routine.  Build upon it by defining and feeling the involvement of the subconscious .  Check out other aspects of our sport.. Crown Bowls is very much instinctive and with  quite a non-flat effect on the bowl roll.  Blind bowls should be tried. Go to the club and after standing on the mat and line pull you hat down over your eyes and get into the previsualization and roll the bowls.  Learn, adapt and improve.  
   Thank you for following the blogs...  If  the chance arrives I will attempt to do another two or three of follow-up nature.. But by chance I saw the book of "in the Zone" and want to read it.
   A last thought    "If I know all this,  why am I not a top of the line athletic ?   Well, maybe one day I will say hi.. because I am also still working on all the aspects of perfection.   But I do have national gold.  but not in bowls... Not yet.

Three Subconscious mind Exercises

This blog speaks of a old saying that "A wise man and a fool appear alike until either one of them  begin to speak"  Why even express yourself in something, which others don't understand and  which may be so controversial to have readers view your teachings as PoppyPoop.  (Gosh I wrote a lot in this blog, re-reading it I ask..what should I delete ???)

Last Month, while watching Ryan Bester, Canada's best Lawn bowler, on streaming Australia Bowls at  the World Bowls 2012,  in Australia.; I saw  the smooth flow from Conscious to subconscious actions in his bowl delivery.

(update july 2014, Ryan will be bowling in the Comm'w'th Games 2014 this week in Scotland)

This young man has done what I had taken over the last 40 years of personal learning in several sports for me to develop. And even today I have  far from having it at perfection..  With great teacher like the french instinctive traditional archer,Jean Marie Coche, and his book "La discipline du tir a l'arc instinctif souple", I have learn  to relax during the action, and let the subconscious do the sport.

  I believed in the development of these abilities, "to be in the Zone" and if not for the recent video of Tiger Wood on the subject in Youtube, I would have just continue to work on it myself.  This smooth flow of mind from conscious to subconscious, creates what some people will call an out-of-body experience.

  Recently Golf Digest (Updated March/2016) has a 18 great mental tips from golf greats and one was by Tony Jacklin who said " When I am in this state, everything is pure, vividly clear. I'm in a cocoon of concentration"

Another golfer , Mark Calcavecchia said it another way in that article. "When I'm in a zone, I don't think about the shot or the wind or the distance or the gallery or anything; I just pull a club and swing."

Likewise, Al Geiberger said  "A great round of golf is a lot like a terrible round. You drift into a zone, and it is hard to get out of it."

 This Zone is when the  Conscious mind release control to the subconscious, and you stand back and watch as you are performing the actions.  The actions and results is best defined as " total in the zone" because you have learn  it is possible to give total control to the subconscious.  Your subconscious mind can easily remember how you do that action and can reproduce those price and well developed actions.

Whether, in  Lawn bowl delivery, Archery shooting an arrow or what ever.  If we think about what we want to do we lose it..  Because the subconscious mind requires you to not think about your action you must learn to think about nothing for that few microseconds.


 A half century ago. when  I was just 18 and  starting photography at a N.S. newspaper office, my mentor told me, how he had gone up the Mount Kennedy (a mountain in Canada renamed for John F Kennedy ) with a team of American National Geographic photographers.  There, he was told by US Photographers that he could not be there on a Canadian mountain. Of course, when the National Geographic magazine was published  later that year, there was not a single photo showing his presence in the group..

 He had told them. " No American is going to tell me I can not climb and photograph on a Canadian Mountain" So as a young man of 30, he went with the group and  received no credit as no photos printed show him as being  there.' .  Why this story ?

He always said..  "I did it because I could"  And  most important "You are remembered not by what others say (or photograph) you have done. but what you know in your heart you did". a good mentor with sound advice.  Validation is not important if you know yourself how valuable your actions have been.

Also he would say "Knowledge is free so give it free.. pass on to others"    He taught me to share knowledge and be proud of  what I know, even if others may disagree as to it value, or even to it  actually a obtainable power..

         In my first sport, Archery, I was shooting beer bottle caps at 30 feet off the wire fence.. Just turn and shoot instinctive.. Trick shots , yes a bit , but skill use of the subconscious mind in a split second of action.  If I had taken the time to aim I would never have been able to do it.  Just that quick action of turning and shooting... no thinking... just doing.   You can do the same in Bowls and Ryan Bester shows this in his delivery and shots.
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Without saying too much more but with these three exercises,  listed below, which allows the Commanding of the Subconscious; you can  apply it in your  personal Sport.  Again to some,  I will seem to be an idiot, but to others I can be a teacher.

 But if the reader learns to. Know what is the difference in Instinctive and Visualization as it applies to the Perfection of their sport; I feel honoured to have  you as a reader who  will incorporate the ideas into your sport. Another tool in your toolbox of endurance, confidence, and another great bowl delivered.

Like a neuro-computer, our mind works on our thoughts and commands. But like a computer with a operating system a lot of what happens in our life are controlled by a subconscious part of the mind.

 Daily, in driving a car we Brake to a stop without thought or do many tasks instinctive. We live our lives with the subconscious doing for us. The subconscious mind is always busy , But never do we allow it a total control, and so it is hard to later develop it as part of our sport.  Maybe, it is now time in our personal sport development, to engage, and develop, this aspect of mental control. Let things happen and be less of a control freak as we watch our self giving more control to the subconscious mind. ( And see the difference it makes in our performance).


In sports, a lot of actions happens so fast only the subconscious has the ability to control how we react and then produce the final wanted result.  If a baseball player in throwing the ball and is losing his balance, what would happen if he was to think.. "I am not properly balanced and must throw to the left because I am falling as I throw"?  All of these thoughts, our conscious mind interference with our actions,  would result in the pitched ball being badly thrown as we lose the time to adjust his throw... The subconscious mind  can feels the off balance action in his throw,  and  also knows to achieve the  needed actual wanted  to result in the adjustment of the action and force of the throw of the baseball.
                       - - - - - - -  OK Down to actual exercises - - - - - -

The three exercise given here will
  1 - show the presence of Subconscious control,
 2 - How to give over control to the Subconscious,  and
 3 -  communicate with the subconscious our expectation in our  performance.(feedback)

        Two problems happen in Lawn Bowls which don't happen in other sports.  First, lawn Bowls, it is not  a fast "physical action" sport, and therefore, because of this long action period, we do not allow the automatic subconscious  to take control of our delivery. We believe we can best  control and direction our actions.  Not True !!

       Secondly , where in other sports, if the athletic want to improve, they will develop muscles or  buy special equipment (golf or archery),  in Lawn Bowls we improve by changes that we will incorporate into our next bowl, in our next  competition, etc. We study and learn from the analysis of our errors after the game or competition.. However, every time  that we  improve our bowls technique this way; do we develop the control by the conscious or do we let the subconscious learn the control of it.  If we,  say, change our line of delivery on that next delivery, we become a little more fixed (consciously) and  we continue to maintain that control of this action until the end  in our delivery routine.

Yesterday ( update 2023) I was talking to an international athletic who has been at Internationals for several years who was having problems with their performance. The subconscious was miss informed because of the bright sunshine. Our eyes adjust to the bright sunlight and the subconscious had not yet adjust it method of distance judgement, All that was required was to think “Bright Sunlight” before transfer of control to the active subconscious and allow it to make the adjustment. Of course, it required three or four occurrence of this pre-action thought to establish that all future action at this time required that adjustment. If the individual was using pre-visualization to identify the distance the subconscious would automatically adjust as pre-visualization is repeated until you know the proper distance.

Using the subconscious is `thinking  'I want my bowls to finish there', and thoughts like  'The Bowl seems to be affected by the fall of the green at the head.'. These thoughts are input to the subconscious mind. And then, we let it happen with the confidence of  'I can do it'. This is  a transfer of control from us controlling the action to the subconscious.  .Hopefully, knowing when the subconscious is involved and asking more of the subconscious will open to you new avenues of  success and perfection.

 Tiger Wood's coach in talking about Visualization in Tiger' Perfection  ( www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1mSMDoVqcg) said

 "The athletic in the Peak Performance Zone,, is really in a heighten state of awareness., an absorbed focus. There is an element of Relaxation Response, that goes on in there. And they are always in the Here and the Now, with a clear uncluttered mind.  Just absorbed in the moment."  and most important.. "Letting the performance happen rather than thinking or helping the performance to happen"


Exercise 1 Feeling  the presence of the subconscious mind.
       This exercise is not for results.. it is to notice and feel when,  in your performance,  the subconscious  mind. is engaged.  Once we feel  the subconscious mind taking  control and know of its presence, and we know  that feeling, then  we can  work to activate  (or deactivate) the control transfer  during our bowls delivery.

 The knowledge of knowing the subconscious is active, can be every time to improving your sport. Your coach can not roll your bowl. Only you. likewise, your conscious thought and action can not roll your bowl.. only your subconscious.  Let it happen..  You know how to do it.. let the mind do it.

    If in catching a ball, you did not know the hand could be used to catch a thrown ball, you would do like a lot of kids and catch it between your arms and your stomach. Today, you know to raise your arm  and catch the ball between your fingers...  The following exercise will show you a "feeling" or "awareness" of the subconscious mind being active.

     EXERCISE     As with a regular Bowls practice, go on the green with 4 bowl (or even 8 bowls of the same near weight and size) and place them close to the mat.  You will be reaching down quickly to pick them  up,  bowl by bowl, and rolling them one after the other. So, place them as near the front of the mat as is good for your style of delivery.
       Because you are going to roll 4 (or 8) bowls very quickly up the green. Your exercise has three parts.  1 - Position yourself (always the same) on the mat,   2 - Roll the bowl, and quickly pick up anther bowl and roll it.  and 3 - Feel something was missing.  All this is done without concern where the previous bowl has stop.(  Same line, same object or point of draw). 

This exercise will identify the short time that the subconscious is controlling your delivery.

       Principle here is.. The subconscious always take control from a "a start point of your delivery" (Thus a normal , same position on the mat, start is important for this exercise) .You will reach and pick up a bowl and place yourself on the mat at that same start position, and if your do a grip or extended arm type preparation this is ok..do it. but don't waste time planning or line aiming..  The subconscious mind will always take control from a known point of transfer  (of control of conscious mind) and preform it task each time.

   RESULTS   For all the bowls,  you have rolled the bowl along a line and then forgot about it,.. reach down and got another and position your self and  roll it immediately without concern for the previous bowl.. All of this for all 4 (or 8 bowls)  You don't think about style, form or weight,  just rolled  the bowls.

Did you notice, that somewhere during the exercise and your delivery, you did not know the bowl was rolling.  You realize that you had done your delivery when you saw the bowl in front of you.

 And this was because you were now thinking  "I got to get another bowl"  This absence of thought time is the time identified as the subconscious mind's control or presence. We call this the Zone or a period of "Empty Thought".

             This exercise  works now to show you the Zone, because you probably never have rolled 4 or 8 bowls fast like that... and the subconscious mind does not have any routine to remember.  so when you decide to "Get Another Bowl",  the subconscious mind immediately returns control to your conscious mind.. Also, in your normal routine of delivery and watching it roll, you do  not see the subconscious presence, but here  you have that  feeling that you need to watch the bowl until it stops. (Another routine interrupted by this exercise and which shows the subconscious mind receiving confusing information  and does not like be interrupted or tricked.

 These two feelings identify the subconscious mind's presence.  "absence of thought period" and "Interruption Annoyance" Looking for a photo this book arrived in my search. Never read it but seems interesting. "In The Zone Training by Clinical and Sport Psychologist, Dr. Ray Mulry,"

           Up until now your routine (conscious and subconscious) has finished with the results of the roll.  The "Blackout period" was ended when your subconscious mind has given back control to you..

The annoyance is caused because you are unaware that  your subconscious takes other inputs like the  results, what you expected when after the bowl has stopped, your analysis of error, and decision of what to do to fix it.  All these inputs of information are part of the subconscious work of preparing for the next routine.

In your future bowls delivery, before the transfer of control to the subconscious you will now know  the big need to communicate your expectation and  changes in delivery, ( Not consciously do it but decide to do it and and  wait and watch them happen from  this thought to the subconscious.)
 
        Now do the exercise again returning up green.. This time identifying where the bowl were on the green and when you feel the return to your conscious mind. Try to place the bowl a little farther from you by sort of letting the subconscious keep control longer.(This becomes your future objective)

 Do not change your speed of getting the next bowl.. Just think and do each bowl the same as before but identify the bowls position on the green when you saw it rolling. You have now seen the subconscious mind presence in the previous 4 (or 8) bowls; and you can now  maybe see the ability to extend it presence further into the non thinking part of your delivery..
  Tigar Wood talks about this absence of mind being so long he does not remember doing the swing or shot.  "I know I was there, but I don t remember doing the shot "

Exercise 2... Creating the Absence of  Mind.

 In the photo, the rider is allowing the horses to do the work while directing them where they want them to go...However, you know the horses know what to do because they have done it a thousand times before..

    To be able to roll bowls with the subconscious, we must be able to project our mind into this Absence of presence and we sort of transfer control to subconscious.  Our conscious mind want to say..I can do this,,let me  do it, But like the horseman, we must give instruction and  then let it happen.
.  Getting your mind busy..(like that quick roll did) and with this  busy thinking of something; you will allows the subconscious to be in charge.  In the previous exercise we were occupied with getting the next bowl but you need something less destructive to your routine of delivery..

It is important to note that there are Visual and Auditive individuals So some individuals (visual) will find this easlier than others (auditive) individuals. In the video of Tiger Wood, he said he had trouble visualizing and  his coach had him use his hands for the thought of visualizing the movement. Maybe Tiger Wood is not a visual individual and this was his method.

                So in this exercise you are going to try to create a period of absence of thought  by thinking, maybe concentrating,  on the spot on the green where you want the bowl to stop.."There There There" is your thoughts.

 This will  trigger the subconscious mind to take control, especially if you are ahead of the routine of delivery. ( Of course,  remember the same "transfer of control" point in your delivery routine) This point is always after you have done everything else..( position yourself on mat, bias checked and thoughts of weight that is  needed). Always giving the subconscious mind the control of your actions before the actual delivery..(or at some point.. maybe during the back swing). The photo from Ehow.com shows about the point where you regain control of your delivery consciously.

     . "There, There,there"   It is only during delivery that it is necessary for the subconscious to  be active.   This exercise is to  be able to switch conscious to subconscious when you want.. or have confidence that the subconscious is now doing the delivery. Confidence  that the bowl will arrive "there, there" and confidence that control has been transfer to you subconscious..   Strange but it happens, You will be so occupied with your thoughts of "there, there, there" that suddenly  you will see the bowl on the green,(at some point in it roll to the head) and know that you have returned from the subconscious mind's control.  This feeling of  "not being present for a microsecond", is all that is needed.

 What has happen ??.

  Before rolling the bowl..or during the start of delivery.. forget the delivery and push your mind ahead toward the spot on the green where you expect it will stop or half ways to the head if you are doing a imaginary roll in your imagination  of your bowl  rolling to that sport. ..Concentration, on the imaginary bowl going  to the head and the position where you want the bowl to stop. (If you want to develop this ability, you will feel your mind returning to your delivery but you must again push it to to that position on the green and then to the head)   The difference of this "Green to the head thought "  is that the thought  is your memory of the bowl as you have seen it roll so many times before, into the head. You have seen it many times, so it has a very real movement in your mind.. a memory of  the same having happen many times before to the bowl.

Later you  can work on  having a  full ability to  visualize the action of the bowl all the way from your hand to the head position. This visual image does not see the bowl rolling at it greens speed but forgets time and only thinks about the action. (It is fast but it is complete).  But always from  before the delivery you do your transfer of control (to the subconscious) and work  your thought to  be more concern with  seeing the position near the jack where the bowl  finished it  rolling.
    The subconscious know how to do this...let it do it...Confidence in your ability to allow it to do it automatically or instinctive.

Did you by chance notice the grouping of your bowls in the above exercise. were you surprised that it was such a tight group..(it probably was)  If they were not in a tight group you were not stabilizing your stance on the mat starting from a point of control to the subconscious or you were fighting with the results wanted as to the purpose of the exercise.

Exercise 3.   .Moving Bowls with thought.

I know that seems stupid..but when I decided to shoot a Petanque takeout shot completely blindm it seem stupid. (In Petanque, the french bowl to Jack game, we throw the ball 18 to 20 feet to hit the counting ball)  Throwing a metal ball with your eyes closed is crazy.  But I knew I could do it because I just let it happen.  (Subconsciously)Think about it.. mind know how to do it and the ball is quite big.. And of course there was nothing to see, except the ball being thrown thought the air in my mind.  It happen..no not every time but it was just me practicing deeper control by the subconscious. NOT EXPECTING TO DO IT.
(Photo Petanque Ball hitting and removing a target ball)

Likewise, with a blind student it is possible to make them use their thought because they bowl their bowl in their mind... They do not see, (if totally blind) the green or bowl.

This exercise is not a feeling to be aware of.. but is just an exercise to prove to yourself how the mind (subconscious) will know what to do from your thought to it.  Yes you communicate to your subconscious mind what you expect in your delivery and final shot position.  And you let it happen.

    Take 4 bowls and a jack..  Place the jack at a distance which you like (natural distance probably)  Roll a bowl to that distance.  Now depending upon if your bowl is short or long (I hope it is not on the jack) you are going to simple add on or take off with a thought to do so... Yes a thought to the subconscious.  "I am too short, add on maybe 12 inches"
 .
  Adding on... If you were short and want to just pass your bowl... Think "Unnnnnhhhhhh" like a grunt or forceful sound. as your roll your bowl. and see (in your mind) the previous bowl on the green and this bowl is just a little pass it.
Do this for each of the three bowls left after the first bowl is delivered and try to put each bowl as just a little farther than the previous bowl.  Try this for a few ends and believe in yourself... you can do it.

 If your was long and you  wanted to be in front of that first bowl..  Think "Woooohhhaaaa" like telling a horse to stop. while thinking of the bowl (in your mind) as if it is placing  your new bowl just in front of  the first or your last bowl...Do this for all three bowls each should be just a bit shorter than the one before. If you want to advance this exercise think of the actual inches you want between bowls.  Yes you can do it that way..

As this was originally written in December , our Canadian Winter;  I realized that in Canada we did not have the ability to go out to the green; and therefore, I  was with the hope some Australian bowlers would try the exercise and report back to my twitter or comment here their experience.

 Fellow Canadians, you' will have to wait until next summer and remember these exercise unless you have an indoor winter bowls program at your club or area. These exercises work and with further effort on the exercises; you will  become aware of commanding the sub conscious mind

The next blog,  and last in this group will show how the subconscious mind can make mistakes and be misleading and you must not allow yourself to be caught up believing everything that it shows you.. As this is posted on Christmas Eve I guess it is my presence to Lawn Bowls and you a follower or blog readers.. Hope you have time to try these exercises before the next and last blog in this group.

If you do not think I am a total idiot and you have tried this... my reason  for this long blog has been completed... If not,  your opinion of me as an idiot does not matter because I have and will always be able to do this. (transfer to and from the zone). If one day you can go  to the green and bowl blind and feel these results; I am very happy to have had you as a student.

Be Confident You can do it

Confidence... an abstract idea.  How do we know we have it and how much. If  I was to say "It cold" and leave it at that.  Each of us would put a different value as to what is cold. Discussion in Degrees, freezing, chilly what ever.

In the Quest to Perfection Confidence is the anchor which measure your ability. Confidence in others is easier than self confidence so Blind Lawn Bowls got to show you confidence in others and what you can do. We saw how teaching by the coach in  Blind Lawn Bowls build confidence. The poster by Cyber-nation.com says "With Confidence you can reach truly amazing heights; Without confidence even the simplest accomplishments is beyond your grasp. Jim Loehr".
 In Bowls do we teach for confidence.? Not really, although some skill developing drills by Australia bowls is approaching it.
But is teaching for results building Self Confidence. ? "No".  We learn from good  results that we can do the shot... but without transfer of this knowledge to the subconscious mind; we cannot let the total action be done.  We will stay in control and adjusting errors we made to regain "Confidence"  I've done it and I can do it again.  In the Zone,  the mind know how to do it.. you believe in yourself and let it happen.

Where does Confidence apply in a sport... Before starting the action ??  During the Action?? After the results are seen ?? Being visual Impaired the Blind Lawn Bowls student must have confidence in themselves, in their Coach, in their love of the sport and the freedom it allows them.. the previous blog said it all where words could not.   Asking yourself,  do I have confidence in what I can do. (if I was blind ??)

Here we will see Confidence building. That fine difference of  "I can do it" to "Oh my God, I did it". Being amazed is the food feeding the subconscious mind's  confidence.. Gosh I remember today, 40 years later amazing things I did with confidence. In the petanque video below... I was doing those shots with my eyes closed... Developing subconscious control transfer.  Amazed top world athletics to the point of asking my advice and help in their training.

First,  "Practice make perfect"."Results  makes confidence"... but most important " Perfect Practice make Perfect Confidence". In the example of Archery and the subconscious mind taking control of a small micro-second action for 144 repeat performances and has only 50 near misses (9 instead of 10 where 10 is the center of the target)

   How long does it take to achieve this level of perfection. Would you believe that in just two years after joining the sport,  "Danelle Wentzel (left) from South Africa, becomes the first woman on the African continent to join the International 1400 Club, and one of the few who have achieved this score(over 1400 points) in the world".
  In Archery competition, a FITA 1440 is 144 arrows with 10 points for centre shot at 4 distances and most top scores are 1380 or more. To date, three world archer hold the high score possible, 1419  Danelle was coached by 1400 archer and world record holder Seppie Cilliers. How important is good practice ?? Is it also a good coach. But also confidence in "relax and do it" teaching.

Next we will look at Petanque.  Why.?? because, if Practice is what makes confidence and a good defined practice is important watch this video. Mark is setting up the same shot and going back and trying it  over and over.
First let understand the practice.  When it becomes time to do the shot, the practice is to transfer control to the subconscious mind. Like a baseball player throwing a baseball the Petanque player doing his takeout action has no interference. Just a ball through the air to a target.  Mark is not an elite... just a player like you and me.. What this video does not show, is.that Mark each time before shooting again, sets up the same shot and walked back to try again.
As a petanque player I know 100 times, 200 times is common in a practice.
. What is Mark's objective in practice a takeout shot...(one part of petanque, like a drive in Bowls)  There is in this video clearly. 2 objectives..
1 - A carre... and to  not hit the cochon (jack).Like in Bowls,  what good is it to remove the bowl with a drive,  if you also reposition the jack.
Carre... which you see in the photo, is a term in french for a takeout shot which when performed, the shot ball remains in the other ball position.( no rebound after the point of contact). This stop action photo shows the shooter ball (shiny) staying in the location of the takeout ball, which  is flying away. Petanque players will tell you this is 1 in 20 or 40 shots.  Like the archer they try to get it's occurrence to almost every shot.

2 -   In the stop action photo (right) we see the shot  ball being removed and the cochon (yellow) still there. This youtube video shows Mark's  practice as being  4 different shooter skills..  Takeout  of point ball with a Carre, takeout ball without touching the cochon (jack). Takeout ball located  between other of his  points balls and finally take out the cochon ( jack).. ( I watch one American Challenge game in Montreal where at 19 - 19 (single game finises at 21 like bowls) the cochon (jack) was removed 4 times in a row rather than give up the point..
      What is important at this point is... each time Mark made a shot at the ball for a takeout...he released control to the subconscious mind. His success gave the subconscious mind confidence and confirmation that that was what was wanted.over and over the mind is learning.. Can you imagine such a Bowls Practice such precision and development of a  unique ability.
Like the Petanque player who starts being able to do the take out.. (just hitting the ball) then  advance to precise hitting  "Carre".  The practice is not to roll the bowl to a spot.. It is to allow the subconscious mind to roll the bowl to a spot.   When you feel this happen without your being aware of it you have started to see.

      Well, in the follow video of Crown Lawn Bowls we see instinctive or total relax delivery to the jack.  Remember the green of Crown Bowls is not flat... Sort of a small hill in the middle  and games are played along the side of that slope.  Now I am not saying this is how bowls should be played.. Just  how to relax.

In this Youtube  video we see a natural "let it go" delivery.  developed over years. Like the petanque Player throwing his ball... just think the shot and make the shot  happen.  Confidence.
Summary... We have seen in 2 years a new member of a sport reach the top world players in her sport. Perfect Practice.  Then we have moved to a different, closer to Bowls sport which shows a practice of repeat repeat and repeat.  This is necessary for the mind to have control.. But not totally.. Here in Crown Bowls we see a style a bit like Ryan Bester. On the mat, roll and do the shot.
In the next two blogs with this base of understand, I will attempt to show how to let the subconscious mind take control.
The previous blog explained how the Conscious mind controls everything we do.  Yes at times we do allow instinctive or the sub-conscious to take control.   And d a great performance without our control.
 Tiger Wood  on Youtube.com " Visualization in his Golf Game "  tells how sometimes he is without knowledge of what happen from beginning the shot until it was finished. " "I have black out moments", I remember  starting but "I know I was there,  but I don t remember actually performing the golf shot".  This will happen to you too... I hope you believe it could be that easly.
In Archery, Let the arrow and target be one in you mind.  Go to the target, (when the mind lets the sub conscious take control) and draw the arrow to the point you want. Been at the target (in my mind) when the arrow hit was a strange feeling the first time.. sort of like it was hitting me.  Yes, out of body, unaware of what i was doing.. maybe just so concentrated on the idea of being at the target that the sound of the arrow brought my mind to reality.
    However, the practice was to be busy while the mind send the arrow to the target..When I started, my mind would go a short distance and often coming back as I released the arrow. Finally it went all the way.
In petanque, if you check competition shooters on you tube. you can see that previsionalization action and know they are doing the same mine to target;  before letting the sub conscious take control to throw the ball.. Yes it is a moment of absence of mind but also part of the training and practice in confidence..

Confidence and Blind Lawn Bowls

The 2nd half of this 6 blog group on Previsualization deals with Mind set. Being in the Zone, Confidence, Concentration and other aspects of theuse of your  Subconscious.mind.

The Blind Lawn Bowls FaceBook Page came up this summer and it shows another interesting part of our sport of Lawn Bowls. Imagine bowls without your vision, would you bowl if you could not seeing the bowls. The header page is how a lot of visually impaired Lawn Bowler players (B3 and B4) see the head while the insert photo is an example of a coach having a blind Lawn Bowls player roll his shot.
I tackle this aspect of Lawn Bowls here because of the need for "confidence" by a visually impaired player.

If you do not read further but watch this video I have influenced your thinking. See This youtube video. PLSE.
How would you perform if you decided to blindfold your eyes and bowl a few ends.  Really..would it be bad ?? You have the techniques down pat and with the exception of line you should really do quite well.

There is a story about Kitchener Ontario Blind Lawn Bowls champion who  was doing a promotion for Blind Lawn Bowls and the sponsor offer $100 for each bowl hitting the jack in an end.  She was suppose to have done 3 out of 4.. Yes totally Blind. I asked her, she laughed and replied..."Not really "

 Photo (left) is President of Canadian Blind Lawn Bowls Association Vivian Berkeley with her Coach standing behind her..As a totally Blind (B1) Lawn bowlers Vivian has won GOLD for years..
     . If you have not watched a Blind Lawn Bowls National competition, you owe yourself, your sport one game. They are great athletics and it will certainly change your ideas..

 While talking to a club (visual) member I hear her say "Oh, I have only been bowling for 4 or 5 years, I am not that good" .  After a complete  12 lessons of  "New members Club Coaching"  and a year of social lawn Bowls; every individual  should have confidence in their shot. In my "Introduce to Bowl Coaching", a three hour teaching for interested individuals,  my last end, and teaching,  is to place a jack and without  any comments; allow tis  first time player to bowl.  Often they are surprised as to what they can do.

    Social Lawn Bowls is a gathering on the greens as the sun sets and  like Darts or Archery is simply the  fun to see how close you can get. ( to the jack)  Nothing wrong with that, but forYOU, (if your reading this, and have read the previous 5 blogs); you want more than just "FUN"  You want to prefect you delivery and also the  to have the confidence with each shot..
    Photo on right of Blind student receiving bowl or instruction from Coach (who is coach and who is bowler??) (from www.briarsatgreenlees.com.au)
       Talking about confidence, concentration,  and vision of the bowls performance, and thinking of Blind Lawn Bowls; we see the "Visually Impaired individuals" whom  may not have an idea of things like color, distance and scenery.
Distance - For feeling the distance we walk them, on the green, up to the ditch, to know the 35 meters and talk about  the bowl delivery to the jack .This way we creates an impression of the distance to the hog line, which is identified as we pass it, to the jack, and what distance it can be and how they will know the distance;  and ofcourse the ditch. where heavy bowls end up.

Bias   -Walking back down the Green we do the line of the bias of the bowl roll  with the new blind bowler while explaining the distance from centre line..Here we must teach difference those players with different degree of visual disability. (example B3 and B4 who can see a bit of white for a distance. (like in the photo above) may have a second coach in white walking the centre line to show them  the distance that the bias will take the bowl from centre line and back to the jack..

Line of Delivery.-. A centre Line of nylon is used and bending down and feeling at the edge of the mat they know here the jack is located. a Blind Lawn Bowls player know where the jack is in distance because when it is spotted by the jack coach the distance is told to them (identified by distance markers on the side lines).  After  position on the mat and adjusting  his feet according to the delivery type. (forehand or Back Hand) he receives his bowl from his coach.  Their Assistance coach stands in front (above Photo) or behind and is watching the arm movement of practice swings to establish line and for a proper and straight delivery "OK" is said and the bowl goes.  Confidence in the coach's ability to see their line in their arm swing..
Bowl Speed - In the same manner,during the delivery and to show  the delay of bowl rolling to the jack; the athletic coach's describes the roll of the bowl to the jack. Over time they learn and develop their mind set of what the bowl will do and how the game will be played.

photo (left) from  qld.gvt.au is tiled "thelma-and-john" Here the coach is in front, (above the coach was behind the student).In this case, the visually impaired has some vision, and he may use things like the coach (white) foot as his line of delivery.
The coach is the eyes of the Blind Lawn Bowler. Standing within feet of the Blind Lawn bowler, As the bowl leave his hand; the coach is heard to say.
   "Good delivery, nice roll, you got the line.  Bowl has no wobble is rolling good.(Assurance of performance) "Now half way (to hogline,) it is beginning to turn, still  18 inches (from centre line).  About 3/4 (to hogline), now cutting across centre line, missing the front bowls". "Going through "jack area" it is just a little heavy"  His personal coach stops.. all is silence. the Blind Lawn Bowler still on the mat is waiting to see where his bowl has stopped.  Yes see ??  He hears   the Jack coach say from the head " 3 feet at 10 o'clock."   The clock system being where 12 o'clock is behind the jack,  6 o"clock in front and 9 and 3 left and right.  As the bowlers private coach, escorts him/her from the mat, we hear  the coach doing confidence building. ." Very nice delivery. nice location, just behind the jack, Good to catch the jack, if rolled."  Once the new bowler is on the mat all is quite except for that blind Lawn Bowls coach who repeats their inter-relationship of bowls,
Now, think of your own bowls.. do you talk to yourself and build confidence. Positive thoughts.  Do you see it as not what you would have liked and step away from the mat upset or disappointed.
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Each Blind Lawn Bowls player has a coach at their side to direct the line of their delivery.  The blind student develops confidence in their coach.  Is there any reason for that student to not believe that the coach has given the proper information. Confidence.  Without confidence the next time on the mat this Blind Lawn Bowls player would not accept the coach's  guidance as he prepare him for his line and delivery.  Do you encourage yourself before going to the mat. Once on the mat... forgot and just do the proper bowl roll.

The Blind Lawn bowls coach will always be heard as leading his partner to the mat. "Last time you were a little in on your line, I am going to give more line. Same delivery and everything will be good." Yes Partner, like in Pairs, only one is the bowl delivery and the other is the eyes and guidance.  A lot of retired Lawn bowls members accept to guide a Blind Lawn Bowls athletic to nationals bowls competitions.  Travelling the world where they had gone many times before in their career.  Now with a young but visually impaired Lawn Bowls athletic.
  This summer, 2013, VIBE welcome International Blind Lawn Bowler to Worthing  England.and  Bowls England is calling on clubs, counties and individuals to help raise funds for the World Blind Bowls Championships being held in Worthing in 2013

I wish more countries could accept and apply Blind Lawn Bowls like Australia and England has done.

Relax Let it happen

Now this is the hardest part of the story of Previsualization... Hardest to explain and hardest to do.Think of our brain is like two sister in a family. Each a bit different.. One sister is always in control (probably the oldest one) and the other sister who is very smart, is also a bit shy and waiting to be asked to do something..                      
   We all live our lives in the conscious "Control side" of our brain; with occasions of being so good at doing something; we  relax and let it happen instinctively (Second sister "Subconscious).  Even during driving a car or throwing a baseball we are always in control but sometime we just let the subconscious brain do it's thing.
      Permit me to place Archery and  it's Performance into this blog at this point, because this sport is more easily to explains. Zen says "Be the arrow, find the target" but the coach says  "Relax let it happen". The zen idea is a subconscious direction while the coach's instruction  is to you for your conscious mind.

Both, Archery and Lawn Bowls, require a lot of preparation to do well, but actual precision is only done at the release, In archery, a few micro-seconds while in bowls a bit longer.  In Archery like bowls everything is prepared.beforehand.. The position on the floor (mat) the loading of energy into the bow and alignment of our body and prepare of aiming  (line of delivery) are all preparation.. The precision is, in archery. " to release without error, the bowstring and let the arrow fly" or "roll the bowl". Throughout the preparation and the delivery of the object (arrow in archery and bowl in Lawn bowls) the conscious mind is in total control.
The archer is told "relax your hand.. let the bowstring be pulled out of your fingers"  In Visualization  the archer is taught to occupied his mind with something else and to say "ok now"  as he aims his arrow.  THEN  the subconscious mind relaxes the hand and fingers and the bowstring is released. the archer hears "PLOOMP" as the arrow hits the target, A perfect release, a perfect arrow.
  .However, where the archer has a split second  to not make a mistake and get a good result,  the lawn bowler has about 5 to 6 seconds from starting the back swing until the release of his bowl  Easy for the archer, you say, no, because the problem is the same in both sports.. "Not wanting to give control of the action to the subconscious mind"  Staying in control..
  .So for those 5 to 6 seconds of a bowl release we need something to keep the conscious mind occupied. This has been the Previsualization exercise.. an extension of previous thought as we become so involved with see the imaginary bowl roll that  we are too occupied to realize that the subconscious has done the delivery.

Concentration.. If in the middle of the delivery we feel a breeze on our face,  OPPS we feel it, we think it, and the conscious mind wants to be back in control. Concentration is therefore finding a mind-set which allows for this  multi-second absence of thought.(In archery a micro-second )  This is as hard as a swimmer wanting to exercise a muscle to develop it. So, we use the visual image of the bowl rolling up the green as an exercise in staying in the Zone..(subconscious mind set) Look at the Concentration in the photo. It was found on Justsports.com.au and now I got to discover who this Canadian bowler is. (shows one does not always know everything and always something new to learn)

     Now I must take issue with our teaching of Lawn Bowls and our limited perspective of our sport..  It is good to break down the delivery to several steps for a beginner to check everything is done right..  Great for a beginner in Lawn Bowls, to know all they should do and how to do it right.  But some where after the first year we got to leave the techniques and move toward instinctive rolling the bowl. I had a club bowler who said "I have only been bowling 5 years so I am not that good"

      Like a baseball player throwing the ball to someone..  "Think it and do it"  in the split second of the thought. Bowls can be the same.  They say.Ryan Bester  is fast on the mat and in doing his delivery. Maybe he has moved in development to the mind set of the baseball player..Wanting it.. and doing it.. a total subconscious delivery.
So there is now two things... Previsualization which is an exercise of switching from Conscious involvement to Subconscious actions ' and being "In the Zone" .  Being able to let the subconscious do it thing. An ability or action while occupying the conscious mind.

.  Earlier blog, I showed the bowl preparation of Val Smith NZ. which is important routine to correct everything. but it is also a confidence everything is right before we  let the Subconscious take control.
The best archery athletes attempts to do one 10 (center of target )  after the other, 144 times in a row  for a FITA 1440 (1440 points) and the winning score often is  near 1350 points. With the microsecond "in the Zone"  and still not  always perfect.
     In Lawn Bowls we hope for maybe to have 10 or 15 perfect bowls in an end of  54 bowls. (3 18 ends).Yes the time of action is longer in the delivery of a bowl, but is it any longer than a baseball players throwing a ball, or a basketball players shooting basket. Confidence, and Total concentration  is the truth. Again I mention that basketball coaches has the player do previsualization to exercise his "Give Control to the Subconscious" Be-in-the-zone ability.
   In the next blog  we will look at the lack of confidence as  why we revert back to the slow motion , stop action, analysis of our technique rather than continue along the development of  Lawn Bowl's  "In the Zone" Performance development.  Allowing ourself  to  becomes blocked by lack of confidence
. .   Imagine Golf and Tiger Wood having  90 strokes to do in a game and trying to get 70 or 80 perfect strokes. And he is not alone...all the great Golfers know this is the next step to their Performance.I am sure in Australia, this is the mind set.. like golf.. it can be a high percentage of perfection.  However, I have not seen muchof this detail prefection in North America.  Or maybe it doesn t get down to the club level.

Tools for Visualization

Putting it together Physically and Emotionally require the Lawn bowler know his game and his own performance. Using Visualization to roll and win at Bowls require that all the tools which allow a bowler to win  without visualization be well developed and in his tool box.

 In the video of Tiger Wood  on Youtube.com " Previsualization in his Golf Game ", on which these blog are based we hear Tiger talk about his coach saying." he was very instrumental in teaching me how to control my creative mind"  or Tiger saying "I get so entrenched on the moment, I guess my subconscious takes over"  In order for your subconscious to take over your routine you have had the delivery and game analysis completed.  And when we talk about  "the athletic is in the here and now, uncluttered mind, relaxed ".  We are not concern with those thoughts.. we  left our delivery to the subconscious mind.
1 - Good Style and a Constant repeated controlled movement in every delivery. Visualization is seeing the bowl doing what you can do.  If you need more practice to draw tight to the kitty then visualization may not do it until you do it.The photo below from World Bowls 2012 video during the Women's Semi Final seem like a little routine.. but how much of is relaxing the mind, body.. starting the routine free of doubts.

Learning to Bowl, my coach had a routine of 12 steps from getting to the mat until the bowl was released. Val Smith NZ top Women's Single show Step 3  "Preparing your Grip" which I have not seen much of during the years I bowled.
  If you have your routine, you won't throw a wrong bias and if you visualize the bowl to a position it will happen because all of your routine of delivery are always the same. Your subconscious know how to do it.

2 - Instructional Choices must have been decided. If you have wind behind you and your though is  "I need to take of 14 inches". This means nothing to the Mind (your subconscious mind) if you can not physically and mentally decide on how take of that 14 inches.  And just as bad is if you have 3 way to do it and you never use always the same unless special conditions.  (ex: If you do a shorter step, lay down the bowl roll or think it back it all must always be your way for you. If you do a off-cant as a special condition (cross wind) then that method must be only on that day.)  Yes you prepare for the game with decisions which after the first few ends are a regular part of your routine.  Myself.. with win like these girls had.. 44 km behind and in face, I would be doing mentally positioned jack . (visualize the jack as being 3 meter short or 3 meters further)

3 - Constructive Analysis of the shot.  In previous blog I showed choices of what percentage of Success with a situation in the head.  Decide these shots before going to the mat.. Not while on the mat. The subconscious mind must have a "take control place" let it be somewhere at the beginning of your routine. (Above photo of Val Smith may be giving the mind that control when she is preparing her bowl in hand) All the analysis must be there before letting the mind take total control of your delivery. Then when you go into a Previsualization view of the bowl rolling to the jack; you are giving instructions not hoping on a result.

4 -Concentration  If you are hearing the crowd or the PA system in the middle of your delivery it is not the conditions of play that are wrong... You must go get more shut-out techniques of concentration. Put yourself inside a bubble. Got Bubble video and think if you could bowl in that noise.
 Seems strange to think the mind is going to take control but  what are you going to thinking.   Listen to this video on you tube and the noise.. Could you  bowl with that noise.

In the first Blog I spoke of a Swimmer in training and wanting to develop a certain muscle condition. Bowls we don t have that so I knew it would be strange to the reader. But sometime these idea of Total Immersion in Thought and perfection is strange.  If we were to follow that muscular development we would have to learn every aspect of that muscle building and control we know nothing about.

Look at other sports. Baseball or Basketball. the muscle movement of a throw or basket shot are totally in control of the mind.  I want it there and I do it there.  So a basketball coach has his athletic do mental shot. Why? To know his routine and his ability to transfer total control to the mind. In Instinctive Archery we say "Become the arrow .. follow it to the target.. One movement.. Throw the arrow with your mind.  So you are going to learn to Roll the bowl with your mind.. NO.. Your mind know how to Bowl  you are going to go into your bubble and let your mind (subconscious ) do it thing.

Seeing the Shot. Visualization

These blogs were updated June 2017 and again in 2024. The six blogs on instinctive and previsualization have been expended on in late 2014.  If you are still here; reading 12 year old blogs, your interest in the subject is as an athletic in the final stages of prefection of your ability. . In writing this blog I always hope the reader see their possibilities and undeerstand the idea of being in the "Zone". The coach of Tiger (in 2012 video) calls it "the athletic in the Peak performance Zone" and you are now begins a   movement of training to a different level of personal development. If these ideas seem strange it may because you have ot yet experience this level of your sport, but the knowledge of "Being in the Zone" is a reflection of the future.

.  All the sports have a level of perfection which involves "Being in the Zone" and this means more than concentration. Tiger's coach calls it "Creativity" but it is "knowing you can do it". and eventually being so relax that your body simple does it. (Sometime refer to as "Muscle Memory".

 Tiger Wood  on Youtube.com " Sport Psychology - Want to visualize like Tiger", the base of this blog, we hear Tiger coach saying."the athletic is in the here and now, uncluttered mind,  & relaxed " which is where these  blogs will lead you if you  are patience and take time and follow them.  Also with the task of previsualization you are so mentally attached and relaxed that as Tiger says.. "I have black out moments", " I remember  starting but I know I was there,,,  but I don t remember actually performing the golf shot"  How can this be??  Hopefully, later we will see that like a great novel writer (master) sitting at a desk, working hard on his masterpiece, he is writing an idea. His creativity is to start over as he throws the written idea away; does another and another and another until only the final finished works are available. Tiger's mind is so busy creating scenario of shot types, force, angle etc that the final memory ( the finished and learn and kept finish shot) is created after many scenario. ( a search of his choice and decision until totally satified).  It is attempted and finally made after it has been totally completed in his mind following much practice and indecision xxx.

    This blog... and the outline of the remaining six Blogs. are
    Visualize 1 -  Using Visualization to get it together physically   "the Mental Tools of the Zone"
    Visualize 2 - Confidence and   relax, Blackout or total relaxation. ..how it works and how you do it.
    Visualize 3 - Mistakes the mind  make in  such a strong visualization and  how it affect you and  your performance
    Sub conscious -Does your mind have control.  How to remove youe conscious control of actions
    Creativity -   Your  body knowing it has performed well as you return to reality from subconscious
    All in One.  - How to move from reality (conscious) to Visualization (unconscious) performance.
 

Imagine this Lawn bowls situation.. it happen, and the photo is the bowls as setup in a mid end of the Lief Selby game against Scotland in the World Bowls 2012 Singles semi-finals.  The bowler on the mat  have three possible views of play 1 - Play Percentage 2 - Best HAND shot and 3- Absolute Genius shot.
 In 500 champion bowlers, we find about 450 are doing a percentage shot. Yes they require a skill but might misss so play the percentage.
The great Lawn Bowlers know they have the skill  and like Lief,  knows  he will do what he is thinking.
But at the end of these blogs, you will decide if you want to work toward  being a great champion of one of the three types (above). When in a  similar situation, will you play it as Percentage or  decide and than make the "Best shot"  As for the  Absolute Genius, like  Tiger Wood; if he does 90 golf strokes per game and then over a 3 day tournment, he does 5 games with the this continual success but also he is not only is he doing his best but sometime even attempting the impossible shot; he is becoming a  Genus in his sport.

Certainly to obtain this level of performance he has  developed an extremely long absence mind times. When we are  in the Zone (mind control zone) most people experience only  a fraction second of absence of mind. while after a lot of development can reach a periond of several seconds absences.

When I started Archery, it was only the fraction of a second of releasing the arrow. In time, after several years it became about the time of the arrow flight (a second) but I was absence of mind from release until the arrow struck the target.
When talking about these three types of  shots (listed above), I  must refer to continue time afte time.  Like a Basketball Player..somewhere on the court..thinks the shot, then up and shoot and succeeds. He was probably aware he wanted to do the shot but absence of mind from the start of the jump to the release of the ball toward the basket.  No calculate of distance , arm force or method of shot.

Maybe . Lief in the video might have played percentage and because of continual success came out looking like a  Genius.  Or maybe he took the Lower Percentage of success and did what was the Best, and always knew he could do that near miss shot and still be successful. He may have previously tried and made the shot and now sees it in his mind as possible. How many players do not only thinking about hitting the jack but more precisely hitting it at a slight angle  to give it the wanted movement.  Moving into the Best class if they are doing it time and time again.

Percentage is based on how many bowls width you can miss or make the shot and still come out looking good. Here we have 4 bowls percentage of success.  In this example 1 rolls the shot bowl out if not caught up on the back bowl. the outside of possibility.  2  is still a  takeout but  Obviously Best results come with 3 and 4. Here a draw or bit over on your wight, on a draw to jack, will roll the jack toward his own bowl.. Also in using Percentage decisions, it  also means the best percentage.. Example it is better to go two Bowl percentage on this forehand, where if you are over weight or line with bowl  shot (2 and 3); it still give the takeout of the blue or roll the jack. rather than the 4th or 1st  bowl percentage a bit dangerous.

Now Best shot is hard to agree on as "the best".. but if you can refuse the four precentage choice Ù(above) and know you are good enough with the back hand (lief is right handed)and make it happen, GREAT. Pass the shot (blue) bowl with confidence and draw to the jack. You are becoming a member of a small group of  "the best",  Luck is with you if heavy and rolls the jack toward your bowls. If your weight is a bit too heavy  you got two shots. Analyis of it has all been view, studied and a creative result expected..
    Bowl percentage is only 2 bowls and the "1 bowl shot" would be what is being tired.  Imagine your mind racing, will I  be heavy and should I do this as a takeout shot.. Control of emotions. Score is only 11-15 .

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I seem to have  a visual memory of this shot and the bowl played was heavy and continued straight ahead after it kicked the jack between the bowls to the position in the next photo.  We all agree the Leif is amoung the best or else he would not be trying this shot.  Maybe it was really an overrweight shot intended to remove the shot bowl (blue) and luck of the draw was a miss and still a near catch  on the side of the jack.

These three examples are examples to show visualization of your shot and how fine a shot you take with confidence. when you are overconfident you sometimes even surprise your self.(the subconscious has done the shot). A personal example of this.   I once told a friend, with whom  I was practicing shots on the green; that I would draw up.. tap his bowl back and fall onto the jack.Overconfidence and little show off.
    . I was in my first year of Lawn bowls. and did the shot.  Scott who had bowled for many years, was amazed  but I had  already been Visualizing shots in Archery for years. Having out-of-body development concentration, and during the last 4 years before starting bowls; I had been working at visualization  Zone in Petanque...However,  the point .. it was just was a moment of doing what I though to do.  At this point I doubt if I had rolled more than 50 bowls. But I got caught and 5 years later  Bowls it still is.

This shot is from a Genius point of view, if the mind has so much control that a small percentage of success is not important. The individual when on the mat and so in the ZONE will try a draw, or a jack roll from the forehand.   Like Tiger Wood's  creative idea in golf, you know this can be done...  The percentage (bowl Percentage )for draw to shot  is less than one bowl error (half bowl on either side of the jack) and weight perfect. As for intending to do a roll of the jack  which  now becomes a difference in weights (of a foot or 18 inches) and you are doing an either/or shot. Think of the wind and how hard such a shot would have been at WB2012 and noone would believes in his shot. (except a Genius in Bowls which we don t have these days)



This is an attempt to use an example and show your mind's ability and your visualization of that successful shot.  You may see the shot visually but can your abilities to do the shot show the mind' eye that it is possible. Wind, the thought arrives and mind's eye say "no way". It will never happen if the concentration and mind over matter is not there. Not total in the Zone. As you practice shots, the mind's eye learn what you can do and then how to tells the body to do it.  But we all must play the percentage of success.  Be confidence of your shot and play a high percentage of success or be  in the Zone, visualize the shot, and be good. Become the Best dont bother to try the " Gennuis"  for one shot.   Know your limits.  Good luck.