POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY ON THE FIELD

Being a psychologist, most of my work is done indoors. But practicing as a Sport Psychologist, it is important that I take my work out on the field too. During my years of practice I have noticed that on-field interventions become more effective when directed by the coach himself/herself. Firstly, it lessens miscommunication and strengthens the position of the coach. It also projects the coach in a less-aggressive manner, which means he gains more brownie points from the team.

Positive psychology has been used as a powerful additional tool to conventional psychotherapy. It is also very useful for sportspersons due to its simplicity and adaptability. As a coach, positive psychology activities are one of the easiest to follow on the field. It can help elevate mood, reduce stress and also build trust and team cohesion.

Today, we shall see three very simple exercises from positive psychology that you can use as a coach on the field:

Best Possible Self:

The entire aim of this exercise is to not only improve mood, but also direct action for the best possible future. The steps are as follows:

In an undisturbed environment, imagine the best possible future you will achieve. It has to be realistic, attainable and not just a fantasy.
Imagine yourself in that future, with all the achievements you have accomplished. Also envision the people you want to share it with, including the environment you want to be in.
Think of the feelings and thoughts this ‘ideal self’ will be having. What kind of aims and goals will he/she have?
Write it down in detail, in your own words. This is for your own eyes only, unless you decide to share it. Express everything you see and feel from your imagination.
Now ask yourself, what do you need to do to get there? Is what you’re doing now a step to get to your best possible future? What should you be doing more of and what should you stop doing?

Positive Relationships Intervention:

This is a group exercise which focusses on improving relationships between players. It can be used as a team-building activity to improve communication and trust. It uses open-ended questions to gain insightful answers about other team members.

Sit around in a circle or in a manner where everyone is audible.
Ask a player to mention a team-mate they admire, and the reason for it
Ask them to mention the greatest strength or positive quality this player shows
You can go around the circle getting everyone’s responses
Next, ask a player to mention another team-member who has gone through a rough patch, a slump or any hard time and come out of it successfully
Ask him/her about the skills that this team-member had which helped in dealing with the problem and emerging victorious
Go around the circle with this question
Once the exercise is complete, ask players what they learnt about themselves from somebody else. Ask them how their trust and belief in their team has changed or improved after this.

Innovation Time Technique:

Agreed this is a common exercise in workplaces, but it works great in a cricket team as well. It can be used in teams of any caliber, be it elite or just grassroots. I usually team this with community engagement so that players are encouraged not to only improve themselves, but also participate in social change.

To evoke healthy competition, the team is split into two different groups
The teams are encouraged to choose a topic they would like to work on. It needn’t be only social change, but can also be business ideas or other creative passions
Ask them to brainstorm and create a blueprint to put this into motion
Ask them to create the action plan with their different resources in mind. Resources don’t necessarily have to be money-related, they can also be networks, knowledge, creativity, etc.
After the activity is complete, ask the teams to present their ideas
Ask them what they have learnt about the team, other than cricket facts. How does this broaden their vision of the future? How much more are they capable of, off the field?

Using these exercises will not just make practice time more fun, but also more insightful, a better learning experience and bring your team closer to their goal.