Something I always struggled with was anticipation – running through scenarios in my head that would never happen. Now, for any task I know I have to complete, I choose the mindset of being present when the moment comes, not wasting time anticipating it.
In 2017 I was really strapped for cash, so had to book the cheapest flight possible to Europe for my upcoming events in Portugal and Spain. The one I chose would involve travelling alone for more than 40 hours to arrive at my final destination, Pantín in Spain. It was a trip that would usually induce so much anxiety and anticipation, but I chose to take it one minute at a time and be mindful. It was a long trip.
I started in Sydney and flew for 14 hours to Dubai, where I had a 12-hour layover. I then flew nine hours to Lisbon in Portugal and landed at 9pm. There were no flights the next day to where I needed to go in Spain, so I picked up a hire car and, to save money on a night’s accommodation, decided to drive through the night to Spain by myself. After 35 hours of travel already, I set off on an eight-hour drive to Spain.
I arrived on site for the surf contest in Spain about 6am, before the sun rose. I didn’t know the address for my accommodation that my friends had arrived at the day before. So, I slept in my car for another hour waiting for the sun come up.
Once it rose at 7am, I could hear other surfers ruffling around their cars getting ready for a morning surf to practise. I crawled out of my car, slid into my wetsuit, waxed up my board and was one of the first out there that morning.
A mind off-task
A week later, during the event in Spain, I had fallen back into old patterns when it comes to being mindful. I was in such a spiral in my mind thinking about sponsorship funding and if I was good enough to compete at that level. I was finding it almost impossible to be focused on the present moment.
I ran down the beach to compete in the early rounds of the event. I strapped my leash on, pulled my rash vest on and paddled out. I waited for the siren to sound to indicate the beginning of my heat. In this moment, your mind should be completely focused on what waves you want to catch and what position you are in the lineup.
But my mind was completely off-task. It was thinking, “What are my sponsors going to think if I lose? Will I be able to afford to get to the next event? I am not even good enough to beat these guys”. These were all questions that took my focus away from the task at hand: to focus on which waves to catch and perform on those waves at a high level.
And because of this, I kept losing. I kept falling on waves and making poor decisions. I lost in the early rounds of the event in Spain.
Learn more in The 1% Good Club: The Simple Way to Transform Your Mental Health in Just 14 Minutes a Day by Cooper Chapman.
The 90-second mental reset: A powerful lesson
I called my sports psychologist to update him on how I had been feeling and competing in Europe so far. I let him know I had been struggling to keep my mind on the task at hand. I kept being baited by distractions and negative thoughts.
He said, “Mate, it is so common to feel how you do. There are more distractions for us humans to have to deal with than ever before. It is not your fault you are struggling to focus. But it is your responsibility to learn some skills to bring your awareness back to the present moment.
“Let’s do an exercise together right now. What we are going to do is focus on three of our senses. Our senses are only ever in the present moment: our sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. So, when we attach our awareness to our senses, it slows down our thoughts and allows us to become more present in the moment.
“Let’s start with 30 seconds focusing on what you can see. Just using your sight, look around the room and notice the colours, shapes, shadows and reflections. Now let’s move to our hearing. Close your eyes. And for 30 seconds notice anything you can hear around you. To finish, we will focus for 30 seconds on what we can feel. Close your eyes again. Tune into how your clothes feel on your skin. How your breath feels as it goes in and out. And how your heartbeat feels in your body.”
After that exercise, I felt a sense of calm and clarity move across my mind and body. It was the simple yet very powerful lesson I needed to hear at that moment. I employ this 90-second mental reset any time I’m feeling overwhelmed and it always helps. Hopefully this technique can help you too.
