Why do talented people fail? Sometimes it’s because they’ve reached a level at which further talent development requires more than ability and hard work. It takes psychological preparedness, habits of mind that drive performance (Neihart, 2008; Subotnik, Olszewski-Kubilius & Worrell, 2011). Psychological preparedness for high achievement may be the single most neglected component of talent development even though teachers, coaches and researchers agree that it is an essential, pivotal factor. Research concludes that the mental and emotional factors associated with high performance are not innate, but can be cultivated and shaped. To help talented young people negotiate the sometimes grueling terrain of talent development, we need to provide them with more than domain specific skills and practice. We need to equip them with psychological tools they can draw on when the going gets tough. A review of research across disciplines suggests that there are seven psychological competencies that drive performance. They keep one’s focus sharp, order attention, and sustain engagement in hard work. This workshop will engage participants in strategies designed to develop three of these competencies in gifted children and youth.
Summary :
Many gifted people aspire to do great things and then find themselves unable to tolerate the pressures that come with working at top levels. The increased stress slowly erodes the pleasures they enjoyed from their achievements and eats away at their confidence. As competition intensifies and stakes rise, so does that nervous, fearful feeling. Some children are more vulnerable to stress than others, but one thing is universal—developing talent requires a tolerance for stress and anxiety. Controlled studies in clinical, health and sports psychology confirm the effectiveness of two particular tools for managing anxiety. We will demonstrate these in this workshop.
Many gifted people dream of doing great things, but dreams are not goals. Goals are the daily action plan we follow to carry us toward our dreams. To realize dreams, we must set high but realistic goals and then look for and acknowledge progress toward those goals. Developing abilities means being able to clearly communicate, “This is the goal. This is how you get there.” In this workshop we will demonstrate how to identify smart goals and how to make good goals even smarter.
Talk with elite achievers who have to give an outstanding performance on demand and they will tell you that they know exactly what they need to do to get themselves “in the zone.” World-class achievers tend to be religious about their mood management. Mood management is about controlling the exchange of energy. Everyone has limits, but these can be extended. A few simple daily habits can easily expand the limits of one’s energy and concentration. In this workshop we will help participants conduct a brief assessment of their own energy exchange profile and compare four strategies they can use to improve their daily energy exchange.