{"id":61214,"date":"2022-03-02T20:11:00","date_gmt":"2022-03-03T00:11:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=61214"},"modified":"2022-03-16T14:05:43","modified_gmt":"2022-03-16T18:05:43","slug":"how-to-get-in-the-zone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-get-in-the-zone\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Get in the Zone of High Performance"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Have you ever been “in the zone”? Is there a way to enter the performance state on demand? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his book, The Art of Learning<\/em>, American chess player and tai chi champion Joshua Waitzkin explains how to get in the zone and activate peak performance states. The key, he says, is to use “triggers.” Think of this trigger as an on\/off switch that instantly activates your competitive spirit<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here’s how to use triggers to enter the zone of high performance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Use \u201cTriggers\u201d to Enter \u201cThe Zone\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You must be able to enter \u201cthe zone\u201d whenever the moment demands it, which you can do by creating a trigger: A condensed routine that switches you into peak performance mode. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Using triggers to enter the zone is a common tactic in elite athletics. Sports psychologist Patrick Cohn explains that finding and remaining in the zone requires that you achieve an intense, \u201cpinpoint\u201d focus<\/a> that fully immerses you in the present experience. Similar to Waitzkin, he recommends using habitual thoughts<\/a> and mental images to trigger your peak performance state\u2014for example, many elite athletes visualize their performances<\/a> to rehearse the experience they desire.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To access your peak performance state, create a routine<\/a> that gradually activates it<\/strong>. Waitzkin suggests doing this by finding an area of your life where you feel naturally in \u201cthe zone\u201d and building a sequence of habits that leads up to it. Say you feel your best after a walk in the woods. Take that state and add a few habits before it, like calmly filling a water bottle, taking a moment to stretch, and slipping on your shoes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: To use this technique, you\u2019ll need to have an activity that gets you into the zone. Not all of us have one, but there are plenty of ways to create one. In Flow<\/em><\/a>, Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi explains how to get in the zone by finding what he calls \u201cflow.\u201d Another method is to push at the edge of your current capacities\u2014for example, a rock climber might challenge herself to scale a more difficult wall than usual.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now practice the habits or activities until they’re linked<\/strong> and your body will begin to associate the routine with the state the walk puts you in. Once you’ve linked the routine to your state, you can perform the routine to activate that state<\/strong> whenever you need it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Csikszentmihalyi also discusses finding \u201cflow\u201d throughout your everyday life. He gives several criteria for creating flow-state experiences<\/a>. Typically, such experiences involve deep concentration, a well-defined goal, a tight feedback loop that allows you to adjust your efforts, and a difficulty level that pushes your abilities without causing you to feel out of control. By intentionally setting up conditions like these, you can consciously create flow experiences instead of hoping that they\u2019ll come along naturally.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Compress Your Routine<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Next, maintain the feeling your routine gives you while gradually compressing the actions you take<\/strong>. So if you were stretching for 10 minutes, reduce it to eight, then six, and so on, until you achieve the same state-shift with less activity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eventually, you\u2019ll create a swift, reliable way to “switch on” your peak performance mode. According to Waitzkin, you can compress this further until a single breath, in and out, switches on that state of deep, relaxed focus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Sports psychologist Jim Taylor notes that nearly all elite athletes use pre-competition routines to prime themselves for optimal performance<\/a>. He explains that routines matter because athletes have no control over the circumstances of competition; routines give them control over their own mental and emotional preparedness.) <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Have you ever been “in the zone”? Is there a way to enter the performance state on demand? In his book, The Art of Learning, American chess player and tai chi champion Joshua Waitzkin explains how to get in the zone and activate peak performance states. The key, he says, is to use “triggers.” Think of this trigger as an on\/off switch that instantly activates your competitive spirit.\u00a0 Here’s how to use triggers to enter the zone of high performance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":24605,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[42,43,48],"tags":[581],"class_list":["post-61214","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-motivation","category-self-improvement","category-sports","tag-the-art-of-learning","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nHow to Get in the Zone of High Performance - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"How do you get in the zone? According to Josh Waitzkin, the key to entering the zone on demand is to create "triggers." 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