You night think that if you are hypnotized, you might reveal something that you would rather not.  This is also not true!

 Another myth is that you lose consciousness or go to sleep when you are hypnotized. Some people do go into a nice deep trance that may look like they are asleep or unconscious but they are actually aware of everything that is happening to them. 

Another worry is that if you go into a trance, you won’t be able to come out of it!  This idea may come from Hollywood but it is also untrue. 

As I mentioned before, hypnosis is not something that is done to you, all hypnosis is really self hypnosis.  You are the one who induces a trance; the hypnotherapist is more of a facilitator who guides you in what to do. 

Hypnosis allows you to alter your internal world.  As you change how you think, visualize and imagine things to be, your feelings and behavior will begin to change, too! An expert hypnotherapist once said that hypnosis is actually the ultimate in a self-control skill.  

So you see, it’s not that you will lose control when hypnotized but rather that you will gain it! Any athlete would welcome the ability o gain control over his/her performance.  With hypnosis, this ability is enhanced!

The beauty of hypnosis is that it enhances the impact of all of the sport psychology techniques.  Focus is deeper and more profound; imagery is more vivid, etc. 

Hypnosis is used to good effect for many situations.  I have used hypnosis with 2 friends who were going through chemotherapy for breast cancer treatment..  The hypnosis helped to reduce the fatigue and nausea associated with the chemo.  I have also used hypnosis to treat clients with a whole range of challenges – from anxiety to chronic pain.

Other uses for hypnosis include: insomnia, pregnancy “morning sickness,” child birth, asthma, quitting smoking, weight loss management, anxiety, phobias of all kinds, pain management, anesthesia, learning new skills, and much more. 

Hypnosis is a way for you to harness the power of your own mind.  As I’ve said many times, the body does what the brain thinks…change how the brain thinks and processes information and you will be able to change your performance.  Remember, hypnosis is simply a state of concentration and focused attention. 

A way to think about hypnosis is to think about what happens when you use a magnifying glass in the sunlight.  When you hold a magnifying glass in front of a piece of paper and allow the sun’s rays to shine through it, the sun’s rays become more powerful.  When they are concentrated, they can burn a hole through the paper or even start a fire! 

Similarly, when you are able to focus your attention, you can use your mind in a more powerful way. 

Unfortunately, many of us use spontaneous trance states in a negative manner!  An example of this would be if you have a competition coming up and you continually see yourself making a mistake, causing yourself to feel anxious.  Whenever you are preoccupied and internally focused, it is a type of trance state.  Can you see how this might program you to perform in a particular way? 

Wise athletes use all of the strategies offered by sport psychologists including hypnosis.  Stay tuned for more!

Actually, hypnosis as a medical and psychological intervention has been around for a long time and it is considered an excellent treatment for all types of problems from reducing the impact of cancer treatment to curing insomnia.  Sport psychologists also use hypnosis to help athletes perform at an optimal level.  

As a trained hypnotherapist, I have had the pleasure of seeing the effectiveness of hypnosis and thought I would write about it for this blog.

 What is hypnosis? 

New York psychiatrist Herbert Spiegel, M.D., a professor emeritus at Columbia University who has taught hypnosis for 40 years, defines it as: “Hypnosis is a state of deeply relaxed, attentive, receptive concentration. The term ‘hypnosis’ implies sleep. So does the word ‘trance.’ But hypnosis is actually the opposite of sleep. People under hypnosis are very much awake. In a hypnotic trance, they become highly receptive to suggestions compatible with their personal goals and desires.” 

Hypnosis consists of four elements.  The first is relaxation – a deep relaxation which helps to control stress and anxiety.  The second is the hypnotic trance which may sound mysterious or scary but which really is the ability to experience mental clarity and focus.  The third element is focused concentration where extraneous thoughts seem to slip away, allowing you to really zero in on your goal.  The fourth element is that hypnosis focuses on the goal, not the problem. 

Self hypnosis 

All hypnosis is really self hypnosis since you have to want to be hypnotized for it to work!  We are all going into and out of trances all day long.  When you are driving down a highway and you notice Exit 6 and wonder how you lost track of the earlier exits, you are in a trance.  When you are involved with a TV program or the internet and don’t hear someone calling you to dinner, you are in a trance. 

I will be writing more about hypnosis in the coming days.  I will be talking about how it can be used for cheerleading and how you can learn how to hypnotize yourself!

Performance excellence in cheerleading requires the consistent control of body, mind, and spirit.  This means developing good habits such as attending practices on time, listening attentively to the coach, attending to the rules, practicing diligently, and being a team player. 

Each time you encourage your team to do any of the above, you are nurturing their moral development; you are enhancing their character.  Sure it’s important to offer praise for good athletic performance, but it is equally important to do so for displays of honorable, upright behavior. 

When you encourage your athletes to sacrifice individual glory for the good of the squad or when you insist that they congratulate the team that beat them out at Nationals, or you help them to control their emotions (think before you act), you are helping them become better citizens. 

Of course, the way you behave has a powerful influence on your cheerleaders, too. You are a highly visible role model.  If you want  a team you can be proud of, be proud of yourself first!

The book is called – “Whose game is it, anyway?” and it is written by 2 of my colleagues at Harvard Medical School – Richard Ginsburg and Stephen Durant and Amy Baltzell, a professor at Boston University. 

The authors describe it as “a guide to helping your child get the most from sports, organized by age and stage.”  The book provides detailed information, based on child development research, about what skill sets you can expect from your child depending on the age of the child.  

The first section is called, “Knowing your child athlete” and  looks at child development and sports participation  from the Early Years (Ages 1 – 5) through Young Adulthood (Ages 19 and up).  

Part Two is entitled, “Pitfalls and Possibilities in Sports” and deals with such topics as “Should we push our children? How Much?” and “Quitting, Burning Out, and Moving On.” 

The book is easy and fun to read and provides many valuable insights for parents.  I recommend it!

By the way, if you are on Facebook (and who isn’t!) please join my Confident Cheerleading Center page. If you do, you can get lots of free stuff – questionnaires, worksheets, all designed to help you become a better coach and athlete!

It may seem simple.  A cheerleader attempts to execute a toe touch and fails.  What do you do?  

1. You ignore it and say nothing.
2. You say, “No!  That is not how I’ve taught you! Do it 3 more times – now!”
3. You say, “Great try…really terrific!  Now do it again.” 
4. You say, “Nice effort.  What I saw was that your V widened and your back arched too much as you started out. Try it again and this time be sure to keep your arms locked in a High V as you begin and keep your back straight.” 

Do you recognize yourself in any of the above? 

The first response (a) may be appropriate in some circumstances.  If you know the athlete really understands how to execute the toe touch but just didn’t do it well this time, it may be okay to say nothing.  Otherwise, the cheerleader may continue to struggle and have no idea what he or she is doing wrong. 

The second (b) response is punitive.  It shames the athlete and offers no information that is of value to the cheerleader. 

The third (c) response may seem helpful since the effort is being praised but there is no instruction for how to improve the execution. Besides, excessive praise can backfire.  The cheerleader knows it isn’t really warranted. 

The last response (d) is considered the best by sport psychology researchers. Mild (not excessive) praise is offered for the effort and then the coach reports what she observed in a nonjudgmental way and finally, she provides instruction for how to improve the execution. 

If you want to create a positive learning environment where your athletes thrive, are eager to lean and grow, sport psychologists say you are better off using positive, contingent (positive feedback is dependent on actual successful execution), supportive, and informational feedback combined with low punitive feedback. 

Athletes tend to lose heart and interest when their coaches ignore (no feedback) them, or give negative and punitive feedback. 

Also an over-emphasis on outcome and a win-win-win attitude can also induce excessive anxiety in athletes.  Coaches who instill a love of learning and focus on the process of performance excellence fare the best.

There is a fairly new way of approaching such situations in sports and that is something called Mindfulness Acceptance Commitment (MAC).  This approach differs from other sport psychology techniques in the following ways:  many common techniques employed by sport psychologists are geared to help athletes suppress unwanted thoughts and feelings which may interfere with optimal performance.  Some recent research however suggests that this approach could backfire and may actually increase unwanted cognitive activity! 

Mindfulness Acceptance Commitment (MAC) encourages a mindful, non-judging awareness and acceptance of in-the-moment cognitive, emotional, and sensory experiences.  These phenomena are seen as occurring naturally…they come and go – the key is not to attach to any particular thought or feeling but rather to simply notice it. 

This approach also helps the athlete to see that thoughts and feelings do change from moment to moment.  Hence, you might feel exceptionally afraid one moment and not so afraid the next. Nothing is frozen in time…it all changes.  Rather than exert effort trying to change a negative feeling, the athlete is encouraged to notice and accept it.  In doing so, often the negative feeling diminishes! 

Athletes learn that internal experiences do not represent literal truths and realities and hence do not require avoidance, or instant reduction or control. This leads to a sense of new-found freedom! 

The term Commitment refers to engaging in behaviors that lead to optimal performance functioning despite experiencing feelings that might induce avoidance or erratic execution.  

For example, if a cheerleader makes a mistake during a competition, rather than react to the mistake, the athlete notices it objectively and commits to effective action that is consistent with her values as an athlete.   

This doesn’t happen overnight of course but nothing wonderful does.  Such an approach will provide benefits beyond cheerleading.  It is, like all sport psychology techniques, a valuable life skill.

Please join my FaceBook Page – Confident Cheerleading Center -  and get some great free downloads such as a Mental Toughness Questionnaire, After-Performance Assessment worksheets, and more!

It’s heart-breaking to feel rejected!  I can see why you feel so devastated and depressed. When you are in the middle of experiencing such big feelings, it’s hard to be objective and it’s hard to imagine you would ever feel any differently. 

As much as we would like to believe otherwise, life simply isn’t fair.  Well, sometimes it is but often it isn’t and if we cling to the belief that it OUGHT to be fair, we will be sorely disappointed.  If the coach did indeed choose girls who were less qualified than you, that isn’t fair.  Still – there is little or nothing you can do about it I’m afraid. 

I have said many times that in life, there are things we have control over and things we do not have control over.  It’s important to know the difference and to expend our focus and energy only on those things we DO have control over. 

In your situation, you had no control over who the other applicants were, how skilled they were compared to you, whether they had an “in” with the coach or not, and so forth.  The only thing you had control over was your own performance and the time and energy you devoted to preparing for the tryout.

It sounds like you did work hard and did your best.  Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons, you did not make it but it sounds like that was because of things you had NO control over.  For what it’s worth, you can feel proud of your effort and your courage.  I know that doesn’t sound like much right now but it may be that some day you will be able to reflect on this and see that you did the best you could which is all anyone can ever ask of you. 

When you have big feelings like you are having, it’s important to honor them as being valid and it’s also important to eventually put it all into perspective (which is hard at first). Some people might tell you what happened is “no big deal” but that isn’t helpful and it’s their way of trying to make you feel better. Of course it is a big deal!  At the same time you have to find a way to move on with your life, right? 

Have you looked into Pop Warner cheerleading?  Or a Recreation cheer team in your community? I think there are NO tryouts for Pop Warner.   

If there isn’t’ a Rec team or Pop Warner team in your area, let’s look at some other options for you. 

I know you want to be a cheerleader and it seems to you at this moment that there is nothing that could replace it.  But please try to take a step back and look at the bigger picture.  Think about all the reasons why you want to be a cheerleader.  What are they? Some possible reasons could be: 

1. To be physically active and athletic
2. To be part of a team or group
3. To express school spirit
4. To be popular
5. To have something to do besides school work 

Are these some of the reasons you want to be a cheerleader?  What would you add to the list? 

Now, even though in your heart of hearts you want to be a cheerleader, think about how else you might be physically active and athletic.  For example, can you join another athletic team at school or in your community? 

Ok – and if you long to be part of a team or a group, what other group at school or in your community can you join?  Your school guidance counselor can help you with this.  At school, you could join a drama club (even if you don’t act, you could help behind the scenes) or some other club or group or you could offer to volunteer somewhere.  

If you want to express your school spirit, look into a Pep Club or start one!  Get a group of kids together to paint banners supporting the teams.  You see…there are los of ways to be part of something and to make good connections with others. 

Please keep me posted as to how you are doing.  I wish you well!

Well, this person did write back to me saying she felt “so much better” which makes me feel better, too!

How would you have handled this situation?  Your thoughts and comments are welcome!

Please check out my new

 Harvey Mackay, a successful business writer and syndicated columnist, came up with his list of what he considers the fundamentals of (business) team building.  What follows is essentially Mr. Mackay’s own words but I tweaked it a bit so it would fit better with cheerleading. 

A is for action.  No team can function without a plan of action.  The plan should be detailed, clear and specific.

B is for brainpower.  If two heads are better than one, I would submit that a cohesive, well-assembled team should have enough brainpower to attack any project. (Even if the brains are young, they still can offer valuable insights and ideas!)

C is for cooperation and communication.  Team members need to cooperate, even if they don’t necessarily agree.  Clear communication is the roadmap to cooperation.

D is for dedication.  As members of a team, you must be dedicated to the goals of the team, or you are on the wrong team.

E is for ears.  Use your ears more than your mouth because listening skills are critical for team success.

F is for fun.  Work should be fun, and working together is usually a lot more fun than working alone.

G is for the group effort.  The motto needs to be “all for one and one for all” in order to be a real team.

H is for help.  Ask for it if you need it, and offer it if someone else needs yours.

I is for the ideas that come from brainstorming and picking each others’ brains.  Let the ideas flow and then choose those which hold the most potential.

J is for juggling.  Combining all the team’s needs and desired results will often require a juggling act, but a competent team will be able to achieve that balance.

K is for kinetic — energetic, dynamic team members keep things moving.

L is for leadership.  Every team needs a leader, and every leader needs to be able to depend on the team.

M is for motivation.  Nothing motivates a team like trust placed in them by the coaches to solve a problem.

N is for negotiate.  Give and take is as important within a team as it is with anyone else.

O is for open mind.  Team members need to be open to options they may not have considered, and willing to expand their perspectives to find the best answers.

P is for planning.  A plan doesn’t need to be rigid to be effective, but it must provide enough direction to keep the team on course.

Q is for questions.  Asking questions is the best path to finding solutions.  Don’t be afraid of asking any question.  If you don’t understand something, chances are others don’t either.

R is for results.  The whole point of forming a team is to achieve results.  The only variation on that theme is that the results may not be what had been originally anticipated.

S is for solutions, which differ from results in that there may be more than one solution to any given problem.  Then the team can implement the best choice.

T is for time management.  A well-managed team uses their meeting/practice and planning time efficiently.

U is for unity.  Once a decision is made, the team needs to be unified to implement the plans.  If the team can’t act as a unit, then it may be necessary to reconfigure the team.

V is for voice.  Every team member has to have a voice in the proceedings, and it is up to the team leader/coach to insure that all voices are heard.

W is for work ethic.  Each member needs to take responsibility for his or her practice time and have confidence that others will demonstrate the same commitment.

X is the X factor — the chemistry that makes a team productive because all members are committed to the same goal.

Y is for yes — say it as often as you can.  “Yes, I can help.  Yes, that’s a good idea.  Yes, let’s move ahead.  Yes, we did it!”

Z is for zeal.  Passion, eagerness and enthusiasm are contagious; share your zeal with the rest of your team.

Inside Cheerleading needs outstanding male and female stand-out athletes, who not only are great cheerleaders, but have a great personality, great grades, and of course, are strong leaders! 

A total of 24 cheerleaders will be selected for this exclusive team. These athletes are true standouts in the All Star world. Each member of the team will receive a complimentary pair of Nfinity shoes!
 
Here are the Requirements:

• Must be an All Star Cheerleader
• Athlete must be a USASF Athlete Member
• GPA above 3.0 

If you fit the bill or if you know someone who does, please have them send a few pictures, and information about their cheerleading background and skills and current GPA to shane@insidecheerleading.com. Deadline for ALL submissions is August 31, 2010.
 
Athlete Application Requirements:

• Name:
• Hometown:
• Gym:
• Signature Skills:
• GPA:
• Cheerleading Background:
• Less than 100 word description about yourself:
• Don’t forget to include at least 3 photos!

This is a great opportunity for you or someone you know to get the recognition they deserve!