Psychology is a fundamental part of sport.

Yesterday I was at a tennis training session with an astoundingly good tennis coach: he was pointing out the difference in the way most of us higher team players hit our returns of serve and next shots in matches, compared to when we’re hitting consecutive shots in the warm up.

In the warm up for a doubles match we will happily drill balls at our opponent as he stands at the net to practice his volleys.  In a match, we hit our returns well and then try and conjure up an entirely different shot when the ball comes back to us.  Burdened by a desire to bring about a particular outcome, we try and force the point and frequently fail to pull it off.

Of course, this isn’t the result of a conscious decision to play in a particular way.  Our unconscious minds have got carried away with themselves; rewarded by the occasional glory shot, we’re like gamblers who conveniently over-look the times it doesn’t pay off and continue to chase the feel-good buzz of the big win.  It’s going to take some work to re-programme our unconscious minds to develop some new habits.

But such unconscious biases aren’t always the source of bad sporting outcomes.

A friend sent me a link to a fascinating article about the success of Kenyan distance runners.  It posed the question, ‘Why are Kenyan runners so fast?’

It transpires that, despite a lot of scientific study, no one can find anything genetic about the Kenyan’s success.  Instead it’s a perfect blend of physiological context and psychological influences that make the difference.

Firstly, there is the context: running is a part of life from an early age and the diet is low in fat and high in carbohydrates: add in high altitude and you have a lot of people who are built for running and who learn how to do it efficiently.

Then there is the psychological influence.  Where many countries have the media pedalling the idea that the vacuous success of ‘celebrity’ is a goal in itself and route to achievement, growing up in a Kenyan village it’s runners who are the conspicuous success stories.  The social proof shows that running can get you out of poverty, in a way that almost nothing else that’s visible can do.

Framing plays a part too: everyone knows that to be a successful athlete requires dedication and sacrifice.  What constitutes dedication and sacrifice to a Kenyan villager is altogether different from that which those of us in more comfortable surroundings would regard as arduous.

And, just as I haven’t ever sat down and decided to play a chronically over-optimistic, low percentage second rally shot in a tennis match, the Kenyan runners never sit down and make a plan to beat the world at distance running.  It’s just that they are born into a context where the likelihood of thinking that running is a worthy and worthwhile pursuit is significantly higher than anywhere else in the world.

When it comes to achieving commercial success for your brand, all the same factors apply: you don’t necessarily need to have a product with the best genetics – or rather the best design – but you do need to have the right context and psychological influences so that people are drawn to it.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/adharanand-finn/post_3393_b_1527065.html?ref=email_share

Image courtesy: Alessandro Pautasso