By Poh Yu Khing, Sport & Performance Psychologist

Creating positive mental images is a crucial part of the peak performance process. When you replay positive images in your mind, you increase your confidence and chances of good performance.

When you replay a perfect execution in your mind, you are actually practising the skill as the mind does not know the difference between what is real and what is the result of clear imagination. So just as you would practise your physical skills every day, what is needed in mental imagery is just a few short minutes every day consistently.

Here are some ways to incorporate mental imagery training into your daily program:

  1. Before each training session, take a few minutes to relax. Take a few slow deep breaths and imagine executing the skills and drills well. Identify those performance drills that you are going to do later during training, and imagine executing them perfectly.

  2. After training, again take a few minutes to replay the session's events in your mind. However, instead of focusing on the negative things, replay only the positive performances, those things that you've executed well. Replay in your mind perfect execution of those skills while the memory is still fresh.

  3. In preparation for competition, there are several things you can do as well. First, mentally recall past good performances, how you felt, what you did, what you said, what you heard, how you executed your skills to perfection. Second, mentally rehearse perfect execution of all your skills. Replay all the skills you have been working on with perfect execution, and feel confident and strong. Third, mentally rehearse those skills, tactics and strategies in the specific setting – imagine the particular opponent or the particular setting. By seeing perfect execution in your mind first, you're preparing yourself to perform to your peak potential. Finally, mentally rehearse how you want to respond when things don't go your way. Mentally rehearse how you will bring yourself back from a setback, a mistake or a lost point.

Faithful practice of imagery and mental rehearsals will positively impact on your performance. So why not take some time now to do it?

Poh Yu Khing was formerly the Head of Sport Psychology at the Singapore Sports Council as well as a national badminton player. In his spare time outside of his day job, he enjoys consulting with athletes and performers as a freelance sports & performance psychologist. He was also the author of a regular “Golfing Mind” column in the local GOLF magazine.