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EP 66 - The Seven Strike Supervisor
12 Plays3 days ago
There’s a bowling alley that gives you a free pizza whenever you start a game with seven strikes in a row. But around the fifth or sixth strike, a supervisor comes over to watch. How does observation change your performance?
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Transcript
00:00:08
Speaker
On Chris deals with it, I talk about the frameworks and methods I use to clear personal, creative, and professional roadblocks. My goal is to help others bridge the gap between where they're at now and what they want to achieve. If you're new to the show, I'm an engineer, writer, parent, game designer, leader, and reader who leverages that experience to develop creative solutions to problems.
00:00:30
Speaker
an AI statement that all elements of this episode are products of the author, Chris Croyder, and made without the use of any AI tools. Welcome to Episode 66 of Chris Deals With It, The Seven Strike Supervisor. There's a bowling alley that gives you a free pizza whenever you start a game with seven strikes in a row, but around the fifth or the sixth strike, a supervisor comes over to watch. How does observation change your performance?
00:00:56
Speaker
This situation may feel familiar. Having to perform knowing somebody's watching you. They could be over your shoulder or in an audience. They're observing you, judging your performance. This attention can come out of success. More eyeballs on your work because of the past performances you've had. Or that attention can be negative. People waiting, maybe hoping to see if you fail. Or they're waiting to swoop in and take the spotlight or pick apart, coach up, leave a negative review.
00:01:23
Speaker
When these stakes ratchet higher, the memory of your actions matters most. The process, rhythm, and success of the first six strikes matters little. All anyone will remember, likely including you, is if you hit that seventh. Did you win the prize? There is a curiosity in how you'll handle that higher pressure.
00:01:42
Speaker
How much experience do you have in these moments? Or do you try to avoid them? These can be some of the great lessons of youth and beer league sports. Low risk opportunities to experience pressure, success or failure hinging on a roll of the ball, an at bat or a shot of the puck.
00:01:57
Speaker
In the workplace, there are often plenty of opportunities to get yourself in the spotlight. Raising your hand at these opportunities, you're going to catch others' attention. It's risky, as you won't always succeed. Even if you fail, getting up there has its merits. A bowler repeatedly falling short of that free pizza is at least starting their games with six strikes in a row on a regular basis. That's not easy to do, and they're still performing better than many bowlers.
00:02:22
Speaker
And the game is 10 frames, not 7. Either way, you don't have long to process the result and get back up there for that 8th frame. So let's talk about the effects of observation. ah Scrutiny of others leads to scrutiny of ourselves. Do you perceive your purpose any differently when you're in the spotlight? yeah Would you consider yourself a failure for not landing that 7th strike?
00:02:44
Speaker
Consider if what you're doing naturally has performative aspects. The actor, politician, comedian, motivational speaker, or pro athlete always has to perform in front of others, even at practice. They're constantly in the spotlight. It's expected they'll land the seventh strike. They are playing for the audience. What they're doing is naturally performative.
00:03:04
Speaker
Opposite of that would be the welder, a business analyst, or an accountant. They work for results. There's often no audience, no fanfare, and get it done right. Some people go out of their way to make these kind of jobs unnecessarily performative. They crave attention, a spotlight, even when it's not warranted. This might be flashy clothes, an expensive watch or car, manufacturing situations that signal their past successes.
00:03:29
Speaker
In the bowling alley example, you can imagine such a person shouting, hey everyone, I've got six strikes, come look at me. And if you do this, you better deliver the goods. The power of streaks. I mean, there's a magic in the simple X, a bowling frame completed perfectly, accomplishing the daily goal with a mark on your calendar. You showed up, conquered, and now you're on to the next. Streaks can drive us, provide momentum to keep going, not wanting to break them. Even after a successful seventh strike and that free pizza, you're eager to see if you can get an eighth and a ninth, because then you're really close to a perfect 300 game.
00:04:06
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but nobody goes bowling at this alley with a singular goal of getting a free pizza. So, improving performance with an audience. If you find yourself wilting in these kinds of moments, consider a few ways you can improve. One, take a deep breath. Send yourself in the moment. Thank earlier you for putting in the work to get to this moment. Appreciate the stakes, your audience. Crack a smile if you can. The flow of our breath is also a great way to stabilize the psychological reactions to pressure.
00:04:35
Speaker
Number two, give yourself more opportunities to get into the spotlight. You don't become a better bowler by thinking about bowling successfully. You have to put in the frames of practice. Three, compartmentalize the moment. Your entire life or livelihood likely doesn't rest on the result of each moment in the spotlight. Sure, it has an impact, but often it's fleeting, fading from high emotion to innocuous statistic. Rarely is the moment world changing.
00:05:03
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Four, enjoy that moment. How often do we get a chance to be performative? Most of our reps occur in obscurity. Even if the audience is a lone supervisor or a family member coming to your beer league game, it's enjoyable to have them witness you striving to accomplish something meaningful to you. And number five, don't change your style. Suddenly abandoning the process, the techniques that got you the first six strikes. Changing the ball or equipment you're using to appear more impressive.
00:05:32
Speaker
So at the beginning of the episode, I mentioned how observation can also come about from negative performance. Let's look at those five pieces of advice for improving, but that can be applied to negative retention. So taking a deep breath, center yourself in the moment, mentally reset. Focus on this moment, not the previous ones. Taking that singular next right action, one at a time. Appreciate your audience, the stakes they have in your performance. Like I said before, the flow of the breath is a great way to stabilize that psychological reaction.
00:06:04
Speaker
Number two is giving yourself more opportunities to get into the spotlight. Become better able to handle those physical reactions to pressure. Put in the practice to improve the quality of your work. Take notes on what does or doesn't work and give yourself more opportunities to work on improving those weaknesses.
00:06:20
Speaker
Number three was compartmentalize the moment. Your entire life or livelihood likely doesn't rest on the result of this negative moment in the spotlight. If it does, everything else should drop from your attention. Your focus has to narrow completely on executing successfully. Just ensure you're not catastrophizing, making the moment more important than it really is. Keep it in the right context.
00:06:41
Speaker
Because this is a recipe for anxiety, which often hampers your performance. I do recommend everyone see Inside Out 2 for its incredible treatment of this, one of the best movies I've ever seen. Number four, enjoying the moment. Most of those reps occur in obscurity. Like I said before, the supervisor is there for negative reasons, hoping he doesn't have to give up a free pizza or if monitoring some work that you're doing. But perhaps the problems aren't all your fault. Observation is a chance to highlight issues with your training or the process or your equipment.
00:07:12
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Perhaps a supervisor sees that the lanes aren't properly oiled, or the ball you're using is the wrong weight and can provide advice. It may seem counterintuitive, but embracing the moment can help you seize the opportunity at redemption.
00:07:25
Speaker
And lastly, don't change your style, yet. You wanna be yourself. Don't try to gloss over your weaknesses or try to put makeup on a pig. Focus on the important aspects of the task at hand, not distracting your observer with pomp and circumstances that aren't relevant to the task. People often see right through that anyway. Be okay about asking questions. People love to give advice or guidance, so giving them opportunities to do it can help create a more positive environment regardless of the result.
00:07:54
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We'll close out today's episode with an awesome quote from Jerry Seinfeld on what to do when people say something bad about you. All this hand wringing worry and concern about how people are viewing me. Someone said something bad about me and you get so upset about it. It's wasted time and energy. Your only focus should be on getting better at what you're doing. Focus on what you're doing. Get better at what you're doing. Everything else is a waste of time. And with that, have a great day.
00:08:29
Speaker
If you feel that Chris dealt with it, I'd appreciate your support of the show by sharing it with someone who might benefit. Ratings on your favorite podcast player are also helpful in growing the audience. Visit chriscroiter.com for free downloadable PDFs with notes and resources from today's episode, sign up for the CDWY mailing list, or to send in your problems or requests for future shows. That's C-H-R-I-S-K-R-E-U-T-E-R dot.com or use the link in the show notes.