An interview with Dr. Shree Advani: "The mind is a prized possession"

Dr. Shree Advani is a PhD in Sport and Performance Psychology and a certified Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) master practitioner. Dr. Advani’s experience includes working with eight-time World Billiards and Snooker Champion, Pankaj Advani. He is also credited with making a positive difference to the professional and personal lives of P Kashyap (World No. 6 in men’s badminton), PV Sindhu (World No. 13 in women’s badminton), Tadeja Majeric (Slovenian WTA Top 300 tennis professional), B.R Nikshep (Asia No. 1 U-14 tennis champ) and several other sports personalities who are on their way to qualifying for the Rio Olympics 2016.

Dr. Advani has also been a performance coach to the chairman of a major Indian infrastructure company, an Indian actress, and a TV personality, wherein he has helped them deal with pressure and fear and convert them into performance and positive results.

Q. Have sports federations fully recognized the benefits of having mental coaches for players?

Not fully, unfortunately. But in most sports, players are often taking the initiative on their own because they feel the need for it now more than ever. Especially because their rivals, both local and international, are making mind and performance coaching an integral part of their overall training.

Q. A player’s mental strength is often undervalued in today’s game, what should players do to become mentally stronger?

Consult a mind coach (laughs). For starters, the misconception needs to be addressed. One doesn’t necessarily have to have a mental problem to see a sport psychologist. The association could be to purely improve your performance through a trained mind. Athletes work so hard day in and day out to develop a fit body. But without developing the mental game, one enters the competition incomplete.

Q. What kind of mental conditioning do the players go through these days?

It varies from person to person. Some require deep work on their attitude and belief system. Others need practical tools and methods to overcome mental obstacles and enhance performance. There are also some who look for life skills that will aid in their overall development as an athlete and as a human being. A few even just want to have someone to talk to and confide in, who won’t judge them and who will give sound, impartial feedback and guidance.

Q.You have been working with a few badminton players. Did they tell you what change they have experienced?

One particular example was on-court aggression with this rising star of India. It had been almost 3 months since we worked on that one aspect, and it finally did pay off. I got to witness the change and hear it from the player directly that they eventually felt the difference and how it helped at a recent tournament in New Delhi. That same player went on to win a major title the following week in an international tournament.

Q. Which sports in India do you think requires most mental fitness at the moment?

Every single one of them! I’m working with many sports at the moment and they all have their unique challenges. However, in essence, they all require mental strengthening and performance coaching. The mind and its issues are universal. I have people from the corporate world and the entertainment industry as well seeking assistance in mental and emotional coaching. The importance is rapidly growing and the need, widespread.

Q. Which sports are you associated to or are aiming for?

I’m working with billiards, snooker, tennis, motor racing, badminton, skating, cricket, swimming. I’m soon going to be working on golf too as the mental challenges are similar to that of cue sports – a discipline I’m very familiar with.

Q. What is one piece of advice that you would offer someone who is embarking upon their own training, be on their own or with a coach? What do you think, from your wealth of experience, would be one of the most important and valuable things for them to keep in mind?

Firstly, I strongly recommend training under a coach – a person with knowledge, experience and qualification. It will expedite your progress. Trying to learn on your own could take you an extremely long time to learn. We go to schools to learn from teachers. There are supervisors, trainers and personal coaches in the corporate world to guide an employee at every level. Similarly, sports have a whole range of coaches – technical and tactical, fitness, mind, nutrition, physiotherapy. Working with a team of qualified professionals gives you the best chance to excel in your endeavours. Without supervised training, there could be wrong techniques employed, chances of injury and deepening of counter-productive thought processes and behavioural patterns.

Q. What do you think is one of the biggest public misconceptions or misunderstandings with respect to mental toughness training?

That one only needs it if there is something wrong ‘upstairs’. The mind is a prized possession. But without attention and maintenance, it could turn out to be our biggest problem. Mind coaching is all about taking the game to the next level. How is it that one can practice extremely hard day and night, eat right, rest well and still consistently under-perform? If it was all about the physical and technical aspect, then we would never see any upsets in a match. The underdog would always lose while the favourite or top seed would always win. The unpredictability of sports arises from the wide range of athletes’ mental make up The better developed it is, greater the chances of performing up to potential and thereby converting it into victories.

Q. You have referred to the mind as a “neck-top” computer in the past. Throw some light on that.

We are constantly giving instructions to the subconscious mind without being aware of their quality. The mind is like a computer. Whatever the input, there is a corresponding output. It accepts useful software’s as readily as deadly viruses. It just doesn’t know the difference. Therefore, it is important that you feed positive thoughts and messages to the mind with training and supervision. Just like using an anti-virus for your laptop, you need an anti-virus for your mind, the neck-top. And it is not a one-off thing to do. It is important that every now and then you do a check-up from the neck-up (regular mind training).

Q. What message would you like to give to India’s sport-persons?

One thing every sports person should remember is that ‘anything is possible’. I’ll share a true story with you: Roger Banister was the first person to break the 4-minute barrier in running a mile. the funny thing is, though, a lot people before him tried but failed. Scientists even declared that it was “biologically impossible”. And then he broke the record. Once he did, around 20 people did it in the following few weeks. We just need to believe and we will make the impossible very possible. Just remember that the human mind contains tremendous powers that the body can manifest. It reminds me of what Nelson Mandela said, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.”