Modelo de Balanced Scorecard

Carol Dwech, PhD, at Stanford University noticed that differences in expectations among students resulted in differences in performance. The main indicator was whether a student believed that intelligence was a fixed number that couldn’t be changed, or if they believed intelligence could be increased and grow.

When looking at the math scores of the two groups she found that those who believed intelligence could grow improved their scores. Those who did not share that belief, had lower scores over time.

She then took the study a step further. She took 100 seventh graders who all had trouble in math, and split them into a control group and an experimental group. The experimental group was taught how the brain grows, makes new connections when challenged, and can become smarter. The control group was taught study skills. At the end of the semester, the experimental group that had been taught how the brain grows had significantly better scores then the control group.

This experiment shows how expectations plot our results. If you believe that you can grow and get better, then you will. Believe that you can’t, and you won’t. In fact, you’ll probably get worse, because why even use what you have if it can’t be improved?

Our expectations are key, and they apply to more than just learning, strength, and sports. One of the things that showcases how poor expectancy works is negative self-talk.

“I’m going to win!” you may say out loud.

“No you won’t.” says the little voice in the back of your mind.

In Sports Psyching by Thomas Tutko and Umberto Tosi, the authors state, “Listen to yourself during the game. Frequently, the things you will hear yourself saying are immensely revealing. For example, if you find yourself saying ‘I’ll never get it right,’ I can assure you that you are not making an objective judgment related to the immediate challenge; you may simply be repeating long-forgotten criticism in childhood by a parental figure who would ask, ‘Can’t you do anything right?’ When you mumble your own name out on the playing field, much as an angry parent might, you are reliving a past which can destroy your present.

For example, a tennis player I know would always say to herself, ‘You klutz, what’s the matter with you?’ when she missed shots. Then she would tell herself,

‘Straighten up!’ When she would prepare for a game, she would always think in the first person: ‘I’m going to try to keep the ball to the right against this opponent.’ But when she flubbed, she would scold herself in the second person, ‘You dummy!’ She thought about this and realized that the nagging ‘you’ voice really was an imitation of her mother balling her out when she was a child. She’d grown up in a large family and rarely got much attention unless she did something clumsy. She was acting this out unconsciously on the tennis courts and she realized in other areas of her life as well.”

Hypnosis can also be used for this purpose. In his book Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Dr. William Kroger wrote that he had used hypnotism to improve the ability of many athletes in the areas of baseball, football, pugilism and golf.

The results ranged from good to spectacular, all without any negative side effects. He found that while the athletes competed at a higher level, they did so without causing damage or injury to their bodies.

The following drill can help you to identify and transform negative self-talk.

1. Identify what the voice says to you. What is the context when you hear it? What are the auditory qualities of the voice? Pay particular attention to whether it is your voice or someone else’s (like a parent). If it is someone else skip to the following drill. If it is your own voice, continue to step 2 below.

2. Ask if the part of you doing the talking is willing to communicate with you. In most cases you’ll receive a “yes” in one form or another.

3. Ask what the positive intention is behind the statement? For instance, if the statement is, “You won’t win, so why bother,” the positive intent may be to save yourself from disappointment.

4. Step into a place of creativity. Now, come up with at least three alternatives that would fulfill the positive intent in a more resourceful way.

5. Ask the part of you that previously said the negative self-talk if it would be satisfied with any of the alternatives. If not, come up with more alternatives or figure out what needs to be added or changed so that every part will be happy with the new decisions.

6. Integrate the new choices by having that speaking part of you take over the new alternative and run that program instead of the negative self-talk.

7. Think about a future situation or context when that voice may come up again.

Run through the movie in your mind. What is different now?

If the voice is from someone else and not yourself, then use the steps below. Often, something or someone from our childhood gets in our way.

2a. Go back to the first time you can recall hearing the negative statement and who said it. Notice how it made you feel inside when you heard it.

3a. Step out into a position off to the side, where you can observe the interaction (meta position).

4a. Now, step into the shoes of the person saying the statement to the younger you. What was their intention when saying it? They may have had a positive intention for you. Or, it may have been negatively intended for you, but positive for them. For example they might have been putting you down to make themselves feel better. Notice the reasoning behind their statement.

5a. Return to the meta position off to the side. What resources need to be given to the younger you or the other person in the interaction to transform the situation? Access those resources now and bring them into the past. Notice what happens. Are these resources sufficient or is something more needed? If more resources are needed, add them.

6a. Return to the present and bring those resources forward with you through time.

Now, go into the future to a similar context and see what comes up now instead of the voice.

Both of these drills—especially the second one—can be tricky to do by yourself, so you may need a qualified coach to guide you to accurately move through the steps.