️ ️⚡ Today’s level up ⚡

Today’s edition focuses on unlocking the power of strategic roleplaying and visualization to consistently nurture and win multi-million-dollar opportunities.

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Getting serious about expanding your capacity

When I was a kid, I took roleplaying to a whole new level.

Around age ten, I’d don a fedora, brown jacket (a leather jacket was too expensive), tie a whip around my belt loop I got from The Cracker Barrel, and play out the opening scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark. I wanted to be like Indiana Jones.

In sixth grade, I begged my parents to buy me a pair of Nike Dopemans (the closest things to Nike Bruins) so that I could authentically play out scenes on my skateboard from Back to the Future. I wanted to be like Marty McFly.

A couple years later, while playing basketball with the teenagers down the street, I had my tongue out on full display as I shimmied, turned, and released the ball while in full fadeaway. I wanted to be like Mike.

My family thought it was cute.

But I was serious about my play and every last detail needed to be accurate.

When I got older, this skill actually served me well. As I became surrounded by more talented individuals, it actually became a necessity. Because I was not as skilled as everyone around me, I had to role-play and visualize my way up to the levels of those who made it look so easy.

While I was in Eastern Europe chasing a pro soccer contract, it was the cornerstone to leveling up my game. My fitness levels were pretty strong, my ambition was high, but my abilities were not at the level of the more tenured pro players. This caused a confidence gap that I needed to fill up each day.

Somehow, I was able to snag a copy of Playing Out of Your Mind. I easily read that thing at least ten times over the course of a year. One because it was super thin, and thus a quick read, but mostly because it was packed with valuable advice I needed at the time.

It was written by a sports psychologist, Dr. Alan Goldberg, and a novel concept (at that time circa 1999) I learned was the fact that our brains cannot decipher between what we visualize and what we actually do.

This seemed impossible to me, but once tapped into, opened limitless potential.

Insights from “Playing Out of Your Mind”

I was a “holding midfielder” when I was in Romania.

It’s the link between defense and offense, and the top player in this position at that time was Dutch and Juventus player Edgar Davids. He was known as “The Pitbull” and was both a tenacious tackler and quite skilled on the ball. With his long dreads and distinctive glasses (he had to wear them following eye surgery caused by glaucoma), he had a big presence on the pitch.

This was the type of presence I secretly hoped to have when I daydreamed but was too timid to bring to life when I was actually on the field.

This is where deep visualization became a strong ally for me.

Visualization and mental rehearsal are powerful techniques that leverage the brain’s inability to distinguish vividly imagined experiences from actual physical experiences. This phenomenon, known as “functional equivalence,” is rooted in neuroscience and has been extensively studied over the past few decades.

Here’s the scientific basis of functional equivalence:

Neural Activation Patterns:

When we visualize an action, the same brain regions are activated as when we physically perform that action. This has been demonstrated through various neuroimaging studies. For instance, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) scans show that imagining a movement activates the motor cortex, the same area involved in actual movement.

Study by Dr. Richard Suinn:

Dr. Richard Suinn, a pioneer in sports psychology, conducted a study with Olympic skiers where he measured muscle activity while they mentally rehearsed skiing down a slope. The results showed that the same muscle groups activated during mental rehearsal as during actual skiing, although to a lesser degree. This provided concrete evidence that visualization could enhance muscle memory and coordination.

Role of Mirror Neurons:

Mirror neurons are a type of brain cell that responds both when we perform an action and when we observe someone else performing the same action. These neurons help explain why visualization can be so effective: they essentially allow us to “practice” by watching, either in reality or in our minds. This ability to simulate actions in the brain helps reinforce learning and skill acquisition.

This was huge for my development, as I had picked up a knack for mimicking others I admired in childhood (thank goodness we didn’t have smartphones in the 80s and 90s).

In my mind, each night before going to sleep, I visualized myself (in great detail) as The Pitbull. Each morning, as we drove to the training ground on the bus, I had a little more confidence and excitement.

That confidence began to manifest into actual strong performance on the pitch and my coaches, and more satisfying to me, a handful of the players recognized this and commented on my rapid improvement.

Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, has spoken extensively about his use of visualization.

He would mentally rehearse every aspect of his races, from the starting dive to the final stroke. Phelps visualized not only perfect races but also scenarios where things might go wrong, preparing himself to stay calm and focused no matter what happened. This mental preparation was crucial in his record-breaking success.

Elevating your roleplaying from boring status quo exercises to hyper-strategic performance

Roleplaying has an important role in sales, but let’s face it, the execution in most environments is, well, lacking.

Most don’t have access to a Wendy Rhoades to help keep their minds right in the demanding role of strategic selling (I had to hire my own). Sadly, roleplaying is diminished to a few half-hearted attempts during onboarding and SKO, while performance visualization is rarely, if ever, used by sellers. Yet other performance fields make it standard operating procedure.

Here’s why it’s so beneficial:

→ Reinforces new neural pathways

Repeated visualization strengthens the neural pathways associated with the visualized action, making it easier to perform the action in real life. This is similar to how physical practice reinforces muscle memory.

→ Reduces performance anxiety and builds confidence

Visualization helps reduce anxiety by familiarizing the brain with the performance environment and scenarios. This familiarity builds confidence, as the brain feels as though it has already successfully navigated the situation.

→ Enhances focus, concentration, and mental clarity

Regular mental rehearsal helps you develop a clear mental picture of your ideal performance and the steps needed to achieve it. This clarity enhances focus and concentration during actual performance.

→ Regulates emotions

Visualization allows individuals to practice managing their emotions in high-pressure situations. By mentally experiencing and overcoming challenges, they build emotional resilience and improve their ability to stay composed under stress.

Incorporating strategic roleplaying and visualization into your routine

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