3 ms·

Personal experience: One of the best ways to improve performance in mentally demanding tasks is to be conscious about every single decision and the reason behi

Personal experience: One of the best ways to improve performance in mentally demanding tasks is to be conscious about every single decision and the reason behind that decision, yes even for minute things like why we are craving something[1]. It introduces a non trivial amount of overhead but, with time, these processes become internalized, which improves speed while retaining the correct course of action. I experienced this when I was climbing in competitive games. The first step was to get over the 'not my fault' mentality and transition to an 'I need to improve' mentality. I began by analyzing everything that I understood, and becoming more conscious and aware of the current situation, the available information and my mistakes and every game I was aiming to improve my play instead of winning. [1] I remember reading that cravings are an indication of the kind of nutrients the body needs, more so than the specific food itself. When I was transitioning to a vegetarian diet, I found that I could cure/reduce my meat cravings e.g. burgers by increasing protein and fat on my next meal, my sugar cravings were associated with a) low energy or b) the need to take a break and let subconscious do the work to figure out the solution. But all of these could be attributed to confirmation or other memory biases.

Timpy 6y ago
In an effort to eat healthier I also went about analyzing my cravings. Maybe I don't really want fast food, maybe I'm actually in the mood for something salty. I spent a long time finding a healthy alternative to these base cravings and eventually my body adapted and I found myself craving the healthy alternatives. Being mindful in this case led to an outcome that I considered favorable.
SummerlyMars 6y ago
> I experienced this when I was climbing in competitive games. The first step was to get over the 'not my fault' mentality and transition to an 'I need to improve' mentality. I began by analyzing everything that I understood, and becoming more conscious and aware of the current situation, the available information and my mistakes and every game I was aiming to improve my play instead of winning. This is what I've done recently with my approach to playing music. I'd always have described myself as very 'self-critical' of my musical skills, but this criticism was never more than "Ugh, this sucks. Try harder!" What I've realized fairly recently (and wish someone had told me when I was much younger) is that my self-criticism wasn't constructive criticism. I was aware that I was unhappy with my performance, but I wasn't aware of why. Now when I'm not happy with my playing, I try to stop and think about exactly what it is that's bothering me about it. If it's multiple things, I'll just pick one to focus on and try to improve that. I'm still self-critical, but it's constructive criticism now, and that's something I can improve from. The "not my fault" mentality you mentioned feels safe, because if someone believes there's nothing that could have done to change the outcome, then there's nothing that might make them feel bad[1]. Of course, sometimes things really aren't your fault, and believing there's something you could have done when there's in fact nothing is also a problem. There's a balance to be struck between the two perspectives. [1] I'm not saying they ought to feel bad, just that I think it's common experience to feel bad when we don't achieve our goals, and worse when we think of something we could have done differently.
- PartiallyTyped 6y ago
  Indeed it is difficult to strike a balance. It is especially important to reward and be proud of, at least relatively, good plays and moves, as well as novelty. The former has shown to be more effective than the opposite, while the latter, imho, expands the 'branches' of our internal decision trees as it increases our toolbox.
chrisweekly 6y ago
+1 insightful. Related: "Win or learn, and you'll never 'lose'."
- rwnspace 6y ago
  Note that it's good to be angry about losing or doing poorly. The trick is to really feel the pain, and not take the easy route out and find excuses in the things that weren't in your control. High feedback situations or 1v1 games give you fewer opportunities to dip out of the internal locus of control mindset.
  - chrisweekly 6y ago
    Maybe. I'm with you on the [not seeking excuses; embrace feedback] parts, but not "good to be angry". Unsure about "control mindset"... care to expound?

Timpy 6y ago

In an effort to eat healthier I also went about analyzing my cravings. Maybe I don't really want fast food, maybe I'm actually in the mood for something salty. I spent a long time finding a healthy alternative to these base cravings and eventually my body adapted and I found myself craving the healthy alternatives. Being mindful in this case led to an outcome that I considered favorable.

SummerlyMars 6y ago

> I experienced this when I was climbing in competitive games. The first step was to get over the 'not my fault' mentality and transition to an 'I need to improve' mentality. I began by analyzing everything that I understood, and becoming more conscious and aware of the current situation, the available information and my mistakes and every game I was aiming to improve my play instead of winning. This is what I've done recently with my approach to playing music. I'd always have described myself as very 'self-critical' of my musical skills, but this criticism was never more than "Ugh, this sucks. Try harder!" What I've realized fairly recently (and wish someone had told me when I was much younger) is that my self-criticism wasn't constructive criticism. I was aware that I was unhappy with my performance, but I wasn't aware of why. Now when I'm not happy with my playing, I try to stop and think about exactly what it is that's bothering me about it. If it's multiple things, I'll just pick one to focus on and try to improve that. I'm still self-critical, but it's constructive criticism now, and that's something I can improve from. The "not my fault" mentality you mentioned feels safe, because if someone believes there's nothing that could have done to change the outcome, then there's nothing that might make them feel bad[1]. Of course, sometimes things really aren't your fault, and believing there's something you could have done when there's in fact nothing is also a problem. There's a balance to be struck between the two perspectives. [1] I'm not saying they ought to feel bad, just that I think it's common experience to feel bad when we don't achieve our goals, and worse when we think of something we could have done differently.

PartiallyTyped 6y ago
Indeed it is difficult to strike a balance. It is especially important to reward and be proud of, at least relatively, good plays and moves, as well as novelty. The former has shown to be more effective than the opposite, while the latter, imho, expands the 'branches' of our internal decision trees as it increases our toolbox.

chrisweekly 6y ago

+1 insightful. Related: "Win or learn, and you'll never 'lose'."

rwnspace 6y ago
Note that it's good to be angry about losing or doing poorly. The trick is to really feel the pain, and not take the easy route out and find excuses in the things that weren't in your control. High feedback situations or 1v1 games give you fewer opportunities to dip out of the internal locus of control mindset.
- chrisweekly 6y ago
  Maybe. I'm with you on the [not seeking excuses; embrace feedback] parts, but not "good to be angry". Unsure about "control mindset"... care to expound?