This is a review of an older book, published in 1974 and written by Timothy Gallwey. Along with this book, Gallwey also wrote The Inner Game of Golf, The Inner Game of Music (with Barry Green), Inner Skiing and The Inner Game of Work.
This book, more than any other book (except the Bible), changed my life. This
book changed me as a piano player and in many other activities by
showing me how to look at myself and my performances objectively, not
judgmentally.
According to Gallwey, there are two parts to every game or activity – an outer game and an inner game. The outer game is played against a very real opposing team while the inner game is essentially played against ourselves. Our inner self is quite a formidable opponent and can be one or several of these things: lapses
in concentration, nervousness, self-doubt, self-condemnation, fear of
what others will think or say, and many other mental habits we humans
learn.
Learning
a new way to tackle the inner game, the mental game, is re-learning
things we did naturally as a child – unselfconsciously. It relies on the mid-brain more than the cerebral cortex.
The best news of all is that we don’t have to learn anything new. “All that is needed is to unlearn those habits which interfere with it and then to just let it happen.” (The Inner Game of Tennis)
Piano students often say to their teachers “Wow, that went a lot better when I played it at home.” In truth, it probably does go better at home. It’s so agonizing to practice, practice, practice and then get to a performance and make the simplest mistakes. What is the difference from one physical location to another?
This
same thing happens to players of all kinds of sports – when the game
gets close and big plays are needed, so many times the plays are spoiled
by simple, elementary errors.
What causes this? Gallwey says it goes this way. Self 1 gives Self 2 instructions and expects Self 2 to obey when in fact, Self 1 is just overloading Self 2. If that isn’t bad enough, Self 1 berates Self 2 for making these “stupid” mistakes. Self 1 tells Self 2 “That was just stupid!” or “I’m such a clutz!” or “I’ll never get any better at this.”
Gallwey’s
point is that when we give ourselves all these instructions, we take
the natural rhythm away; we don’t just “let it happen”. When
we berate ourselves, we make it worse and ensure that the next time,
we’ll try even harder and probably get even worse results. The cycle escalates.
In The Inner Game of Tennis, Gallwey teaches us how to:
- program Self 2 with images, not words,
- learn to trust Self 2, and
- see Self 2 non-judgmentally
He continues teaching us that these skills are all subsidiary to the main skill – the art of concentration.
Doesn’t it sound wonderful, if we could learn these skills? It sounds much less nerve-racking and stressful.
This book needs to be re-read every couple of years. The beginning of a new year is a great time to begin using the methods Gallwey’s book gives us.
Before
reading his book, I had become so eaten up with nerves and worry about
performing well in my piano “juries” at the end of every semester that I
could barely play anything for just sheer enjoyment anymore. I’d managed to convince myself that every person in the music school played better than I did. Playing from memory, required in the juries, was something I could barely do outside of the practice room. But
I had discovered on my own that if I just let my “fingers do the
walking” and not engage my brain at all, I could get through with no
problems. The room used for the piano juries had a window across from the piano. Many times, I would just stare out the window at the trees and let my fingers carry the day.
By letting my “fingers do the walking” I had stumbled onto part of the secret Gallwey has for us in this book. He
puts it all together in simple exercises and ways of talking to
ourselves that make nearly every area of our lives go more smoothly. His method is much better than disengaging the brain as I had done so many years before.
He
has one secret sentence in this book that literally takes away the fear
and anxiety of comparing ourselves to others in any area of
performance. For that one sentence alone, this book (all 178 pages) is a MUST read.
It can change your life!
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