By Bryan Dalpes
There you are, 2/3 of the way up your project, shaking out on the good jug before the crux sequence. You’ve tried it what, a dozen times now? It all comes down to that terrible, smeary nothing that masquerades as a right foot.
“I wish that foot was better!” you think to yourself as you chalk up one last time before committing to the next moves. You pull on to the crisp rail with your right hand, cross the left to the slopey crimp, feeling strong! Okay, place the left foot on the good edge, smear the right on the horrible hold, slide your hips over, power up to the good pinch… and you’re OFF!
As you hit the end of the rope, once AGAIN, the expletives begin to fly. “That f*#king foot sucks!” Your endlessly supportive belayer, wanting to help soothe the sting of yet another failed redpoint burn agrees. “That foot is total garbage!”
If this sounds at all familiar then you know how frustrating and demoralizing situations like this can be. In the exasperation that follows repeated failure you may think to yourself that maybe you just need to focus more on your footwork, or get stronger fingers so you can power through and not rely so much on that crappy foot. Or worse, maybe you’re not good enough to do this route?
Some or all of this could be true, but what if I told you there was possibly a much simpler and, dare I say it, easeful solution?
Our brains are wired to create conclusions.
A conclusion is a mental model, a way of making sense of our world. This coupled with what in psychology is called the negativity bias has helped keep us safe since prehistoric times.
Imagine you and your cave friends are up early and are ready to leave the cave to go hunt and gather some breakfast. Before you exit the cave, what’s the first thing to look for? Well, if you have a strong survival instinct, it will naturally be to look for predators. As you scan the area for danger, a shadowy form resembles a crouching saber-toothed tiger. You and your cave friends freeze in place and strain your eyes to try to make out the menacing shape. Just then a crash in the bushes next to you sends you all scurrying for cover, convinced a 500-pound beast is upon you. Only to realize it’s a 3oz rodent gleefully collecting seeds.
The mind is a conclusion-manufacturing machine.
PhD psychologist and Master Certified Coach Maria Nemeth says in her book, Mastering Life’s Energies, “The mind is a conclusion-manufacturing machine. [T]he conclusions we focus upon automatically guide us to gather evidence to support them. Evidence to the contrary will be automatically screened out.” She continues, “You cannot help but act in ways that reflect the evidence you’re focused on.”
In other words, whatever we focus our attention on, our brains will find evidence to prove it’s real. This is very useful when we are in danger but can be inefficient and counter-productive when we’re trying to send our project, learn a new climbing style, or take on the myriad other challenges that make climbing so interesting, engaging, and fun.
If we go back to the scenario from the start, we can see that the climber has focused on the conclusion that the foot is TERRIBLE. In doing so, her brain is diligently collecting evidence to support this conclusion, therefore severely limiting her capacity to gather evidence for possible solutions to climb through the sequence.
Also, in an attempt to be supportive, the belayer has unknowingly been influenced by the climber’s behavior and is feeding the climber more evidence by agreeing that, indeed, the foot is garbage. This creates a vicious cycle whereby the conclusion is reinforced time and again with a plethora of evidence.
This scenario demonstrates what Dr. Nemeth calls The Four Box Model.
The Four-box Model (FBM)
The FBM is a model made up of…big surprise…four boxes!
Box 1. We form a conclusion.
In this case that the hold is bad.
Box 2. Our brain begins to collect evidence to support that conclusion.
The hold is too small, slopey, polished, facing the wrong way, etc.
Box 3. The evidence we focus on, in turn, informs how we behave.
Our vision narrows, we tense up, over-grip, try to rush through the moves. We complain about the hold and wish it was better or different. This is a stimulus response situation over which we have little control.
Box 4. This then affects the behavior of those around us.
They agree that hold is indeed bad and say so. If we repeatedly lament our situation over time, tension may build and their support may deteriorate into annoyance. We are social creatures who naturally pick up on subtle (and not so subtle) verbal and non-verbal cues from those around us. This often times will confirm our original conclusion and the cycle continues.
So, while getting stronger and improving footwork may increase the chances of sending, our true point of power lies in the ability to shift our attention and focus on a conclusion that interests us and is geared toward learning and growth as a climber.
Shifting focus
Shifting your focus is different from simply “changing your mind.” If you were to decide that the next time you climb to the crux you’d say to yourself, ‘You know, that hold isn’t so bad. In fact, it’s huge and I won’t have any trouble dancing all over it!” Your brain sees right through the charade, knowing full well that you still believe the hold is the devil. We can’t easily ‘trick’ our brain into believing something that isn’t true.
The key is to shift your focus to a more objective conclusion that isn’t an evaluation of the hold itself. The hold is what it is. The only thing you have control over is how you engage with it. One of the most productive ways to do this is to approach the situation as an opportunity to observe, learn and grow. When we engage in this way we are less likely to struggle and get stuck on trying to produce different results from the same behavior.
Here are some guidelines you can follow to shift your focus and bring ease* to your journey.
*A quick note on “ease.” Ease doesn’t mean easy or not putting in effort. Rather that the effort is focused in a clear direction so that you can take small, sweet steps towards what is important to you without undue strain.
Guideline #1: Keep it simple
Explore the idea of observation and learning. For example, the next time you climb the route, stop before trying the crux moves and just hang on the rope. This way your brain won’t be stimulated by evidence of falling off the “bad” hold and you can simply sit and observe the rock. Without trying to “solve” the problem of the bad hold, just look at the shapes, color, and texture of the rock. Look around at the surrounding area. Take it all in. Take a moment to feel gratitude for being there. Allow space for new ideas to emerge.
Dr. Nemeth suggests, “If you want to change your behavior, don’t concentrate on the behavior itself. Instead, shift the focus of your attention to a conclusion that interests you. Your behavior will naturally and effortlessly shift to conform to the new evidence that the conclusion generates.” This often can be as simple as asking yourself, ‘What is available for me to learn here?’
Guideline #2: Promise the result, not the effort
We all know a little “try hard” can go a long way in climbing, but if we rely on it solely our progress and satisfaction will likely dwindle. Rather than simply trying hard on the next go, focus that energy into a result. Remember guideline #1: it can be as simple as stopping to observe the rock and your surroundings, exploring a different sequence, trying a different pair of shoes, or practicing a breathing routine, for instance.
In his book, The Rock Warriors Way, Arno Ilgner introduces a great technique he calls delaying. Ilgner states, “Delaying is especially helpful when dealing with habits.” He continues, “A habit is formed by associating one thing, such as your arms feeling too pumped to continue, with another thing such as yelling ‘Take!’ If you break the automatic association, then you begin destroying the habit. Don’t do anything. Don’t react to the insistent, comfort-seeking self-talk.”
“Instead, simply observe yourself. Listen to the self-talk. Listen to your conscious mind squirm in the discomfort of being pumped, but don’t act. Be the Witness. If you really are pumped you won’t be able to continue the observation session for long. It doesn’t matter. A few seconds is enough for you to begin breaking the chain of association.”
It is essential to your satisfaction to point to something tangible you have accomplished.
Guideline #3: Acknowledge even the smallest result
When you acknowledge something, you are giving it life. Take a moment to acknowledge the things you’re already doing well. Have you been consistently making it out to try the project? Great! Have you been fueling your body with good, nutritious food and getting plenty of sleep? Awesome! Are you out with friends on a beautiful day? Fantastic! Every step can be appreciated and savored! By doing so, you empower yourself to continue forward on your path. Focus on enjoying the uniqueness and wonder of your journey.
Guideline #4: Call in support
We are social creatures; we’re not built to do everything alone. If you notice you might be struggling ask yourself, ‘Am I willing to call in support?’ A great place to start is with your steadfast belayer. Before you start up the route, tell them what you want to focus on during the next try and ask them to remind you during the climb. That way if you start to lose focus, their reminder will gently bring you back in.
Another helpful technique is to think of a climber you really admire (Hazel Findlay is one for me) and ask yourself, ‘How would Hazel approach this situation?’ Even though the climber is obviously not physically there to support you, oftentimes this will pull you out of your tunnel vision (and the conclusion you’re focused on) allowing a different perspective to emerge.
In Conclusion…
Our brains are conclusion-manufacturing machines and we generate evidence based on our conclusions–not the other way around. The evidence we find as a result of the conclusion we focus on affects the behavior we demonstrate and the behavior of those around us. So, if we want to change our behavior and improve at climbing or anything else that interests us, we first have to shift our focus to conclusions that interest us.
While this article highlights the idea of a poor foothold for example, the principles of the FBM and the guidelines above can be applied to many situations in climbing and in life.
Just remember, as we observe the conclusions we’ve been focusing on in the past, it is critical to plainly see them for what they are and not try to stop or change them. Instead, simply acknowledge them and begin to explore other possibilities that interest you more. Take small, sweet steps. Embrace your curiosity. Bask in the experience. Practice gratitude for the privilege it is to learn, discover, and play on rocks!
Author Bio
Bryan Dalpes is a Life and Mental Fitness coach who loves serving mountain enthusiasts that want to build a full-value life full of purpose and play. Currently based in Missoula, MT you can often find Bryan climbing rocks, skiing up and down rocks, and trail running over and around rocks.
If you would like to explore coaching with Bryan you can find him at bryandalpes.com where he offers a free 45-minute ‘Discovery Session’ to see if coaching with him is a good fit for you.
Thank you very much