by Dr. Donald L. Green
“The Question is not what you look at, but what you see” – Henry David Thoreau
Like any skilled activity, RiderCoaches and rider’s intent on doing something well will achieve a state of “flow,” indicating focused attention where concentration becomes a zen-like experience. The state of flow is an essential signaling value and effort meeting at a familiar juncture. Not everyone reaches this stage of commitment or effort. It correlates best with Charlotte Danielson’s (2007) definition of excellence, a place sometimes visited but rarely a place where we stay exceptionally long.
Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (2013) first described flow state in the 1980s as a zone where someone can feel at one with the activity during the moment. During these moments, the time seems to disappear because skill and challenge mold together, creating a perfect synthesis of action and effort – neither too difficult nor too easy.
Among athletes, artists, craftsmen, and musicians, a flow state is considered a somewhat predictable nirvana, where high achievement is sought and achieved. But to be fair, we must look at another aspect of flow where being ultra-focused could put the rider or instructor at risk through target fixation. If the flow state allows accepting all information in the surroundings, then achieving flow is desirable. If the information is ignored through target fixation, it is possible to create the opposite outcome of increased risk.
The higher risk is best demonstrated in a book titled The Invisible Gorilla with a companion video called The Monkey Business Illusion. Christopher Chabris and Daniel Simons (2010) explored how perception, attention, memory, and reasoning are faulty, emphasizing using crashes on motorcycles as an example. The eyes and mind do not see everything within the field of view. Without a very practiced strategy or achieving excellence like operating in a real flow state, it is possible to miss the multiple hazards riders are exposed to during instruction. What could be worse than a RiderCoach distracted and students expecting a safe environment?
Consider a seasoned Instructor observing and analyzing student behavior for coaching. Previous experiences can help predict student missteps, foreshadowing incidents, or harming other students. Predictions based on knowledge can allow coaching before incidents happen, maintaining the safe environment necessary for learning. Focusing on inappropriate or biased information during the same scenario could let hazards go unnoticed causing incidents.
For students or riders on the street, having many motorcycle experiences to draw from is crucial and a primary reason for taking educational riding courses before riding on the road. Without formal training, riders must rely on other experiences like driving a car or riding a bicycle, neither of which are entirely transferable to powered vehicles balancing on two or three wheels. If the experiences have relevance, chances are learning happens. If former practices do not, then the outcomes could be less than favorable.
RiderCoaches have obligations to students and the profession, seeking excellence while achieving a particular flow during instruction. The achievement of flow requires effort and commitment to gain more competence, continually develop character, and care for the students enough to put forth a reasonable effort. Research has shown flow states are synonymous with an intrinsic value according to Kasser (2016). Those who ride or coach with ego-driven desires or focus rarely achieve flow as the reward is nested in extrinsic value. The motivational desire of flow comes from believing in the work enough to display a real commitment to safety in practice through action and words.
See more at: www. Riderchoices.com
References:
Chabris, C & Simons, D. (2010). The invisible gorilla: And other ways our intuitions deceive us. New York: Crown.
Csikszentmihalyi, M (2013). Creativity: The power of discovery and invention. London: Harper.
Danielson, C. (2007). Enhancing professional practice: A framework for teaching (2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: ASCD
Kasser, T. (2016). The materialistic values and goals. Annual Review of Psychology, 67, 489-514.
Simons, D. (2010, April 28). The monkey business illusion [YouTube Video]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/IGQmdoK_ZfY
