Derren Brown: Archive
| Message ID: 00457 | [ Previous ] [ Next ] [ Up Thread ] |
From: ganetauk
Date: Tue Feb 19, 2002 6:18pm
Subject: t the modeling process metmind
THE MODELLING PROCESS
You can easily apply
the modelling process to a physical activity, such as
a craft, a specific sporting activity, or learn-ing
a new dance routine:
First choose the skill
you want to model.
Next choose a model. You only
need to find excellence in the specific skill you have
chosen. For instance, the model might not impress you as
a person overall, or even in the area of competence
of which the skill forms a part. For example, the
person may paint an excellent watercolour wash but not
have very good technical draughtsmanship or sense of
perspective. Or a top go-kart rider may not have passed a
driving test.
You also need to have access to the
model.You need to observe carefully, perhaps from different
angles and perhaps without the person's knowledge. For
sport or cookery, for example, you can take advantage
of good video recordings which give access to the
top performers.If you can interview the model you can
get them to run their strategy, observe their eye
movements, and question them about the values and beliefs
that underpin a particular skill.
Watch the model
carrying out the skill, simply 'taking in' the sequence of
movements. Don't try too hard. Think back to your childhood
- watching a friend do what you could not do and
naturally copying them.
Then see yourself as the model
but in a dissociated state, watching yourself from
outside yourself. See yourself inside the skin of the
model as you watch.
As the model runs the sequence
of activities again, step right inside the model and
become fully associated. See through your own eyes and
feel all the feelings you will feel when carrying out
the skill yourself. Become one with the model and all
their feelings.
Do all this mentally. Finally, and
instinctively, carry out the physical activity. Don't hesitate
or analyse anything - just do it. Repeat the whole
process until you feel you can get 'inside' the model,
confident that you have mastered the skill. Every little
feedback adjustment you make will contribute to your
ultimate success.
You never fully 'arrive' at
excellence. In the same way you cannot make mistakes when
modelling - you simply learn. You cannot not learn. So you
may as well make a good job of your learning, and
keep getting better. You can consciously experiment to
improve a skill of your own, according to the four-stage
success model. And in the same way you can try to make
changes to the strategies you model. Obviously you will
only reach this stage of competence when you feel you
have gone as far as you can in emulating your model.
At some point you will find that 'the law of
diminishing returns' sets in - you will get smaller results
for the extra effort you put in. From now on you can
apply your own innate creativity to continuously
improve in a self-generating spiral of excellence. Let's
say you model someone playing tennis, squash or any
ball game.
