By Nilesh Bhagat, CHRP 

What goes inside a goalie’s head? I read through this article in The Globe & Mail and thought about the things that must be going on in Roberto Luongo’s mind on the day of Game 7, the Stanley Cup Final in Vancouver. At the time of writing, I don’t know what the result will be (I have every finger crossed in every way imaginable), but I think I can take a crack at how Bobby Lu might be approaching this one. 

After all, as a goalie myself, I’ve been in a situation or two (or three… or four) where I’ve personified Swiss cheese one game and had to bounce back the next.

David Rock explains our brains’ tendencies to react to situations with ‘toward’ or ‘away’ responses. Toward responses are enlightening; they increase the connections the networks of our brains make per second and result in ‘positive’ chemicals released – the stuff that makes you feel great. These responses allow for creativity and a broader arsenal of brain resources to react to situations. Finding solutions to challenges create and reinforce toward responses.

Away responses do the opposite; they narrow our focus and prepare us for stressful situations – and they’re more easily activated, generally speaking. This all leads to negative spiraling: that feeling of helplessness, of nothing going your way, and increases the chances of failure and defeat.

Rock goes onto say that focusing on problems tends to create an away response because we have a default tendency to perceive situations as problematic. Problems are based on things that have already happened; things that have already happened are more certain than things that might happen in the future, and our brains crave certainty. We also live in a society where we’ve learned to frame many of our challenges as ‘problematic’. 

Clearly, Roberto’s performances in Boston can easily be thought of as ‘problematic’. But there’s hope…

Here’s what I think Roberto is thinking before tonight’s monumental match: he’s reframed it as a challenge, something he figures could test his persistence and resilience against in reaching a desired end state (the Holy Grail of Hockey, in this case). Next, he’ll try to focus on how he could reach a solution to this challenge, rather than addressing the problems that led to it.  He can do this through planning and setting goals for the game, or envisioning the game ahead of him – both of which help to direct attention and set up expectations which can be met. This is important because meeting expectations is another trigger for positive brain chemistry. 

In essence, Roberto has thrown the bath water out, but the baby is alive and well, and focused on finding a way to win. Gone are the troublesome mechanics that may have resulted in goals; in are the ways in which to find your ‘A’ game through focusing on what WILL go right as you inch closer to your desired state. 

Although this approach doesn’t guarantee success, it positions your mind and body to achieve it – and when you’re a well-conditioned professional, this is enough to nudge you across the finish line.  

Let’s hope I’m right… 

Nilesh Bhagat, CHRP, is the membership and CHRP administrator at BC HRMA. After several gruelling years in school, Nilesh graduated in October 2010 from Simon Fraser University with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, First Class Honours. He majored in Human Resources Management and tacked on an extended minor in Psychology. He’s a self-confessed nerd (the first step is admitting), likes to read, loves hockey and is struggling with the complexities of learning the game of golf.