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Choke: What the Secrets of the Brain Reveal About Getting It Right When You Have To
by
Sian Beilock
"Why do the smartest students often do poorly on standardized tests?Why did you tank that interview or miss that golf swing when you should have had it in the bag?Why do you mess up when it matters the most--and how can you perform your best instead?"It happens to all of us. You've prepared for days, weeks, even years for the big day when you will finally show your stuff--...more
Hardcover, 304 pages
Published
September 21st 2010
by Free Press
(first published September 10th 2010)
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Choking is below normal performance under stress.
Chapter 1 - The Curse of Expertise
- short term knowledge is kept in the working memory in the pre-frontal cortex
- persons vary in the amount of working memory, and so their ability to carry out various tasks
- sometimes performance is inhibited when one rushes into a problem - the solution is to step back and plan the solution
- even practising under mild levels of stress can prevent you from choking when high levels of stress come around
Chapter 2 -...more
Chapter 1 - The Curse of Expertise
- short term knowledge is kept in the working memory in the pre-frontal cortex
- persons vary in the amount of working memory, and so their ability to carry out various tasks
- sometimes performance is inhibited when one rushes into a problem - the solution is to step back and plan the solution
- even practising under mild levels of stress can prevent you from choking when high levels of stress come around
Chapter 2 -...more
After watching the Australian golfer, Adam Scott, choke horribly in the last four holes of the Open Championship and then playing horribly later that day myself (I was uncharacteristically nervous playing with new people), I decided to check out Dr. Beilock's book on "choking". It is a marvel. There is an astonishing amount of research on choking and Beilock is an able and informative author on the subject.
Her book is not focused on golf per se, but she does deal with golf in detail and I recom...more
Her book is not focused on golf per se, but she does deal with golf in detail and I recom...more
Do you want to ace the big test, make the game winning shot or close the biggest deal of your career? Or does the fear of failing when it matters most hold sway over your thoughts everywhere from the classroom, the playing field and the boardroom? Either way, Sian Beilock’s Choke will show you not only why we choke under pressure, but more importantly what we can do to steel ourselves and prepare to succeed when it’s crunch time.
Based on research from the fields of psychology, neuroscience, spor...more
Based on research from the fields of psychology, neuroscience, spor...more
*A no-brainer*
Ever feel betrayed by your brain?
It's the day of the big test, and even though you've aced every practice test, you can't even get through the first few problems on the actual test. Or, you've mastered your speech, and could practically recite it in your sleep, and then on the day of your performance, you freeze. Or, you've been flawlessly making every putt on the greens during practice, but when the pressure's on during the game, you can't putt to save your life.
We're all too fam...more
Ever feel betrayed by your brain?
It's the day of the big test, and even though you've aced every practice test, you can't even get through the first few problems on the actual test. Or, you've mastered your speech, and could practically recite it in your sleep, and then on the day of your performance, you freeze. Or, you've been flawlessly making every putt on the greens during practice, but when the pressure's on during the game, you can't putt to save your life.
We're all too fam...more
This is by far the best book on performance anxiety that I've read...and I've read a lot. According to the author, "choking" is the term used by golfers when they bomb an easy putt due to a high stakes game or when a kicker in football misses an easy goal because of self-consciousness and worry. Beilock uses examples mostly from the sports and academic world but I found they can easily be transferred to any performing arts situation. The claims and theories are backed up by considerable research...more
This has some extremely good points to make about worry, cognition, and stereotypes that make it worthwhile reading for anyone. For instance, worrying about not doing something makes it more likely that you'll unintentionally do it.
I only gave it two stars because I found it repetitive and full of sports stories, which I have minimal interest in.
Also, as a woman with very high math ability and experience in math and computer programming, I'm getting tired of books piling on Lawrence Summers' qu...more
I only gave it two stars because I found it repetitive and full of sports stories, which I have minimal interest in.
Also, as a woman with very high math ability and experience in math and computer programming, I'm getting tired of books piling on Lawrence Summers' qu...more
Mar 15, 2011
Trevor
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
education,
psychology
A couple of years ago I read Predictably Irrational. That is a wonderful book – utterly fascinating while having the added bonus of also being very funny. One of the parts of that book that made my jaw drop was the story of Asian women who were given a maths test. Half of these women reminded of the fact they were women (and we all know women are hopeless at maths) and the other half being reminded that they were Asian (and we also all know Asians are great at maths) with the effect being that t...more
10 likes · like · see review
view all 5 comments
This is a new book by a University of Chicago neuroscientist who specializes in why people screw up in high-pressure situations (thus the title).
Beilock does a good job of covering the relevant science, but the book suffered from repetitiveness on her main points, giving it a strong feel of a long magazine article that had been turned into a book by padding.
Her main point: When the challenge we face is a cognitive one -- doing well on the SAT or performing well in a presentation to a group -- th...more
This book has a lot of good content in regard to why we choke when the pressure is on and how to fight it. It's data is rooted in neurology and psycology and most of its content is supported. In my opinion most of the content in the book is very well put forward, but maybe a bit heavy on the sports side for us that do not have an interest in it.
I highly reccomend this book for anyone that wants to get a better understanding of how to avoid buckeling under when the pressure is on. This book is n...more
I highly reccomend this book for anyone that wants to get a better understanding of how to avoid buckeling under when the pressure is on. This book is n...more
I bought this book because the author spoke at a local PMI (Project Management Institute) chapter meeting, and I am a total sucker for having a book that is autographed by the author. However, this time the book itself lived up to every expectation.
Scientific analysis of why some of us do well under pressure, and others do not. Also incudes a fascinating analysis of how we live up to, or more to the point, Down to expectations of us based on gender, race and other factors.
Although some of it i...more
Scientific analysis of why some of us do well under pressure, and others do not. Also incudes a fascinating analysis of how we live up to, or more to the point, Down to expectations of us based on gender, race and other factors.
Although some of it i...more
A book with research in it that I wish I had had access to as a high school student. Test taking is not my forte and the essence of Choke is on how to overcome the mental obstructions that can hinder performance in pressure situations.
Based mostly upon the author's research in tandem with complementary research in sports and neuro-psychology, the biggest insight shared is how a major element of choking stems from a physiological drain on brain resources. Worrying about an act not only distracts...more
Based mostly upon the author's research in tandem with complementary research in sports and neuro-psychology, the biggest insight shared is how a major element of choking stems from a physiological drain on brain resources. Worrying about an act not only distracts...more
I haven't actually read the entire book yet -- about 40% of it has been read or skim-read, for a school research project -- but from what I have read, there's some interesting research study data and material that I found interesting and surprising (like writing about your worries for ten minutes before you take a test, to help your performance). When I have more time later, I intend to go back and read the book all the way through. So far, fairly intriguing and interesting, and Beilock's writin...more
3.5 Very readable distillation of interesting and practical brain research. Became a bit repetitive by the end, as if Beilock knows people may use some chapters in creating their own readings for their own fields, and my students wanted some more specifics about some of the studies she mentions. But very practical and likely a good resource for anyone with performance anxiety in education, sports, or business. Some very good information about how stereotypes (about gender or race) can affect our...more
This is an interesting book about how and why people fail under pressure. Beilock explains how some performance tasks require a high level of involvement by the brain's prefrontal cortex, while other tasks are hindered by the same brain region. I learned/relearned the fact that I am a "thinker," or I rely on my prefrontal cortex, which explains why I sometimes choke performing some tasks like sports.
An excellent book on why we "Choke" when in a stressful situation. I wanted to get to the point instead of wading through lots of details about research activities. Thus it seemed as if I was reading a Master's thesis rather than reading a book.
It eventually does get around to a summary of techniques to use to prevent choke for students. (Page 174-176, 232, 257)
It eventually does get around to a summary of techniques to use to prevent choke for students. (Page 174-176, 232, 257)
Not awful, and I'd give it the extra half star if I could. While it does touch on some surprising research results, those parts were not enough to prop it up as a whole. I will admit the book never grabbed me, so I kept a certain level of disinterest throughout. That could be a reflection o me more than the book itself, though.
Apr 08, 2012
Aditi
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
non-fiction,
reading-list-2012
Excellent book, very well written account of the brain while performing. She draws on examples from sports, music, academic performance and business; also goes into gender and maths scores, the effects of negative stereotyping on people from disadvantaged communities. Nicely put together.
Pscyhological/human study on why people choke under pressure and some ideas for how to overcome that tendency, whether on an important test, a business presentation, interview, sports, etc. Would have liked more practical ideas for overcoming the choke factor, but interesting. Bottom line: prepare well, but don't overthink when in the situation.
Lots of information about the brain functions associated with poor performance under pressure as well as the impacts of stereotypes and research in these areas. However, the only things I took away from it with respect to preventing choking were practice performing under pressure and don't slow down. I have been aware of these factors for some time.
I read the whole book. Turns out that was not necessary. You can go and get this book from the library and just read the list of tips to prevent choking under pressure. Those tips are very useful, and scientifically proven.
The book contains insightful information on how the brain works under stress and offers helpful tips on how to perform well under pressure. However, the author is a bit repetitive with her use of examples to the point where the reader could become bored throughout some parts of the book.
All coaches and teachers should read this. As a coach and a teacher for 15yrs one hard things for me to teach is the ability to perform under pressure. This book has helped a lot.
This book provides an explanation for why we don't always perform at our best. Through this explanation you can learn ways to perform better at somethings like tests or sporting event.
Good book on why some people choke under pressure and other people excel under pressure. I especially liked the part about the correlation of high working memory to choking under pressure.
May 05, 2013
Anthony
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Everybody!
Recommended to Anthony by:
A friend
Most amazing and very interesting read! Ever found it difficult to perform best in a situation that was really of importance to you? Read this book. It will tell you what happens in your brain in such situation and what you can to keep your performance at it's best... Incredible interesting book!
I found this book quite useful. Sian Beilock explained what happens when someone "chokes" without the reader having to have a Bachelor's degree in Science to understand. I found this book to be easy to follow. Could have had more recomendations on what to do on how to prevent choking.
Recommended for my golf game... I like it, though it's a bit scholarly--lots of data, studies, and test results. Yet, very practical. I recommend it.
This is one of those books that takes a concept and beats you over the head with it, and once it starts it just keeps on beating.
If you have ever suffered from performance anxiety, then read Choke. Very easy to read and full of practical advice.
Quite interesting stuff about how the brain (or we) works. Focuses on how preconceptions become hardwired. Very interesting stuff about race, gender, and testing (SAT etc.) that I had not considered before.
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brain Science Pod...: BSP 76: Interview with Sian Beilock, author of Choke | 7 | 21 | 26 de Ago 12:52 |
