Inner game is what enables you to act. Nothing less, nothing more.
The Longer Answer
Timothy Gallwey first coined the term ‘inner game’ in his book The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance. He wrote that “every game is composed of two parts, an outer game and an inner game”; where the outer game is fought against another opponent and the inner game is fought against your own inner doubts and fears.
As an ex-personal development coach, I met people who wanted to improve their inner game so they could finally get what they wanted in life. Problem was these people became so obsessed with getting their inner game tight, they believed that they had to get it perfect before they could get anything done. And so they got nothing done, all the while working hard on their ‘inner game’. Did I say I met? Heck, I was one of these people!
So. I don’t care what it is, an obscure ancient method of goal-setting, changing beliefs while tapping your head and rubbing your stomach, or visualizing with mystic shamans from the tenth dimension, if it doesn’t enable you to act, make something, get stuff done, forget it. It’s not inner game, it’s inner masturbation.
Inner game is what enables you to act. Nothing less, nothing more.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Hey Alvin,
I was expecting some PUA-style innergame post
This is so true. While inner game mastery is important, and, I believe, necessary to pursue over time, it should not become an obsession (because no matter how good you get, there is always more you can improve, thus it never ends, but gets better) and it should not be done in the absence of action. Without action, all is useless. And to be honest, without action, there can be no solid inner game mastery, because there is no feedback in the absence of action.
Nice piece bro. Succinct. I like how you made your point at the end.
Thanks bro
{ 1 trackback }