Deliberate Practice

For those that are unaware, the number one predictor of success is practice time. The more you practice, the more you are likely to succeed. However, having lots and lots of practice time doesn’t guarantee success, and some people find a way to be successful with less practice time. One of the reasons that have been used to describe this is deliberate practice. It is a less commonly mentioned but a key distinct aspect of successful athletes.

Deliberate practice means practicing with a goal in mind. It could be to score more goals this practice or drill, anticipate plays better or just focus on skating with better form.

To explain how having intentions will make you more successful, we need to look at the subconscious effect that they have. Setting a goal prior to a drill will direct your attention to important details about your performance that you might miss otherwise. In this way, you’ll be more engaged to learn and are more likely to improve. Research shows that clarifying one’s intention for both practice and competition can be very powerful and if used properly is incredibly beneficial for improving performance.

Hence, if you start practicing deliberately you are more likely to improve at a faster rate and more likely to become a better hockey player.

Another important finding is that a player’s development is optimized when their training corresponds with their developmental status. Meaning you don’t tell Sidney Crosby to spend half an hour on his backward cross-overs, just like you wouldn’t tell a novice to spend half an hour on his backhand toe drag spin-o-rama! Maybe not a shocker to many, but it is important to remember it is better for a player earlier in their development to spend more time on basics and developing their broad motor skills.

In summary, if you want to be better practice lots, practice deliberately and master the basics before the back hand toe drags.