Focus On The One Percent

As we giddily pack our swim and coaching bags for a new season, we also pack old habits that we may not even realize are drafting behind us in our wake. These habits could be the difference between the performance we want and the performance we don’t. We all have unhelpful habits when it comes to our training or coaching, but the challenge is to become more efficient at identifying them and making transformations, no matter how small. Whether we are a swimmer or coach, it is crucial for us to engage with this habit-transforming process.

Our brains will always seek the easiest way to conserve energy—that’s just how we are biologically wired. A good example of this is when you are halfway through a challenging set and your mind tells you to rest on the wall… “Just five seconds..it’s barely any time at all.” Only with consistent and intentional effort will you train your mind to do the opposite—to lean into the challenge and persist in the formation of the new habit.

Have you ever tried to kick an old or ‘bad’ habit only to find within a few days or weeks you’re right back to where you started? Maybe it was a failed attempt at a New Year’s Resolution. Well, you’re not alone. All too often our excitement of the goal masks the level of commitment and consistency it will take us to truly form a new habit.

That’s why it’s important to focus on the one percent every day. The one percent is manageable. The one percent is the small and specific, but realistic and achievable detail you can focus on changing every day. It works because it is so doable.

As we prepare for our new season of coaching and training, I encourage you to identify the one or two things that will bring you to your one percent. Do you want better starts? More endurance? More organization? Better team culture? What can you focus on that will give you a one percent improvement each day?

In his book, Atomic Habits, author James Clear digs deep into the science, theory, and methods of behavior change. He offers a very simple framework for building habits and making effective behavior changes.

#1: Make It Obvious 

Luckily, for us, we have pretty routine days with our training and coaching schedule. Most of the habits we want to change are repeated every day—whether that is in our organization of getting ready for practice, the technical habits we repeat during our training, or our recovery and time management habits that follow each night.

Making it obvious means that we will identify a specific time in our routine to implement a new habit. It looks like this:

After X (action) I will do Y (new habit). In swimming terms, “After my flip turn (X) I will do four dolphin kicks (Y). You can apply this simple formula to any behavior change.

If using four dolphin kicks after your turn is your goal, and you currently do none, the one percent improvement wouldn’t be to go from none to six…rather, start with one or two until you can do two kicks off every wall, every set, every practice, every week. And then move to three or four. Small, incremental changes over time.

#2: Make It Attractive 

If we believe something is fun or will reward us, we are more likely to do it. Whatever the 1% change is that you are trying to make, find a creative way to make it fun—or find a way to give yourself a reward once you do it. The brain is activated with a reward and the anticipation of a reward in the same way. You can be creative in the reward system you develop for yourself, but also consider how you may be rewarded socially.

We humans seek to fit in with others. Just consider the level of swimming or coaching that you want to be a part of. If you want to be an Olympic Trials qualifier, and you are currently not that, there is a gap. If you are an age group coach and you want to be a top 10 age group coach, there is a gap.

Find the gap, then find the one percent you need to do to close that gap.

Do they do one kick off the wall or five? Do they show up to practice six days a week or four? Do they write a season plan or come to practice with no plan?

#3: Make It Easy 

Start simple, start small. Starting too big and ambitious can make the cookie crumble too early.

#4: Make It Satisfying 

Take advantage of your psychology for this one. Growth and progress are incredibly satisfying—especially for us swimmers and coaches. Keeping a habit or progress tracker can be immensely helpful in showing you feedback, in real time, on the improvements you are making.

Since we seek approval as human beings from others (like fitting in), utilizing your coach and peers to help hold you accountable can also be the most powerful feedback tool.

Here is another quote from Clear’s book that will do any coach and swimmer good to read three times. “Time magnifies the margin between success and failure. It will multiply whatever you feed it. Good habits make time your ally. Bad habits make time your enemy.”