Interesting. I agree. And also I'm too small a fish to talk about the high levels of the game!
But I think the exposure to pressure, the melt-downs, the heartbreak, can very easily be done wrong.
One *very* successful soccer manager used to go to great lengths to ensure his young players only experienced success (as far as plausible), to build their confidence, expectations, and self-image. He once withdrew from a very major tournament because to compete would have meant exposing several young players to the risk of humiliation if they got out of their depth against a tough opponent.
In contrast, when a player starts to think of himself as someone who chokes under pressure, that can become self-fulfilling. And when other players smell it on them, they're toast.
And some solutions to the mental game bypass the pressure issue entirely.
I agree with both points, however the risk is to lose the main purpose of my thread.
It is true that experiencing ONLY defeat can be a negative. Confidence is built through incrementally greater successes, and to have a diet of ONLY loss would be detrimental. And it is also true that with a good mental outlook you can construct a set of beliefs about yourself and your relationship to the game that can reduce the amounts of pressure you feel, and can also help manage it better when it strikes. But while I appreciate the nuances of the situation and appreciate a good debate, my main point stands: MOST COMPETITORS LACK FEAR IN THEIR DIET.
If I were to say "The US has an obesity problem and many people could benefit from being aware of the quality and quantity of their meals", it would be like discussing how some people have eating disorders where they don't eat enough, or how someone you know has some weird allergy to broccoli and that would actually kill that individual. Yes! Diet is complicated, not everyone struggles in the exact same way, and what is good for some people might not be right for everyone. Duly noted! But the general message to the general public remains true.
In the pool world almost everyone I know who has struggled and plateaued in their careers has been due to avoiding this type of pressure. When you talk about building self image as a winner and ensuring you don't dive in too quickly, that just doesn't match Filler, Fedor, Kaci, or any of the many, many, many 16-20 year olds that are competing at the highest level. They didn't get there by playing it safe. And while what works for a full time player doesn't always work for everyone, I have seen this at all levels. Players that make up their mind to get somewhere and look at losses as the stepping stones towards their goals overwhelmingly outperform those who avoid those types of situation.
As for bypassing the pressure, that is always the goal. But it reminds me of the line "There is no difference between theory and practice, in theory, but there is in practice". The fact is that while a good mental game helps, it doesn't make us mentally impervious to break downs. I've seen EVERY top player struggle and fail under pressure. Every one of them.
So building a strong mental game is critical, but doesn't eliminate the need to learn to take losses. Building confidence is critical but doesn't eliminate the need to learn to take losses. Practice is critical but doesn't eliminate the need to learn to take losses. And my point is that the majority of pool players do plenty of confidence building, practice, and theory, and not enough taking losses.
So my question to you and to any who want to debate the nuance of the situation. I understand there is more to pool than taking losses and the game is complicated. But do you think there is a road to achievement that can avoid devastating defeats? If you accept that this is necessary and normal and that most people don't put themselves out there enough then we are on the same page. If you think mental game and confidence building and practice can avoid all of this, well, we couldn't be further apart.