Why dolphin trainers reward minute consistent wins
Have you ever stopped to consider just how much we can learn from nature and the animal kingdom? They both teach us about the importance of patience, the art of perseverance, consistency and repetition. Furthermore, this is how growth and improvement always occurs. When we embrace these traits into our lives, we have magnificent keys to improve and perform at our best. Moreover, there is no greater place than turning to the art and skill of dolphin training.
Dolphin training includes rewarding small and consistent wins
If you have ever wondered how a dolphin is trained, read on. First up, a large amount of curiosity and patience is required by the trainer. Add to this repetitive tasks, time and rewards. Lastly, a focus on minute incremental improvements. When a dolphin is presented with a floating buoy mounted on a stick, she will circle it cautiously and emit sonar sweeps to ascertain if it’s dangerous. When she is satisfied, she will approach the buoy. The trainer reinforces this behaviour by blowing a whistle and a rewarding the dolphin with a fish. Gradually, over time, the trainer throws the fish nearer and nearer the buoy until she is rewarded only when her nose tip touches the target.
Over time dolphins can be trained to do many things, as we witness at a spectacular dolphin show. A much loved trick is watching dolphins jump through hoops that are placed higher and higher. The dolphin must be trained meticulously to achieve this. The trainer focuses on gradually moving the hoop higher. Each time the dolphin is successful in jumping through the raised hoop she gets another fish. Consistent wins are the aim. If the dolphin misses the target the trainer lowers the bar to where the dolphin was achieving. This helps increase the dolphin’s ability to adapt to her training environment and be adept at jumping higher consistently.
This concept of incremental gains has been widely adopted in sports to improve performance
Consistent wins and repetition to achieve great performances are vital to all success. Another great example of incremental wins is seen in the sporting world. Specifically in the phenomenal results of Team Sky, the British Cycling Team. Under the directorship of Sir David Brailsford, the British team finally achieved their goal of winning the Tour de France. Furthermore, they went on to win seventy percent of the possible gold medals in cycling at the 2012 London Olympics. Moreover, Team Sky has now had three British cyclists standing on the top step of the podium at the Tour de France, and Sir David Brailsford gained a knighthood for his efforts.
He embraced the concept that he referred to as the “aggregation of marginal gains.” David explains it as the 1 percent margin for improvement in everything you do. His belief is that if you improve every area related to cycling by just 1 percent, then those small gains add up to remarkable improvement. He looked at everything, from gear, massage oils, sleeping patterns as well as training methodologies. Minute and consistent wins in all areas created magnificent results for the team. Furthermore, incremental improvements, reflection and feedback are an integral part of a mindset for success.
The aggregate of marginal gains is similar to consistent wins in dolphin training
Here’s how to use this methodology to achieve more of what you want.
- First, pick a goal. Decide what you want to achieve and why.
- Next, imagine yourself having achieved it. See, hear and feel what is going on. Be there with all your senses.
- Now, create a plan. In the planning phase, reverse engineer and write down the steps required to achieve the goal.
- Create milestones along the way and decide what the first few steps are.
- Schedule the actions and tasks in your diary.
- Consider your commitment and consider the things you can control. These include, how you show up, what you think, the stories you tell yourself about the goal. Will it be hard or easy? Fun or boring? A healthy challenge or a scary big one?
- These are the parameters to review and continually improve. If you hear yourself saying how hard it is, change your thought to a better one. Such as, every day it is getting easier.
When it comes down to the action steps, if you miss your target, sleep in, slip or fall, think of what the dolphin trainer did with the dolphin who missed the target. Lower the target. Go back a step or maintain the current rate of progress until it becomes familiar. Habits are crucial foundations for all success, as is creating a habit plan. Furthermore, consistency and commitment are essential ingredients. Instead of looking for the large and dramatic improvement, consider the compounding effect of small 1% improvements in habits and decisions.
Rewards for small successes are important in the overall success
Dolphins are given rewards in the way of fish. Reward yourself, especially your consistent wins. Of course, food may not be the best reward, so instead simply hi five yourself, tick off the win and have a small celebration with yourself. The achievement of completing a task creates an inner joy that energies you to keep working towards the larger goal.
Celebrating and rewarding also helps guard the brain’s natural tendency to be pessimistic. Furthermore, to prevent you from falling into negative stories or a negative mindset of how hard it is, how you aren’t good enough, and then giving up. Moreover, tiny actions and small wins lead to great accomplishments. Consistent actions taken despite your mood or the environment create champions. This is how you will program your subconscious mind, which is the part that tends to run you life and drives your behaviours.
You can’t control the weather, but you can control how you show up. What you do, what you think and what you say. Roger Bannister, who was the first person to break the four-minute mile says:
‘It’s so important not to fall prey to the thought that today is not the day.’
Self Belief is a critical part of all success
On race day, the weather wasn’t the best. However, he refused to let this influence his race. Roger Bannister had trained consistently in all areas. He had spent hours physical training, visualising and working on his mindset; his attitude and beliefs. He totally believed he could achieve his goal, despite what other people thought.
An important part of the strategy is to focus on actions not outcomes. Furthermore, this helps avoid quitting or feeling despondent. What I call, falling into the gap. The gap is that immense void that lies between where you are now and where you want to be. Time and patience are essential to achieve goals. However, as humans we prefer instant rewards. We are impatient and sticking to our routine or regime can be hard. Moreover, achieving great things requires delaying gratification.
Focus on creating essential keystone habits
By focusing on daily and weekly actions you help establish keystone habits. Eventually they will become essential steps in your success. Recording consistent wins and slowing down or going back a step and repeating until successful is important. When you do this, you are focusing on the behaviours required to achieve success. These are identity based behaviours. Focusing on what is required to be the person you desire to be to achieve the success you desire.
Remember, there is no growth in your comfort zone, yet it’s where we prefer to sit. Potential is fulfilled and results gained only when we live outside this zone.
Next time you watch a flawless dolphin show, remember the training required and the ingredients necessary. Persistence, patience, reflection, feedback. Rewards, reviewing progress and altering if the desired results are not gained. This is how to ultimately build consistent wins to achieve the desired end result.
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