Peak Performance in Combat

By Lt Col Jim Anderson, LTC Aaron Bazin, and Gerald Graham

Published in the July-September 2015 Issue of Infantry. Full text of the article is available HERE

“Relax Rangers, take your time and just slow down. Never forget, in combat, slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.”
                                                                                — SSG Joshua Enyart, 1998

Combat is one the most stressful and dangerous endeavors imaginable. Throughout history, warriors have had to cope with the stressors of the battlefield and outperform the competition, both physically and mentally.
For many years, the U.S. military has screened, prepared, and employed its men and women with the ultimate goal of making them as good at their jobs as possible. Rightfully so, the U.S. military takes its role in improving the performance of its warfighters seriously.

Some studies have indicated that research into other highstress fields might have some validity to service members operating in combat environments. As such, there are cognitive tools Soldiers could apply to improve and sustain
peak performance in combat. This article seeks to address the question: what are some of the things that warfighters can do to achieve peak performance in combat?

What is Peak Performance?

The centerpiece of personal performance is the individual. Many factors determine an individual’s performance level including physical make-up (nature), environment (nurture), and decisions made throughout his/her life (choice). The military builds upon this foundation, first with training and then with real-world experience. How well warfighters balance the “performance triad” of sleep, nutrition, and activity will affect their performance throughout their careers. Ultimately, the overall goal of both the service member and the military is the same: for the service member to achieve peak performance and win when it counts.

Peak performance is a state of optimal cognitive, emotional, and physical functioning. Cognitively, people are at their peak when they have focused attention, ignoring unimportant things and allocating brain power to the task at hand. Emotionally, warriors are at their peak when they control how they feel, displaying confidence, determination, and control. Of course, physical peak performance involves nutrition, rest, and level of overall fitness. Additionally, people are at their peak physically when they exert the right amount of effort without becoming over aroused or anxious.

In sports, when athletes are at their best cognitively, emotionally, and physically, fans often label them as being “in the zone.” This is the mental state people enter when they are hyper-focused, energized, and fully immersed in their
present activity. When in this state, people commonly lose self-consciousness, feel in full control, and may even feel time slowing down.

Although sports is much different than war, arguably, peak performance is vitally important in combat where it can literally be the difference between life and death. Warfighters performing at their peak can better assess the situation, make decisions, and perform the right tasks at the right time. Additionally,
individuals performing at their peak are less likely to succumb to stress and “choke” when it counts. Fundamentally, combat involves violent competition with other human beings. With all other things being equal, warriors who
can better handle anxiety will have a marked advantage over their enemy. Simply put, if warriors are able to achieve peak performance, they are more likely to complete their mission and come home alive.

Achieving and Sustaining Peak Performance in Combat

Often, the field of psychology comes under criticism because of its focus on problems and disorders. However, in recent decades, interest in the positive aspects of psychology has grown. There is an increasing body of research into how people at the top of their fields can optimize their performance under conditions of high stress. Professional athletes, much like police officers and firefighters, differ from warfighters in many ways.  However, all have to face stressful situations and must perform complicated physical and mental tasks. Arguably, performance psychology applies directly to military service members.

Research has suggested that psychological skills training could improve a service member’s well-being and intrinsic motivation by building higher self-esteem, confidence, problem solving, and reducing feelings of helplessness, loneliness, anxiety, and anger. This article will focus on six skills that warfighters can use to reach peak performance: setting goals, employing imagery, executing routines or
rituals, activating relaxation or energy, controlling attention, and thinking positively (or the acronym SEE-ACT).

Setting Goals

The first cognitive tool that this article will discuss is setting goals. Setting goals is a psychological process of control. Goals may be outcome, performance, or process based. The U.S. military is already mission-focused and bases much of what it does on setting goals. In a similar way, individual service members can...  CONTINUE READING