1. In your own words, what does it mean to be present?

a. Although what I am about to say may sound cliché, it truly does represent what I believe

it means to be present. To be present is to be in the moment. If I am in the moment, then I

am focused on the task in front of me and can put my full attention on it. I am also aware

of what is going on around me. If I am present, I am not letting any negative thoughts

Self 1 may be putting into my head get the best of me. Self 1 would tell me to worry

about an upcoming exam or to ruminate over whether a conversation I had the previous

day went poorly. If instead I trust Self 2, then I can be relaxed and, in the moment

(present), allowing me to fully concentrate on whatever it is I am doing.

2. Hopefully, some of the lessons from this book have manifested themselves in the work

we have done in class. If so, in what ways and in which specific exercises? Please go into

detail.

a. One of the tasks that definitely comes to mind is how I got Self 1 to trust Self 2.

When we first started playing What Are You Doing, I found myself thinking of an

answer to say when I went into the circle because I was scared I would not be able to

think of anything on the spot. I specifically remember that I wanted to say,

“performing a surgery.” That was “very Self 1 of me,” in that I was not allowing

myself to truly be in the present. Once I read the section on how Self 1 can start to

trust Self 2, I began to change how I played the game. First, I told myself there was

nothing to be afraid of if I was not able to think of anything on the spot. No one

would judge me. Then, I started to let go, meaning I tried my very best to clear my

mind before my turn so Self 2 could assist me, without worrying about what other

people would think. Finally, I concentrated on being in the present. I used the same
 process for Keepy Uppey, where at first I was scared that people would judge me for

dropping the ball, but through trusting Self 2 I learned to let go.

3. What does non-judgmental thinking mean to you and how do you think you could better

leverage it in classes and in everyday life?

a. In my opinion, non-judgmental thinking means not seeing specific thoughts, actions,

or experiences as necessarily “morally right” or “morally wrong” or “good” or

“morally wrong.” Instead, it would just consist of observing each thought/action and

living each experience as it is, without thinking of what its potential positive/negative

consequences could be for me and the people around me. To give an example of how

it could be used in classes, it is best to use an upcoming exam, such as the midterms I

have next week. Judgmental thinking would mean that I view the exam as something

negative that I have to overcome, which could potentially cause me to do poorly.

Instead of this, if I just view the exam as something neutral, say as a check on my

understanding of the material (and nothing more), then I would better focus on how

well I understand the material to ensure I pass the “check.” This could also apply to

everyday life, for example not being upset that I was not able to UberEats due to the

snowy weather (I was specifically craving Ramen). I could instead view that as an

opportunity to cook (this occurred roughly 1 hour before I started writing this essay),

and I ended up making a delicious bowl of pasta.

4. How do you reconcile between Self 1 and Self 2 on a day-to-day level?

a. At the start of this week, I had a lot of things to do before Spring Break. I had to take

my Biostats midterm, submit an Organic Chemistry Lab Report, a Physics Lab

Report, study for my Physics midterm, study for my Organic Chemistry exam, and
 submit this paper. Self 1 would tell me that it is impossible to finish all of these

daunting responsibilities by next Friday, that I should just give up and not give any of

them my best effort. Once I started to enter a downward spiral (as a result of Self 1)

that would have led to me procrastinating everything and not finishing it within a

timely manner I simply stopped. I thought to myself, “Is this really how I want to

approach this?” “Will this actually get me anywhere?” At that point I decided to just

let go and to start working on my assignments without worrying if I would finish

them all. It was here when I let Self 1 trust Self 2. Now, I have already completed 2

out of the 7 responsibilities I had to do. While this is just one example, this provides

key insight in how I usually reconcile between Self 1 and 2 in my daily life.

5. Gallwey often describes the habitual tendencies of tennis players that ultimately prevent

them from playing their best. Did the text get you thinking about any habitual thought

patterns that you may be holding onto? If so, describe them and propose a way you might

begin a new, healthier habit.

a. I shared this in class, but over the last two or so years, I have developed the bad habit

of going on TikTok every time I am bored or need a break from whatever I am doing.

As a result, I find that I have a dependence on the app and no longer have an attention

span. Before I got TikTok, I was able to read long passages and study for 6+ hours

without a break. Now, I hate reading because I no longer have the attention span for it

and I can only study for ~30 minutes before I need a break. I have thought about this

a little, but reading the text really opened my eyes to it. Deleting the app is not an

option, because for all its negative effects, I do get my news/other knowledge from

there. I think an idea to simply break this habit is to simply find a book that sounds
 interesting and anytime I feel the urge to go on TikTok, read instead. This will

increase my attention span and I will feel like I am doing something productive at the

same time.

6. Have you ever felt like you were “in the groove” or “in the zone?” If so, describe the

context, how it felt for you, and some strategies you might utilize to help you return to

that level of “relaxed concentration.”

a. I know I keep using a lot of examples from my classes, but as a college student, that

is where my focus is at the moment. This story takes place last December during my

Organic Chemistry 1 final. I had studied a lot in the days leading up to the exam, but

there are always surprises. Once I opened the exam, I entered “the zone.” I somehow

knew what I was doing for most questions, and I confidently zoomed through the

exam until I finished it. I am not sure exactly how I entered “the zone,” but it helped

me get a 40/41 on the exam, pushing my average up from an A- to an A. My guess is

that in the moment, I let go of my fears, cleared my mind, and let Self 2 go to work. I

was not worried about the future or the past, I was simply in the present, with my full

concentration on what was in front of me. This is how I believe I can re-enter “the

zone” in the future, regardless of what I am doing in the moment.

7. What other questions/thoughts has the reading raised for you? Was there anything from

the other readings or videos that you would like to tie in?

a. After reading the main section on being present, I really began to see how much that

idea exists in various media sources. First, while there was a specific section in the

text that discussed how to be present, all other chapters made reference to it, which in

my mind, underscores its importance. Additionally, in the “How to be the Greatest

Improvisor on Earth” excerpt that we had to read, the entire chapter was about being

present. I think if The Inner Game of Tennis was about improvisation instead of

tennis, then it would most certainly have included many of the ideas from “How to be

the Greatest Improvisor on Earth.” One of the ideas that sticks out to me the most is

“See it land, let it land,” where you must be completely present and in the moment,

analyzing your scene partner’s verbal and nonverbal cues to understand the dynamics

of the scene. This idea also involves Self 1 and Self 2, where I would learn to trust

Self 2 and its ability to “go with the flow,” and not overthink what the scene should

involve.