Arousal - too much or too little

As discussed in previous posts, our arousal (excitement) level has a direct impact on our performance. Performance does increase as arousal increases up to a certain point, then it begins to decrease somewhat dramatically.
http://ababe-in-the-woods-of-bridge.blogspot.com/2009/04/dealing-with-arousal.html
If arousal levels are too low, motivation and desire may not be optimal to support a quality performance effort. On the other hand, higher than optimal arousal levels for a particular skill may cause us to become too anxious and begin to worry too much about the results rather than focus on the required task. As anxiety increase, mental flexibility becomes hindered.
Successful execution of a complex task also demands unconscious and automatic thoughts about action.

The level of arousal required depending on
• Our own personality
• The task performed.

For example, in baseball, a batter requires lower levels of arousal to perform the skills necessary to execute on hitting the pitch. They should have very low anxiety levels when they step into the batter’s box.
On the other hand, a basketball player on offense will need a higher level of arousal, as the situation requires them to be more active, yet they still must be able to run the desired offense effectively.

What about bridge
In the same fashion in bridge,I expect that the play of a hand would require a fairly a low level of arousal. Now is not the time to develop high level of aggressivity
On the other hand, today’s competitive bidding means that a higher degree of arousal will be required as the competition to ‘win’ the bidding war will be high. In defense, the mix will be more subtle and the player with incorrect level of arousal may not find the right mix of defense. You would expect a player with level of arousal too high will find too many aggressive defense while a player with a level of arousal which is too low will too many passive defenses.

In this aspect as in everything, one step at a time, practice makes perfect.

High performance teams – Does it apply to bridge partnership and teams?

The essence of focus.
Teams that feel directed toward achieving a clear and commun goal are happier and more energized, filled with a sense of purpose.
The basis of trust.
Teams tap into a natural instinct to form clans. People come together , vow to protect each other, engage in altruistic behavior with one another.
the "cheater meter."
If team members feel that the others do not appreciate the team's efforts, or that team members aren't pulling equal weight, their "cheater meters" will go off , they no longer trust one another and start losing focus on the goal
Low Focus and Low Trust (Lose/Lose)
• Fear
• Confusion
• Self-interest
• High turnover
• Failure
High Focus and Low Trust (Win/Lose)
• Focused on self, tasks
• Lots of early
accomplishments
• Longer-term disloyalty
• Turnover
High Trust and Low Focus (Lose/Win)
• Few conflicts
• "We are family"
• Lack of coordination
• Resigned to failure
High Trust and High Focus (Win/Win)
• Collaborating
• Self-directing
• Mission driven
• Loyal
• High success

So looking for the ingredient to achieve succesful teams :
• Don't gloss over performance, but talk about it.
• Hold each other accountable for each other performance.
• When someone under-performs, tells them immediately in direct, honest terms.
• Adopt a common goal or set of goals and commit to achieving them.
• Define goals simple enough to be easily grasped, specific enough to be actionable.
• Ask tough questions of one another and challenge each others assumptions. Probe an argument until all are satisfied.
• Admit your mistakes, weaknesses, concerns without fear of reprisal.