How I Learned to Snowboard in One Afternoon
I transformed from a complete snowboarding newbie to flying through one of the most epic courses in California - and it all happened in one afternoon this weekend.
My previous experience in the snow consists of a few embarrassing falls 10 years ago during a ski lesson. But this time, I approached the challenge with intention and a powerful suite of visualization and mindset techniques that I'll break down below.
Right before diving into the most exhilarating run of my life with the best teacher and partner I could ask for. Yup, that’s the entire Lake Tahoe behind us!
Winning Mindsets & Visualization
The Power of Self-Image
In Mindset Secrets for Winning, Mark Minervini wrote:
“No matter how much talent you have, no matter how many hours you practice, if you have a poor self-image, you will fail to realize your full potential, because you can only perform up to your self-image. Exceptional people choose to think about themselves in ways that contribute to their success. With a good self-image, winning is always an option. But with a poor self-image, even those who should win often fail.”
The above diagram closely resembles how Vipassana meditation taps into and shapes our subconscious minds.
When learning anything new, deliberate practice is only part of the equation for success. Self-image and confidence is the other part. Minervini further notes that our subconscious will internalize our mistakes just as strongly as our successes, so we must be mindful of how we form our new self image.
Practicing snowboarding methodically and focusing on one technique each round is important, but I also need to be mindful of my “win-to-lose ratio” to build my self-image as a good snowboarder. If I’m falling too often, I need to lower the difficulty and aim for success more often. On the other hand, if I don’t fall at all during a practice run, it means I’m not pushing myself hard enough and it’s time to move up a level.
Emotional weight is also important because our minds remember and reinforce instances of strong emotional association and forget weak ones. To make the most of this, I need to passionately celebrate my successes and coldly analyze my losses.
This is especially challenging for me, as I was raised to be humble rather than boast about my wins. At the same time, it’s amazing to truly experience the joy of winning and progressing in something. Reframing it as an opportunity for self-expression and feeling alive made it much easier to assign heavy emotional weight to my successes.
Effective Visualization
Then there’s visualization, which Minervini describes as:
“Using mental imagery is particularly effective because you literally “think” with your muscles and can trick your subconscious mind into “seeing” events as if they were actually occurring…When you visualize and rehearse your performance in your head, see the event exactly how you want it to unfold. Feel the excitement of successfully fulfilling your goal.”
Before hitting the slopes, I watched snowboarding videos to prepare my mind for the activity. When I fell, I didn't berate myself; instead, I assessed the terrain and reviewed how I fell. Then I closed my eyes to visualize what I’ll do differently.
Most importantly, I restore my self-belief and envision a successful outcome on my next attempt. This not only boosts my chances of success, but also shields my self-image from frustration and negativity if I fail again. The mind doesn’t differentiate between what’s imagined and what’s real, so to my subconscious, it feels like I’m winning.
This is my summary of Minervini’s concepts: good practice plus visualization leads to better self-image and performance, which then feeds back into self-image. To the mind, visualization IS practice, except you can fully control the conditions, contingencies, and outcomes.
Lastly, I noticed that both mindset and visualization practices shift focus to my own progress, reducing my tendency for toxic social comparison. For example, I no longer think, “How can I ever be as good as those guys who breezed by while I was struggling?” This gets me out of my own head to be more present with the task at hand.
My Play-by-Play Approach
Here’s my exact procedure of going from zero to one:
Day 1 (Thursday - 1 hour total): Prime the Mind
Watched 30 minutes of instructional YouTube videos to prime my brain to the concept and mechanics of snowboarding. I did this in the afternoon and again before bed. This leverages both spaced repetition and my brain’s natural ability to process new knowledge during sleep, giving me an additional day of internalizing the new skill before even strapping on the board.
Day 2 (Friday 3-4pm): First Look
I arrived at the slopes an hour before closing, giving me just enough time to learn how to put on my board and to feel out the snow on the bunny slope. I celebrated even the smallest success (like making it down a gentle 100-foot stretch) while analyzing where I had gone wrong in my falls. I made sure to finish on a positive note, so my subconscious would register the session as a win.
Day 3 (Saturday 11am-4pm): Training Day
This was my first official day of snowboarding. Olivia was there to instruct and keep me accountable. I started on the bunny slope to get my bearings before attempting the first Green* (beginner) run. It was a shock to go from nearly flat to a true slope, but I was determined to make it work and had a specific goal for each practice run.
The first run was to get a sense of what it was like to go down a slope. Mostly, it was facing my fear and learning to fall on the snowboard since I knew it was going to happen a lot.
The second run was to practice braking while facing down the mountain, which is the basis for controlling my speed and direction on the board. Knowing I can stop when I want to is reassuring and safe for everyone on the slopes.
The third run was to practice braking facing up the mountain. This was frightening because it felt like I was boarding blind and could fall backwards and flip at any moment. Whenever I fell, I picked myself back up, slowed down and analyzed my body position. Before attempting again, I took inventory of the terrain and visualized going down the slope successfully by remembering how it felt to make the turn. I eventually got better at staying on my feet and mentally celebrated each successful turn.
At the foot of the hill, I gave Olivia a high five. I was ready to graduate up to the advanced Green run.
Of course, on the new slope I kept falling and eating snow due to the unfamiliar terrain and increased length. I approached this level with the same method as before: in Round 1, I familiarized myself with the environment; in Round 2, I practiced braking; in Round 3, I focused on control and turning; and in Round 4, I fine-tuned my technique and direction while minimizing the number of falls. Throughout the process, I viewed my falls as learning experiences and rejoiced when I was successful.
On the fifth run, Olivia encouraged me to do a Blue slope. It was intimidating due to the sudden increase in steepness, but this is where good accountability is so important for helping us progress. Her understanding and confidence in my skills, and my trust in her enabled me to take the plunge.
My braking practice also paid off as I managed to stay upright when I wanted to, which was a relief to my fledgling snowboarder self-image. I also pushed myself to make a few turns, which usually landed my butt in the snow.
The sixth and final round was still tricky, but I managed to steadily navigate the steep turns and finish the last stretch of the Green run smoothly. I felt a bit wobbly at times, but by all accounts I was actually snowboarding! I could’ve gone for one more run, but I decided to end on a high note to let my mind fully absorb the win.
After several hours of IRL intentional practice, I was gliding down the Greens.
The toughest part was over. I was ecstatic knowing my ability to traverse Blues opened up the best parts of the massive resort for exploration the next day.
Day 4: Fly Down the Mountain
The next day, I worked to maximize what I learned and began with a warm up on the Green where I had left off. After that, I focused on honing specific skills. By the third round, I was ready for one of the biggest runs of the park.
This took us to the summit of the mountain, offering stunning views of Lake Tahoe. With the perfect weather and wide-open slopes, it was an incredible way to mark my snowboarding progress.
Following Olivia’s suggestion, I put on my favorite trail running song for our last round. Suddenly everything became more natural as I felt the familiar exhilaration of bombing downhill while flying alongside her. I was smiling and having fun, rather than concentrating on technique or gritting my teeth.
For the first time ever, I felt free and alive in the snow.
I'd love to know:
What's something you're trying to level up in and has your mindset either boosted or hindered your progress?
Do you use any visualization techniques in your professional or personal endeavors?
Tweet or DM me on Twitter / Instagram @shengsilver.
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