Where is your focus while you are bowling? Is it on the score, the execution of the next shot, or something else? Whether you are outcome-oriented or process-oriented can have a dramatic impact on your performance.

Outcome orientation is having a focus on the result. In bowling, that can be the result of getting a strike each frame, the final score, or making a cut in a tournament. It is natural for people to want to accomplish the object of the game, but, unfortunately, this can cause some anxiety. Bowlers can benefit by instead keeping their focus on how to achieve the desired result, which is otherwise known as process orientation.

Focusing on the process means keeping your focus on each task that makes up a good shot. Focusing on process items—like the pre-shot routine, observing ball reaction, and making good adjustments—is what eventually results in more strikes, higher scores, and making more cuts.