A solicitor had spoken in public on many occasions. He was good at public speaking and he enjoyed speaking in public. He had one bad experience where he had been nervous and forgotten his words and had such a difficult time that he was unable to speak in public again. 

One bad experience had been more powerful than many successful positive experiences. The bad experience had been imprinted mentally and physically as a response to that particular situation, and it was automatically repeated every time he found himself in that situation.

These imprinted responses can influence us physically as well as mentally when we again encounter a high pressure situation.

• A lady consulted me after she had been involved in a motor vehicle accident.  She had been trapped in the car and there had been petrol spilled on the road around the car.  She survived and the car was repaired, but every time she subsequently got into her car she noticed a strong smell of petrol.  She had her car checked for petrol leaks EIGHT times.  There was no petrol leak, simply an imprinted response to being in the car.
• A psychologist walked into an alley behind a bank and stumbled onto the getaway car of a bank robbery.  One man pointed a sawn off shotgun at her and mouthed, “don’t say a word.”  His accomplice ran out and they drove off. The psychologist developed a debilitating stutter, which ruined her career.

Why Practice doesn’t always make Perfect (especially under pressure)
The above examples are extreme examples of how debilitating this reflex can be, but the following examples illustrate more common situations.

• An athlete may get to a certain level of competition and feel physically and/or mentally bad or intimidated for no clear reason, performing below their personal best.  This may then become a regular pattern, but only at that level of competition.
• A business person may feel intimidated at an important conference or meeting, and be unable to communicate or negotiate as well as they normally can. This pattern of poor communication, then repeats itself at important meetings, but not at low key meetings.
• A student may know what is required for an examination, but as soon as the exam starts, their mind goes blank, they can’t concentrate and they perform badly.
• Two professional colleagues may consistently react to each other with irritation and negativity such that even before they try to discuss or negotiate an issue, they feel uncomfortable, argumentative and angry and are unable to communicate effectively with each other.

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