What can a TV comedy teach us about world-class performance? In this episode, we explore how a single dart scene from Ted Lasso reveals two powerful lessons for athletes and high performers everywhere: a mental framework to stay cool under pressure, and a visual technique used by the best in the world.

Drawing on decades of experience from Dr. Daniel Laby — a specialist who’s worked with elite athletes across MLB, Olympic sports, and more — we break down how mindset + visual precision can give anyone an edge.

You’ll discover why the phrase “Be curious, not judgmental” is more than a clever line, and how the science of the Quiet Eye separates pros from amateurs in darts, golf, basketball, and beyond.

• Curiosity over judgment: Why shifting your mindset transforms pressure into opportunity.
• The cost of judgment: How negative self-talk triggers physiological stress that kills performance.
• The Quiet Eye: A science-backed visual technique that stabilizes focus and improves accuracy.
• Three performance tools: Verbal cues, micro-target precision, and optimal timing.
• Real-world application: How athletes can train these skills and how you can apply them in any domain.

0:00 – 0:45 | Introduction — performance lessons from Ted Lasso’s dart scene

0:46 – 2:05 | Two key lessons: mindset & technique

2:06 – 3:20 | Why judgment kills performance (physiology of fight-or-flight)

3:21 – 4:35 | Curiosity as a diagnostic tool — from golf to team dynamics

4:36 – 5:45 | Transition: Mindset → Technique (introducing the Quiet Eye)

5:46 – 7:05 | Dr. Joan Vickers’ research — what defines the Quiet Eye

7:06 – 8:15 | Ted’s 3 performance tools: verbal cue, precision vision, timing

8:16 – 9:20 | Science-backed evidence: why elites hit more accurately

9:21 – 9:49 | Wrap-up: Mindset + Technique together, final takeaway

Transcript 

Now if you're looking for that edge in performance science, well sometimes you find it in really unexpected places. Today we're actually digging into elite performance, but maybe not from the source you'd expect. We're looking at insights from, believe it or not, a scene in Ted Lasso that dart scene.

Right, exactly. That dart scene. We're combining that with, uh, decades of professional experience to pull out. Two key lessons, one mental, one physical things you can use pretty much instantly to improve focus, whether that's in sports or really any skill that demands it. Yeah, it sounds fun pulling from a TV show, but the foundation here is really solid.

We're leaning heavily on insights from specialists, particularly Dr. Daniel Laby. I mean, this is someone with 30 years. 30 years working hands-on with top tier professional athletes across all kinds of sports. Wow. 30 years. Yeah. So the goal here is basically to take what the absolute best performers learn and, you know, bring it straight to you.

Perfect. Okay, so let's set up that lasso scene just quickly. Season one, Ted's playing darts against Rupert, the antagonist. He's way behind, needs three perfect throws, huge pressure. And the sources we look at, they argue he wins not by luck, but through well real technique in psychology. Mm-hmm. It's a great illustration.

So let's start with a mind game. Ted drops that famous line right before his comeback. Be curious, not judgmental. Okay, great quote. But how does that actually work for winning under pressure? Well, it's more than just a nice phrase, whether Walt Whitman actually said it or not. That's kind of...

In this episode, we explore one of the most fundamental yet misunderstood aspects of human performance: reaction time. We often assume catching a falling object or responding instantly in sport is purely reflexive—but the truth is far more nuanced. Dr. Daniel Laby, with over 30 years of experience working with elite athletes, helps us unpack what reaction time really is, how it’s measured, and what surprising factors influence it.

We begin by breaking down simple reaction time—the fastest see–process–react loop. Unlike complex in-game decisions, simple reaction time involves a preplanned response to a visual cue. While not a mindless reflex, it’s the shortest possible cognitive pathway, critical for everything from driving to high-level sports performance.

The discussion then shifts to how we measure such a fleeting process. From Francis Galton’s 19th-century ruler drop test to modern computerized systems, each method has strengths and flaws. Even today’s tech introduces delays from sensors, software, and display refresh rates, meaning that raw scores often don’t reflect true human biology. Carefully controlled research suggests the most accurate average simple reaction time is about 210 milliseconds.

Dr. Laby’s work also uncovers key influences on reaction speed. Age clearly matters—reaction time slows by about 55 milliseconds per decade—but sex and race show no significant differences. Most surprising is the discovery of a spatial advantage: people may react faster when a stimulus appears on the opposite side of their reacting hand, likely due to how the brain processes cross-hemisphere information.

These insights have implications well beyond sports. From designing safer dashboards and alert systems to tailoring athletic training, understanding the nuances of reaction time could make a measurable difference in both everyday safety and elite performance.

• Simple Reaction Time Defined: A rapid see–process–react loop involving a preplanned response.
• Measuring Challenges: Traditional ruler tests are simple but imprecise; even computers introduce lag.
• Benchmark Speed: True human reaction time is ~210 ms once system delays are accounted for.
• Impact of Age: Reaction time slows about 55 ms per decade, influencing both athletes and daily activities.
• No Sex or Race Effect: Research shows no significant differences in simple reaction time between groups.
• Spatial Advantage: Faster responses can occur when stimuli appear opposite the reacting hand’s side.
• Applications: Insights can optimize training, sports strategies, and even safety systems like driving or emergency alerts.

• 00:00 – 01:10 | Introduction: Why reflexes aren’t as simple as they seem
• 01:10 – 03:00 | Defining simple reaction time: the see–process–react loop
• 03:00 – 04:30 | Measuring reaction time: ruler drop test & early science
• 04:30 – 06:30 | Modern computer tests: hidden delays and biases
• 06:30 – 08:00 | The true benchmark: ~210 milliseconds
• 08:00 – 09:30 | Age and reaction time: slowing by ~55 ms per decade
• 09:30 – 10:45 | Myths debunked: no sex or race differences
• 10:45 – 11:45 | Spatial advantage: faster when reacting across sides
• 11:45 – 12:33 | Implications for sports, safety, and everyday life

 We often just take our reflexes for granted. Don't we like catching something, falling off a table? Absolutely. Split-second stuff....

In this episode of The Deep Dive, we explore one of the most fascinating frontiers in performance science: how elite athletes use vision not just to see, but to predict the future. Guided by the work of Dr. Daniel Laby, a renowned sports vision expert with over 30 years of experience working with top athletes, we uncover the hidden mechanics behind predictive vision.

Vision, as Dr. Laby explains, isn’t a passive camera. It’s an active prediction engine. The brain takes in current visual cues, matches them with stored experiences, and projects what will likely happen next — all within fractions of a second. This predictive skill is the difference between a batter connecting with a 95-mph fastball or missing, a golfer sinking a putt, or a striker scoring a goal.

Through real-world examples — from golf greens to hockey rinks — and stunning case studies like Cristiano Ronaldo scoring in complete darkness, we see how athletes leverage both conscious and unconscious visual processing. Even when the brain doesn’t “see” something consciously, the unconscious track can still register, predict, and guide action.

We also explore scientific research that shows how fleeting, masked visual inputs can still influence perception and decision-making. This highlights the two-track system of vision: the slower, conscious channel and the faster, unconscious one that underpins elite athletic performance.

Ultimately, the episode emphasizes that predictive vision isn’t just for athletes. Whether avoiding traffic, catching a dropped mug, or navigating a crowded street, our brains constantly run these rapid calculations. Understanding and training this capacity can give anyone — not just professionals — an edge in everyday life.

• Vision functions as a prediction system, not just a sense of sight.
• Elite athletes excel by using subtle cues (ball seams, body movements, peripheral signals) to forecast outcomes in milliseconds.
• Unconscious vision operates faster than conscious thought, guiding split-second motor actions.
• Case studies: Evan Longoria’s reflexive catch and Cristiano Ronaldo’s ability to score goals in complete darkness highlight predictive vision at its peak.
• Scientific studies reveal that even when stimuli don’t reach conscious awareness, the brain still processes and uses that information.
• The two-track system of vision (conscious vs. unconscious) allows for parallel processing — critical in high-speed sports.
• Everyday life relies on the same mechanisms — from catching objects to anticipating traffic flow.

• 00:00 – 02:30 | Introduction: Vision as prediction, not just sight.
• 02:30 – 06:00 | The brain as a prediction engine and why vision deficits hinder forecasting.
• 06:00 – 09:00 | Real-world applications in golf, team sports, and baseball.
• 09:00 – 11:00 | Iconic examples: Evan Longoria’s save & Cristiano Ronaldo’s goals in darkness.
• 11:00 – 12:30 | Scientific study: unconscious visual processing and masked stimuli.
• 12:30 – 13:59 | Takeaways: conscious vs. unconscious vision, everyday applications, and the hidden power of predictive sight.

4. Episode Transcript

 Imagine you're on a field, okay? Crowds, roaring balls flying at you like incredibly fast. But you don't just see a blur, you know, you know exactly where it's gonna land to spin when you need to move. Seems almost like magic, right? Well, today on the deep dive, we're gonna look behind that...