The Deadly Sins of Mental Preparation Part 2

We continue our blog post on the deadly sins of mental preparation by continuing with Deadly Sin #2.

DEADLY SIN #2
NOT HAVING A PLAN IN PLACE FOR YOUR SELF CONFIDENCE

An athlete's level of self-confidence is often a determining factor of whether or not he or she has a peak performance. However, an athlete's positive self-confidence doesn't just happen, it has to be developed over many years. It is often the result of a positive learning environment and positive self-talk. A positive learning environment is important in the development of self-confidence because people learn by watching. Being negative is bound to bring on negative self-talk, low self-confidence and a poor attitude.

Self confidence is paramount in sports. If you have a high level of belief in your ability you will not become over anxious. Many athletes who lack self confidence in their ability leave their confidence to chance. If you can only feel confident when you make a couple of good plays at the start of the game, your confidence is prone to waver.

Are you unsure how you will perform prior to competition? I teach students how to be proactive with their pregame confidence. You don’t want your confidence to be thrashed around by immediate results at the start of the game. What happens if you start the competition with mistakes or errors? You want to have a proactive approach to confidence- not a reactive approach.

Finally, here are some tips to maintain positive thoughts and confidence: To play as well as one can, a player MUST focus his or her mind on the shot being played, in the here and now, and forget about past mistakes. Almost all athletes would be better if they forgot about the score, and just played their game. If athletes focus on performance, they cannot perform as well.

Building confidence can do wonders for athletes. With practice and positive reinforcement, athletes can achieve their peak performance. Remember that the confident athlete is the successful athlete.