“To go from where you are to where you want to be: you have to have a dream, a goal, and you have to be willing to work for it” — Jim Valvano

Successful basketball players understand that it’s not enough just to set goals; you also have to keep track of your progress and create incentives for yourself. Otherwise it’s all too easy to put off doing the complex and difficult tasks. Changing your habits and routines are difficult tasks, and it takes basketball mental toughness, commitment and effort.

Research on sports psychology for basketball shows players are motivated by short-term rewards and find it difficult to sustain unrewarded effort for long periods if the task isn’t intrinsically satisfying.

While following your passion may give you a pleasant sense of accomplishment eventually, you have to put up with the initial uncertainty and feelings of being overwhelmed or not up to the task.

The best way to tackle this is to break up larger tasks up into short-term goals and keeping track of your progress, which you track and check off to give you a sense of accomplishment.

Beyond the sense of accomplishment tracking your progress can give you, the real value of tracking is that it can tell you what works and what doesn’t.

If you pick your measures right and you’re consistent with how you do them, the data will tell you what works and what doesn’t.

So the question is, what should you be tracking?

It really depends on what your goals are. Think carefully about what measures you use. Picking the wrong thing to follow may cause you to miss progress you’re making in other areas of your basketball mental game.

For example, you might set a goal of improving your basketball shooting percentage by getting in the habit of locating your target earlier. But rather than just focusing your target location, you should also keep an eye on your follow through, relaxed wrist and motion consistent during the practice. You can use a daily/weekly checklist to gauge your improvement. Other suggestions for progress tracking could include your rotation skill, thinking during a certain parts of your practice, and a whole host of other things.

Instead of beating yourself up for not finishing your goals, you can happily share your goals with your spouse or a good friend that can guide you in structuring yours. When there is someone else other than yourself holding you accountable, you are more likely to get your tasks completed throughout the week. You will be motivated by both the desire to avoid letting them down as well as the support and encouragement that they offer when you do accomplish your goals.

Working with a mental game coach or basketball psychology expert is a great way to help you track your progress toward your goals. When you share your goals with your coach, it helps you stay focused on the tasks that need to be completed.

When you start tracking your progress, in no time, you will begin to notice how vital it is to track your progress.

You will be more committed to your goals than ever before.

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