“If you believe in yourself and have dedication and pride – and never quit – you’ll be a winner. The price of victory is high but so are the rewards.” – Bear Bryant
The state of an athlete’s mental game in football is affected by what an athlete choose to focus their football mind on. Obtaining football confidence is more than likely to be the forerunner for any athlete looking to achieve peak. Any football psychologist will tell you that football confidence is adversely affected when an athlete becomes consumed or even obsessed with worrying about what others might think of them and or their performance.
To some degree it is perfectly normal to want this type of social approval as we are all social beings who want to be liked by our peers, family, friends, etc. Sometimes athletes will also want to be admired, accepted and respected as well as simply being liked. Certain athletes are predisposed to a mind-set that attracts a craving desire for this type of social approval. Take the perfectionist mind-set. This type of athlete tends to be harsh on themself during practice and game time. Although they tend to be more likely to train harder than most this need for perfection is usually a losing battle.
The fact that there is no such thing as perfection leaves them chasing something unobtainable which results in disappointment from holding themselves up to impossible goals.
Perfectionists also tend to crave approval and therefore also worry about what other think about their performance. This can sometimes lead to them trying to avoid embarrassment.
This irrational fear of embarrassment or failure inevitably causes some athletes to stress, focus on things that ultimately don’t matter, don’t make a different in their performance or to freeze up during competition.
Their priorities are misguided and will only lead to focusing on things that negatively affect their performance. It is pointless worrying too much about what others think, by trying to read another person’s mind all the athlete is doing is making assumptions as to what others might be thinking about them.
If an athlete ever finds themselves trying to read peoples’ minds it is a sign that what they are actually trying to do is avoid embarrassment.
Some strategies that are used to cultivate a more balanced in football to aid in reaching a more productive football mental state are:
Coming up with a personalized pre-game ritual where the athlete only focuses on things that they can control (e.g. warming up and stretching to get their muscles ready for competition).
- The flawless execution of each play.
- Getting their technique right and not worrying about the outcome.
- The setting of realistic goals and patiently working towards achieving them.
- The setting of realistic goals and patiently working towards achieving them.
*Download the free mental game assessment and get started on Improving your Mental Game in Football
