“The head talks to the heart, and the heart talks to the feet.” Pele

Do you talk to yourself during a football game and feel good or bad about yourself?

Your self-talk can affect your mindset in both good and bad ways.

Do you often feel that your football confidence is high, and then drop to zero confidence when your inner dialogue kicks in?

This negative thoughts or inner critic is something many athletes struggle with, but there’s a better way. You can combat negative thoughts with positive self-talk instead of letting an automatic negative thought process rule your football mental game.

What is Positive Self-Talk?

Positive self-talk is a critical football mental skills successful athletes share.

Positive self-talk is generally sparked by positive feelings and has hopeful connotations associated with them.

Examples of positive self-talk include “I can” or “I will” statements. Athletes who use positive self-talk have an easier time self-motivating during hard times. When athletes tell themselves, “I can do this,” they will feel more optimistic and hopeful about their situation.

Negative self-talk statements tend to be fueled by negative feelings and often imply “don’t do this,” “I won’t,” or I can’t” attitudes.

How Positive Self-Talk is Connected to the Brain?

Negative thinking is your default thinking. It takes a lot more energy and focused effort to make the shift to positive thinking, and it happens unconsciously in a nanosecond that you might even notice it.

It’s easy to throw up your hands and say “I can’t” when a situation goes out of your hand. With a negative mindset, you’re likely to do the same.

But what would happen if you start to see things with a positive attitude and put in some extra work before you surrender control?

Things would be different, right? In fact, things would be a lot better, and there are even chances that you might seek out “win” in every situation.

The Power of Brain Mind-Body Connection

Sports psychology for football and Neuro-linguistic programming exercises focus primarily on the use of self-talk to affect the football mind and the body.

Both mind and body are affected by self-talk because of the dynamic mind-body connection.

The mind-body connection is the innate connection of the body and mind. What you think and what you feel has the potential to directly affect your body.

When you are overtaken by a pessimistic mood, you often feel this in your body — a heaviness in your chest, a tightness in your throat.

When you’re frightened or anxious, your body instinctively reacts, your hand trembles, your pulse quickens, and your lungs tighten.

The mind-body connection is an essential element in the way self-talk affects you. Stemming from that little voice in your head, self-talk not only has the potential to change your mood but also has the potential to affect your overall football physiological state, too.

The Importance of the Positive Self-Talk on Performance

Keeping a positive attitude isn’t just good for your mood. Martin Seligman, known as “the Father of Positive Psychology,” has also studied the connection between positive self-talk and sport performance.

A positive mindset will carry you closer to your football goals.

It directly affects your football confidence and self-esteem.

Positivity is also infectious.

When you possess an upbeat mindset, everyone in your team will feel more positive, and you will start seeing improved team performance during a game.

*Download the free mental game assessment and get started on Improving your Mental Game in Football.