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By John Eliot Ph.D. Sports Psychologist Push the Edge Find a weakness or hole in your game and get excited about where your game will be after you change it. Be creative. Think up something no one in your sport has dared or perfected. Experience Success When learning new skills and strategies, go step-by-step. Start with an easy piece, master it, and then move on to the next easiest piece. Or begin by modifying the skill to something you can do well. Let yourself experience success. Keep track of your personal records and how many times you can break them. Change Your Thinking The old adage about learning from your mistakes is okay, but over time you should have a short-term memory for failures and a long-term memory for success. Keep a vivid mental catalog of your greatest performances. Get Involved Autonomy directly improves motivation, and perhaps the greatest contributor to autonomy is having input on decisions that affect you. In both individual and team sport settings, athletes should feel ownership of training rules, competition choices, and strategy decisions. At the professional level, many head coaches comment that their success depends entirely on their players' belief in the "system" or playbook. The easiest way to ensure this is to become involved in the process. Praise Others If you can't see positive or exciting things in the athletes and coaches around you, how can you do the same for yourself? Moreover, a sense of connectedness depends on everyone's awareness of the contributions made by others. Vary Training An imbalance between high competence and low task difficulty can result in boredom. So too can constant hammering at one task. A significant portion of training should be devoted to play for the sake of play, without rules or evaluation. Put Yourself First Human beings are most productive at homeostasis since in that state they are not distracted by conflicting drives. Make sure to eat properly, stay hydrated, and get ample rest. Find Motivated Peers On and off the field, spend your time with people who want to accomplish great things, who aren't afraid to talk about it, and who get revved up by other people's dreams. An effective support team is vital to motivation, especially during difficult times. Conversely, motivational "black holes" are people who always criticize the coach, moan about bad calls, loaf in practices and workouts, and generally focus on obstacles, frustrations, and what can't be achieved. Think Positively What conversation goes on in the back of your head? It's with you all day, but how much of it do you pay attention to? Actually, all of it, subconsciously. You'd better start paying conscious attention. Is it positive or negative? Is it about what you can do or what you can't do? Is it hung up on difficulties or engaged in a search for solutions? Remember Your Dream Don't make revisiting your dream a rare event. Spend time frequently reconnecting with the real reason why you perform - the heart, soul, and will of it all. |