Game Day Thinking: Green Zone or Red Zone?

As one of my books is aptly titled, Think Right, Play Great!, your athlete's level of Game Day success can be quantified...even predicted...based their thoughts when he or she steps on the field or court.
I have broken down the quality of Game Day thoughts into three distinct "zones:" Green, Yellow or Red.
 
Green Zone Thinking
1. Consistently positive thinking.
2. Directed thinking (purpose and goal driven).
3. Highly focused and confident.
4. Decisive, energized.
5. "Can Do" attitude.
6. More easily bounces back from Game Day adversity.
7. High expectancy for success.
8. Consistent and sustainable high performance.

Is Your Athlete Motivated to Be the Best? Find Out.

Why does your athlete play the game?

Seems like a simple question, doesn't it? And yet my guess is that few teenaged athletes ever ask themselves that question today, yet they sweat and toil 10-12 months each year to master their sport with hopes of glory.

It all starts with an honest assessment of your athlete's motivation and desire  for playing their game. For without the proper motivation your athlete will not possess the burning desire necessary to do what it takes to elevate their game so he or she can dominate on game day and stand out from the crowd.

Your athlete's sport is likely a difficult game that will only get more competitive the older he or she gets.

As a coach it baffles me when kids have been taught to do something a certain way in practice again and again, yet come game day they completely forget how to do it. How can that be?

I have come to the realization that it all comes down to an athlete's motivation and desire. How bad do they want the success they work so hard for?

What Drives Success in Sports?

As parents and coaches we all want success for our kids and those we coach. Of course some days are better than others, aren't they? It is easy to marvel at and celebrate a player's or team's success after the fact but what is behind the success? In other words...what drives success on game day? 

Last weekend my 14u fastpitch softball team captured our tournament bracket to come home with medals and trophy. Like all successful tournaments Sunday's are long and generally stressful with many close games. Our Sunday was no different as we came from behind to win three straight games, including a 2-1 thriller in the final.

As happens so often a team gets on a roll and their level of play elevates. Look at most any tournament bracket and the deeper into the bracket you go the closer the games get. All of this would seem contrary to common sense as players battle fatigue with each additional game they play, often in less than ideal weather conditions.

The Confidence Cycle in Youth Sports

For most younger athletes their game day success, particularly during the most pivotal moments of the game, all comes down to their belief in their ability to succeed or fail. In other words do they have adequate self-confidence on the field or court or not?

My research on the subject of self-confidence for younger athletes (along with my own experiences as a game coach, mental performance expert and former collegiate athlete) has convinced me that self-confidence is not an accident. In fact I have concluded that self-confidence for any athlete is the product of a clearly defined "cause and effect" cycle that is quite predictable. Moreover this confidence cycle is a clear predictor of game day performance as well.

For your athlete to achieve and maintain a high level of self-confidence, and thus a high level of game day performance they will need to be mindful of their own "confidence cycle."

So what is the "confidence cycle" that ultimately propels or sabotages game day performance?

How Emotions Can Destroy Game Day Performance

Let's face the facts...all the private lessons you can afford, and all the ground balls, batting cages swings, free throws or dribbling in the world won't matter a lick if your athlete folds under the pressures of the game.

I have seen countless players look fantastic in practice only to come unraveled during pivotal moments on game day. Why is that? There are certainly a number of contributing factors, all found between the ears. However, in today's post, I want to focus on how your athlete's emotional state can and will destroy their game day performance.

If you are a parent or a coach we all grapple with the weekly emotions of our teenage sons/daughters/players, don't we? Teenagers in general can be a handful, but add the stress, pressure and expectations of game day into the mix and these young athletes can quickly become their own worst enemies in a heartbeat!

The diagram below illustrates the impact your athlete's emotional state has on their performance. Your athlete has the choice of how he or she reacts to a "game event" by their "thoughts." Their thoughts (positive or negative) will trigger an emotional reaction. This emotional reaction will have a direct impact on the quality of their overall game day performance.

The Winning Formula for Your Athlete's Success

My team played our first tournament of the year last weekend. We held a practice Friday night to get some final swings in the cage and some infield practice. We looked great!

Unfortunately we didn't play nearly as well as I had hoped the first day of the tournament. The confidence and precision that was so evident in the field and in the cage a  mere 18 hours before vanished once my girls crossed the white lines. I turned to my assistant coach and wondered what happened between Friday night and Saturday morning?

I came to the conclusion that the challenges many of the girls faced were, predictably, between their ears. I knew they could make the plays. I knew they could crush the ball...they just didn't.

For any young athlete the pathway to consistent success can be a difficult one for sure. In mastering their sport there are sure to be plenty of bumps along the way. But, I believe, there is a formula, a secret path, to insure that your athlete will achieve consistent success on the field.

So here it is: (S = P +  E + A + F + A - J). If your athlete can successfully understand, then implement this formula her on the field success will have no boundaries!

Preparation + Effort + Attitude + Focus + Adjustments - Judgment = Success

Preparation - John Wooden said, "Failing to prepare is preparing to fail." Preparation is an ongoing process, both physical and mental, that takes time. How much time does your athlete put into his or her preparation? Success is the result of massive preparation.

Effort - Like preparation effort is a choice. If your athlete is adequately prepared his or her self-confidence level should allow them to exert maximize effort. The first thing a coach or scout sees when evaluating a player is effort. The question they needs to always ask themselves is "can I do more?"

Attitude - Exceptional preparation and effort create a dynamic attitude that can propel your athlete through adversity and onto consistent peak performance. A great attitude is also contagious and can turn a good team into a great team!

Enjoy FREE Audio Lessons from the 

Sports Confidence Blueprint program below!

 

Focus - With preparation, effort and attitude comes the desire for success. A willingness to cultivate laser focus and concentrate on the task at hand is essential to the achievement of sustainable success. Mental focus is also a choice that ultimately separates the good plays from the poor ones and the good players from the great players.

Adjustments - The game requires that every player make adjustments in order to be successful. No matter your athlete's sport or position making the necessary adjustments is a conscious choice that requires attention to details. "ABL" - always be learning; it makes the adjustments that much easier to identify and make.

Judgment - This is the one component that needs to be subtracted from your athlete's formula for success.  Excessive self-judgment can erase much of the benefits created by the other components found in the success formula. Expecting perfection or not seeing mistakes as a learning opportunity can spiral your athlete's game downward in a hurry. In the absence of judgment self-confidence soars and so too will his or her performance.

Although the single biggest factor towards success is self-confidence I did not include it in the secret formula for success because I believe that self-confidence is a by product of exceptional preparation, superior effort, a great attitude, laser focus and making adjustments. A self-confident athlete is a relaxed athlete; able to perform at a peak level with little anxiety or fear.

This formula may look simple but it will require a lot of work for every element of the formula to become habit for your athlete. But the rewards will be well worth the effort I can assure you. If your athlete can truly embrace this formula he or she will remain head and shoulders above the competition and soar to the top of the recruiting list (provided they also master the physical side of their game).

Check out John Kelly's new ebook, Think It and Hit It: 12 Critical Mental Strategies to Improve Hitting. Just $3.97!

**Be sure to subscribe to our free weekly Winner's Edge Kid Tips (in the right column on this page), where you'll get fresh mental skills insights, strategies and tips on how your athlete can skyrocket game day performance.

Leadership Skills to Move Your Athlete to the Top

I had the opportunity recently to attend a seminar given by leadership guru John C. Maxwell. Maxwell has written dozens of best selling books on the subject of leadership, so do take the time to pick up his work and read this article carefully!

Make no mistake, leadership skills are vital for your athlete to cultivate and possess if they have a goal of playing at the next level. Travel, high school and college coaches alike always put athletes with strong leadership skills at the top of their list. Like everything else...leadership is a choice your athlete can and should make at whatever level he or she is capable of.

Here are 8 leadership tips to move your athlete to the top:

1. Leaders expect more from themselves and others. They never limit themselves or allow others to limit their success, their enthusiasm, their effort or attitude. They are always inspired to grow as people and athletes and expect the same from teammates. Leaders see more for their team and teammates and are relentless in their pursuit of success. As a  personal friend told me about his former teammate Michael Jordan, Jordan was always working amazingly hard to improve his teammates in every area of their game, during practice and games.

2. Leaders take the time to build relationships. They converse with teammates and coaches alike to build report and respect. Leaders are interested in their teammates thoughts, feelings and motivations. They understand the value of team chemistry and are the driving force to that end on their team. Leaders are charismatic individuals others take notice of.

3. Leaders are big picture thinkers. They recognize the game is a process that takes time to master. Leaders help their teammates to understand this truth and thus teammates look to the leader for support and direction in the most difficult game situations. Leaders play the game one play at a time, yet know exactly when to lead.

Drew Brees

4. Leaders are always observing. They are, not only, watching the game for ways to personally get better...but they are constantly aware of their teammates moods and performances, looking for opportunities to help their teammates and ultimately their team to succeed. Leaders listen and learn...always!

5. Leaders lead by example. They recognize that their teammates and coaches (and scouts) are watching their every move and, as such, they walk the talk. They have a stellar work ethic, they honor the game, they are aware of their body language and verbal language to keep their teammates on purpose. They are a solid and dependable role model for their team.

6. Leaders are highly respected. They earn this respect because they put into practice all the tips listed here. Respect allows leaders to influence their teammates. Their personal attitude and expectations for the team's attitude are embraced by teammates. In this way leaders can motivate their teammates to be better.

7. Leaders create buy in from teammates and coaches. They can effectuate both subtle and dramatic changes on their team because those around them buy in to them as a leader first. Once their teammates and coaches buy into their leadership stature their vision (or recommendations) for the team are easily followed. For example if a leader sees certain players or the team's effort or energy is down he or she can set the tone for improvement in these areas easily because their teammates respect them and what they say.

8. Leaders find a way to win. They have the power to lead their team to victory regardless of the circumstances or hurdles encountered along the way. Think Michael Jordan; think Joe Montana; think Drew Brees. Their teammates are inspired and motivated by their leadership skills and give more and do more than they thought they could do. Leaders raise the collective level of performance by their team by design.

If you or your athlete have not discussed their leadership role on his or her team you should. Leaders are highly coveted by top coaches at every level.

Remember, being a leader does not mean an athlete must be the best player or have the best statistics. Sports are filled with some very unlikely leaders, but leaders who can get the most from their teammates while playing a vital role in their team's success. Leaders also do not need to be loud. Some of the world's greatest leaders over time have been extremely quiet (think The Dali Lama, Phil Jackson, Tony LaRussa, Derek Jeter).

Leaders are not born, they are made through a combination of hard work (mastering both physical and mental skills) and a recognition of the opportunity leadership may provide for them and their team.

For more on leadership do read the many excellent books written by John Maxwell.

Success or Failure...What is Your Athlete's Focus?

At Winner's Edge Kids we teach that how your athlete thinks will directly determine his level of success on the playing field. Therefore the critical question is what kinds of thoughts does he have? Does he focus her thoughts on seeing success or expecting failure?

Scientists claim that we each have in excess of 50,000 thoughts each day bombarding our minds. As with your athlete the quality of those thoughts has enormous impact on the life any of us experience. Our thoughts have immense power to create the conditions that show up in our lives, so we all must choose our thoughts wisely.

For a teenager, speaking as both a father and mental skills expert, it can be a hard sell to convince her that she has control over her thoughts, but in truth she does. If she does not control her thoughts, as I am prone to preach to my own daughter, then tell me who dies and I will have a talk with them!

If your athlete's dominant thoughts are on failure as he steps into the batters box or to the free throw line, or in a PK situation his likelihood for success is slim. You see the reality is that dominant  "can't do" thoughts over the course of a day could amount to thousands of negative thoughts that reinforce her belief system that he cannot succeed. Now imagine the power of those repetitive thoughts over a period of days or weeks or worse. We're talking about potentially 100,000s of thoughts telling his subconscious mind and body that he cannot do it.

Enjoy FREE Audio Lessons from the

Sports Confidence Blueprint program below!

 

 

[Remember, your athlete may be supremely confident about certain parts of her game, but lacking confidence in other parts of her game. This post is addressing the elements of her game she worries about most and has exhibited a poor performance record with.]

This avalanche of negativity creates a virtual wall in his mind preventing him from success. And each subsequent failure or result less than desired will only reinforce his beliefs that he is not good enough or cannot complete a task successfully. His future failure becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy.

Likewise if your athlete's dominant thoughts are on success she will likely have a much higher probability of achieving that success on the field. Why? The mind-body connection we all have dictates that the mind tells the body what to do. If the mind is positive and filled with the expectancy for success the body will perform optimally because the mind is in a relaxed state and focused in the present moment and on the task at hand.

If your athlete is engaged in negative thinking his mind will be in turmoil, exhibiting high levels of anxiety and fear. This chemical reaction in the body brought on by perpetual negative "can't do" thinking will show up in the body as lack of focus (engaged in future or past focus: "Oh gosh, I struck out against this pitcher last game, I'll probably do it again."), dry mouth, sweaty palms, excessive adrenalin, increased pulse rate, reduced reaction time, and reduced visual acuity. This expectancy for failure creates a dramatically devastating effect on the body and the performance results are predictably poor.

The bottom line is what is your athlete thinking? Does he focus on success (through positive thinking and mental imagery) or does he focus on failure (through negative thinking and catastrophizing)? The choice is always his, although he is likely unaware of it. As an adult you can help him to become more conscious of the power his thinking has to determine his athletic success.

10 Performance Killers You Need to Know

We all want our children to succeed in everything they do in life, don't we? Athletics is certainly an area, as parents, we feel strongly about doing all we can to insure her success. By participating in athletics your daughter has chosen to put herself out there for better or for worse. Some days the game will get her with a stiff dose of adversity or failure.

As parents and coaches we spend countless hours and dollars on our athlete's mastery of the physical side of the sport. But, in my mind, physical training alone is simply not enough to make him a consistent peak performer. The inevitable failures that each player must overcome in fastpitch can snowball into more mistakes in an ever increasing downward performance spiral unless he possesses specific mental skills mastery.

Here are my Top 10 Mental Performance Killers that can absolutely sabotage your athlete's success:

1. Lack of Mental Focus or Present Moment Awareness- Unable to adequately concentrate at the pivotal "crunch time" moments of the game. Engaged in future or past focus.

2. Fear & Anxiety- Afraid of failure, embarrassment, disappointing parents, coach, teammates or self. Unable to control anxiety, adrenalin, focus causing a drop in performance.

3. Unmanageable Expectations- Burdened by excessive and unreasonable expectations on her performance by parents, coaches, teammates or self; accelerates anxiety, frustration and self-judgment.

4. Lack of Self-Confidence- Characterized by self-doubt, negative self talk, expectations of failure versus success.

5. Results versus Effort Thinking- Focusing on results only minimizes the value of his effort and minimizes learning opportunities.

6. Lack of Trust- Can cause hesitancy in making a decision on the field and always leads to failure.

7. Lack of clear Motivation and Commitment- A potential disconnect between player and parent; unwilling to do whatever it takes to get better.

8. Lack of a clear and concise Plan for pre-game, in-game and post-game- Having a mental and physical game plan improves self-confidence and performance.

9. Not Recognizing her Controllables- Which factors does she have control over in the game and which factors does she not? Knowing this will lower her anxiety and self-judgment.

10. Expecting Failure (Catastrophe Thinking)- The most detrimental type of thinking; truly expecting the worst case scenario every time. Can bleed into all areas of her life.

All of these Top 10 Mental Performance Killers are covered at length in my new book, How She Thinks is How She Plays (read a sample chapter). It is vitally important that you recognize that there are specific reasons for your athlete's inconsistency on the playing field. It all starts with her thoughts, feelings and beliefs about her/himself and the game.

If the game is 90% mental as some say how much focus does your athlete spend there?

Greatness Isn't Achieved Overnight

In America we love to cheer a great athlete, actor or musician. In fact our country has become quite obsessed with these celebrities. But what we often don't recognize as we carry on our mostly mundane lives is the amount of time, dedication and effort these individuals have put in behind the public veil to mastering their craft. It's true that Rome wasn't build in a day and neither is greatness.

There is a lot to be said for consistency. Great daily effort, inspired and driven by a solid plan of action, usually produces great results. Greatness is a journey not a destination and some days the journey is a tough one filled with pain, frustration and despair. I guarantee you that any top athlete, actor or musician our society reveres has had many of these "investment" days along their path to fame and fortune.

For your athlete the process is the same. The legendary NFL coach Vince Lombardi once said, "Being great is not a sometimes thing...it's an every day thing!" The seeds of greatness are planted every day and sprout in due time. Your athlete needs to show up and give her all every time she steps on the field without regard to how great she plays on any given Saturday or Sunday. The results of her efforts will arrive on cue.

As an adult you need to remind your athlete just how far he has come in playing the game over the years. I marvel watching the young ladies play at the high school and 16u travel level that I first coached when they were 6 and 7 years old little girls. To an outsider like me their hard work has definitely paid off. But through the eyes of a child (or teen) progress can never happen swift enough!

Greatness isn't built overnight. It requires years of patient and persistent training, both physical and mental in order to attain any level of mastery. Watching that quarterback throw the flawless 40 yard crossing route pass or the actress mesmerize you with her stunning theatrical performance are products of years of blood, sweat and tears...a continual commitment to the process of mastery.

So on those days when your athlete is frustrated with his performance and wonders if he'll ever "get there" remind him of how far he has already come on his journey and that anything worth having is worth the time and effort it takes to achieve it!