As Coaches, we are armed with an incredible gift to talk a lot. Sometimes as we talk we don’t realize the constructive criticisms we offer may unfortunately deflate an athlete’s confidence. Most of us know that the key to competing, or to be successful in competition, we must compete with confidence. So, how do we remain confident in ourselves? Well, first of all, we must understand that confidence needs to be continuously worked on through reassessing and remembering your goals.
Reassessing your Goals- achieving your goals leads to a feeling of success in which being successful offers more confidence to us. To ensure success we need to take a look at our goals. Are our goals reachable or realistic given the situation or objective we are trying to achieve? Are they specific and definable? For example, if I am talking to one of my weightlifting athletes, he or she may have an amount of weight they are trying to achieve, but without proper form, that target weight will continue to elude us. So I may say, “let’s focus on getting to our tippy toes on the second pull.” As we hit that goal I will praise or complement my athlete on consistently hitting that goal, knowing that with proper and consistent form target weights will continue to rise. That process goal is a measureable attainable stepping stone that will ultimately help my athlete reach their goal weight. The same goes for a batter in baseball who is struggling at the plate. Yes, our goal is to get on base or get a hit, but a much more obtainable goal would be focusing on quality and consistent mechanics, positive pitch recognition.
Remember your Goals- sometimes as we slump, we can’t help but become fixated on the slump itself. Small, obtainable goals still take time, we cannot allow ourselves to lose sight of our goals or stray from the process that will deliver our goals. We need to celebrate the process and efforts in achieving the goal. Consistent hard work builds confidence.
Finally, get excited about your sport. Get excited about the part you play on a team or the challenge of being more of a solo athlete. Goals are never reached and confidence is never built or sustained by someone who is just going through the motions. Everyday should feel like opening day, the electricity of the competitive arena should pulse through you igniting your fire within.
Comments