Confidence in Sports Tips

Are You Good Enough to Start on Your Team, but Don’t?

Good Enough?

How to be Mentally Prepared on the Bench One of the most challenging situations for athletes is knowing you’re good enough to start, be on a relay team, get more playing time, or make a travel squad yet you are not given an opportunity by the coach. Not getting a chance to contribute to a team can erode … Sport Psychology Article…

How to Stay Confident Despite Obstacles

Confident to Face Obstacles

Why Stable Confidence is So Important Confidence is important for athletes… But confidence in the face of adversity is hallmark of champions. When having success, high confidence is much easier but, when obstacles appear, keeping your confidence high becomes more difficult. For example, the baseball pitcher who was awarded the MVP for two consecutive years but gives up … Sport Psychology Article…

Mental Game & Confidence in Basketball – Video

Video Of The Week

Struggle With Confidence After a Bad Warmup? In “Sports Psychology Sessions with Doc,” Dr. Patrick Cohn answers sports psychology questions from athletes, parents and coaches. Do you struggle early in the game with your confidence if you didn’t have a good warmup? In this video, Dr. Cohn will discuss: Basketball players who tend to struggle with their confidence … Sport Psychology Article…

How to Not Be Over Confident in Competition

How to Not Be Over Confident

Do You Underestimate Your Opponents? Have you ever entered a competition where you were the overwhelming favorite to win and just tanked? You can look to many examples in sports when top-ranked athletes or winning teams suffer an upset loss at the hands of a weaker opponent. Despite many cautionary tales, many top-ranked athletes still fall into the … Sport Psychology Article…

How Athletes Bounce Back From Defeat

How Athletes Bounce Back From Defeat

Moving Past Missed Opportunities in Competition A missed potential game-winning shot does NOT define you… A fall during a major competition does NOT define you… A dropped ball in a playoff game does NOT define you… A false start at Nationals does NOT define you… A game-ending mistake against your biggest rival does NOT define you. Missed opportunities … Sport Psychology Article…

Athletes Who Are Self-Critical

Athletes Who Are Self-Critical

Grow Confidence Without Excessive Self-Criticism Are you happy with where you are with your game? Most athletes would answer “no” because they want to achieve more. After all, the goal of every athlete is to achieve as much of their athletic potential as possible. Some athletes think the best way to improve is to never be satisfied with … Sport Psychology Article…