{"id":2683,"date":"2012-09-26T16:44:36","date_gmt":"2012-09-26T16:44:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports_psychology_blog\/?p=2683"},"modified":"2025-06-12T07:20:39","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T11:20:39","slug":"the-number-one-confidence-killer-for-athletes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/the-number-one-confidence-killer-for-athletes\/","title":{"rendered":"The Number One Confidence Killer for Athletes"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/football-confidence-killer.jpg\" alt=\"Confidence Killer in Sports\" class=\"wp-image-6199\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/football-confidence-killer.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/football-confidence-killer-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"High_Expectations_and_Low_Confidence\"><\/span>High Expectations and Low Confidence<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_2 ez-toc-wrap-center counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-transparent ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Article Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #0769bf;color:#0769bf\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #0769bf;color:#0769bf\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/the-number-one-confidence-killer-for-athletes\/#High_Expectations_and_Low_Confidence\" >High Expectations and Low Confidence<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/the-number-one-confidence-killer-for-athletes\/#So_what_can_you_or_your_athletes_do\" >So what can you or your athletes do?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/the-number-one-confidence-killer-for-athletes\/#Related_Sports_Psychology_Articles\" >Related Sports Psychology Articles<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/the-number-one-confidence-killer-for-athletes\/#The_Confident_Athlete\" >The Confident Athlete<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>No matter what sport you play, if you focus too much on outcome expectations, your <strong>sports confidence<\/strong> will take a hit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I call this the confidence-expectation connection\u2026. Here\u2019s the connection:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When your expectations are super high\u2014and you fail to achieve those expectations\u2014confidence takes a hit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s a prime example from a college kicker:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m a freshman kicker in college. My first kick in a game was not what I expected and my confidence hasn\u2019t been the same ever since.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Usually doubt can set in, \u201cWhy am I not performing well?\u201d \u201cWhat am I doing wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This kicker\u2019s <strong>confidence went into a downward spiral<\/strong> and he started to focus on how not missing kicks, and it got worse:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt has gotten to the point of which I can\u2019t even seem to perform in practice in front of a coach. I never think of the positive but rather the negative. I have lost my spot and I have hit rock bottom on the athletic field. How can I get my confidence back?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Keep in mind that his downward spiral and eventual slump first started when he failed to perform up to his own expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And that\u2019s why it\u2019s critical for you to be aware of your own expectations or the demands you place on your performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Having high expectations for your performance is not the same as having confidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a matter of fact, most athletes I work with on the mental game have super high expectations and low confidence because of the confidence-expectation connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>High expectations and low confidence is a recipe for failure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"So_what_can_you_or_your_athletes_do\"><\/span>So what can you or your athletes do?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Uncover the outcome expectations, ones that cause pressure.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Agree that these are limiting your confidence and performance. Discard them.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Focus instead on how you will execute each play, shot, pitch, or run, one at a time.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>Number 3 above is the key. Set smaller goals or objective to help you focus on execution instead of your outcome expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For example, I\u2019d want this athlete to start focusing on his pre-kick routine and how he\u2019ll execute a good kick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And not focus on the outcome and what the coach might think if he misses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you want to grow your <strong>confidence in sports<\/strong>, you have to start by overcoming expectations that can smother your confidence quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Your Mental Coach,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Patrick Cohn<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>p.s. We recently revised <a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/\"><strong>Sports Psychology for Athlete by Peaksports.com<\/strong><\/a>. And in the process we now offer \u201cThe Confident Athlete\u201d series on digital download (no shipping charges). Many international customers requested this to avoid high shipping fees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now you can save 10 bucks per program and not pay shipping costs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/the-confident-athlete-cd-series\/\"><strong>The Confident Athlete Series<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"block-979ef383-5bc7-43ee-b8f9-249663ca1a6c\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Related_Sports_Psychology_Articles\"><\/span>Related Sports Psychology Articles<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul id=\"block-05642731-8752-4dbf-9c18-5cc4d276e821\" class=\"wp-block-list has-normal-font-size\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-to-perform-under-pressure-with-confidence\/\"><strong>How to Perform Under Pressure with Confidence\u00a0<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-to-grow-competition-confidence\/\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-to-build-confidence-like-the-pros\/\"><strong>How to Build Confidence Like the Pros<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-preparation-boosts-confidence\/\"><strong>How Preparation Boosts Confidence<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-normal-font-size\" id=\"block-5726d13f-f715-4ca4-8813-2f8a9ebd8bc3\">*Subscribe to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/sports-psychology-podcast-by-peaksports-com\/id152566009\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0on iTunes<br>*Subscribe to <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0ynyaalKxbnNmsoeL8gF5X?si=8224669de9b3435b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/strong><\/a> on Spotify<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-normal-font-size\" id=\"block-281f5afb-980b-4c71-9aa0-11d606b5f7c9\"><strong>Download a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/mental-toughness-report-athletes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">free sports psychology report<\/a>&nbsp;to improve your mental game!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-normal-font-size\" id=\"block-94138e75-d591-4645-bb1d-212cf57a8841\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sport-psychology-training-athletes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Learn more about our one-on-one mental game coaching.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-dots\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Confident_Athlete\"><\/span>The Confident Athlete <span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"250\" src=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/confident-athlete-audio250.jpg\" alt=\"The Confident Athlete Audio\" class=\"wp-image-16347\" style=\"width:198px;height:auto\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe Confident Athlete\u201d consists of 2 audio programs that include 14 days of confidence fueling exercises and a simple to follow workbook that guides you through the 14 days, helps you apply the strategies, and customizes the exercises to your personal needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let me help you put a <strong>stop to the confidence leak<\/strong>. You can learn to have greater levels of confidence in competition than you do in practice by identifying the specific ways you undermine your own confidence and <strong>how to convert your practice confidence into COMPETITIVE CONFIDENCE<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe Confident Athlete\u201d is a ground-breaking system to teach you how to think like a champion and have ultimate self-confidence every time you step on the playing field, court, track, or course. The confident athletes was <strong>developed for any athlete \u2013 junior to professional \u2013<\/strong>that wants to gain confidence. However, coaches and sports parents can learn how to teach others to perform with ultimate confidence. Use my program if you want to bust a slump or just wanting higher or more consistent levels of self-confidence.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-0b39f7aa\">\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-a74417ae gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/the-confident-athlete-cd-program\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">GET DETAILS<\/a>\n\n\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-461ab57c gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/shop.peaksports.com\/collections\/the-confident-athlete-series-digital-download\/products\/the-confident-athlete-digital\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">BUY NOW<\/a>\n\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>High Expectations and Low Confidence No matter what sport you play, if you focus too much on outcome expectations, your sports confidence will take a hit. I call this the confidence-expectation connection\u2026. Here\u2019s the connection: When your expectations are super high\u2014and you fail to achieve those expectations\u2014confidence takes a hit. Here\u2019s a prime example from a college kicker: &#8230; <a title=\"The Number One Confidence Killer for Athletes\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/the-number-one-confidence-killer-for-athletes\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about The Number One Confidence Killer for Athletes\">Sport Psychology Article&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6200,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[142],"tags":[318,712],"class_list":["post-2683","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports-psychology-tips","tag-confidence-in-sports","tag-high-expectations-in-sports"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO Pro 4.9.6.2 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" content=\"No matter what sport you play, if you focus too much on outcome expectations, your confidence will take a hit. I call this the confidence-expectation...\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Patrick Cohn\"\/>\n\t<meta name=\"keywords\" content=\"confidence in sports,confidence and athletes,,confidence in sports tips,high expectations in sports\" \/>\n\t<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/the-number-one-confidence-killer-for-athletes\/\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"generator\" content=\"All in One SEO Pro (AIOSEO) 4.9.6.2\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Sports Psychology Articles | Sport Psychology Articles for Athletes, Coaches, and Sports Parents\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Confidence Killer for Athletes | Sports Psychology\" \/>\n\t\t<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"No matter what sport you play, if you focus too much on outcome expectations, your confidence will take a hit. 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Cohn\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.peaksports.com\\\/sports-psychology-blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/07\\\/patrick-cohn-mental-coach-web-sq.jpg\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/PeakPerformanceSports\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/PeaksportsCoach\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/sportspsychcoach\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tiktok.com\\\/@peakperformancesports\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pinterest.com\\\/peaksports\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/user\\\/MindsetForSports\"],\"description\":\"Mental Performance Coach Dr. Patrick Cohn has helped athletes for over 40 years enhance their performance. 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