{"id":3690,"date":"2015-02-05T15:23:31","date_gmt":"2015-02-05T15:23:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports_psychology_blog\/?p=3690"},"modified":"2025-06-11T07:13:59","modified_gmt":"2025-06-11T11:13:59","slug":"positive-self-talk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/positive-self-talk\/","title":{"rendered":"Positive or Negative Self-Talk. Which One Do You Use?"},"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\/2015\/02\/positive-self-talk.jpg\" alt=\"Positive Self-Talk\" class=\"wp-image-5894\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/positive-self-talk.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/positive-self-talk-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=\"Carrs_Positive_Self-Talk\"><\/span>Carr&#8217;s Positive Self-Talk<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\/positive-self-talk\/#Carrs_Positive_Self-Talk\" >Carr&#8217;s Positive Self-Talk<\/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\/positive-self-talk\/#Try_these_tips_to_improve_your_focus_through_positive_self-talk\" >Try these tips to improve your focus through positive self-talk:<\/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\/positive-self-talk\/#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\/positive-self-talk\/#The_Focused_Athlete\" >The Focused Athlete<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Does negative self-talk make it difficult to focus during competitions?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Do you wish you could be more <strong>positive<\/strong> after mistakes?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Negative self-talk is when you berate yourself for making mistakes during practice or competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Obviously, negative self-talk hurts your <strong>confidence<\/strong> and enjoyment in sports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>How can you turn negative self-talk into <strong>positive<\/strong> <strong>self<\/strong>&#8211;<strong>talk<\/strong>, the mental conversation you have that helps your confidence?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Christopher M. Carr explored the relationship between <strong>focus<\/strong> and <strong>optimal<\/strong> <strong>performance<\/strong> in his study, &#8220;Sport Psychology: Psychologic Issues and Applications (Physical Medicine &amp; Rehabilitation Clinics of North America, 2006).&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Carr identified positive self-talk as one technique that can enhance competitive <strong>focus<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He defines self-talk is the conscious and subconscious dialog that occurs in your mind before, during, and after competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Self-talk affects your <strong>confidence<\/strong> and emotions which impact your performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CARR<\/strong>: <em>\u201cIf athletes are engaging in negative self-talk, their affective experience may be one of frustration, anger, or extreme anxiety. These emotional states challenge breathing, increase muscle tension, and create a loss of concentration and focus, resulting in lower performance. If an athlete\u2019s self-talk is positive and relevant, however, the resulting emotional experience is one of relaxation, calmness, and feeling centered; as a result, the chances of good performance increase dramatically.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By engaging in positive self-talk, you can eliminate the negative mental chatter and <strong>focus<\/strong> on what you need to do to perform optimally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Try_these_tips_to_improve_your_focus_through_positive_self-talk\"><\/span>Try these tips to improve your focus through positive self-talk:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Tip #1: Journal your self-talk for one week after practice and competition. Assess what percent of your self-talk is positive or negative. When do you engage in negative self-talk?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Tip #2: Practice changing your negative self-talk you identified from #1 above into positive self-talk. How can you transfer your new self-talk to future competitions?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Knowing the situations when you get negative with yourself will help you be mindful of how to change your reaction to positive self-talk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Successful athletes have learned to eliminate distractions and consistently improve performance. We&#8217;ve created <a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/the-focused-athlete-cd-program\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" title=\"The Focused Athlete\"><strong>The Focused Athlete, Workbook Program<\/strong><\/a> to help you do this.<\/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-self-talk-can-help-you-rebound\/\"><strong>How Self-Talk Can Help You Rebound\u00a0<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/improve-self-talk-to-reach-your-peak-performance\/\"><strong>Improve Self-Talk to Reach Your Peak Performance<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/overcome-negative-self-talk-in-sports\/\"><strong>Overcome Negative Self-talk in Sports<\/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_Focused_Athlete\"><\/span>The Focused 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\/2010\/03\/focused-athlete-teams-small.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3922\" style=\"width:215px;height:auto\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s probably no secret that you have many opportunities<strong> to become distracted<\/strong> in sports. Athletes are bombarded with both internal and external distractions everyday in practice and competition. <strong>Focused athletes<\/strong> are able to get the most from their skills because they are more efficient with practice and more concentrated in competition. Athletes who lack focus <strong>let distractions run wild through their mind and don\u2019t know how to adjust or refocus.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Focused Athlete was developed for any level coach, parent, or junior to professional athlete who wants to improve performance and gain a competitive edge. It does not matter if you are a fledgling junior athlete; or a seasoned professional, plagued with distractions; or you just wanting to learn how to improve concentration\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe Focused Athlete\u201d is a complete system to teach you how to focus like a champion and harness the power of a zone focus every time you step on the playing field, court, track, or course in practice and games!<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-container gb-container-769fef19\">\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-68fab510 gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/the-focused-athlete-cd-program\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">GET DETAILS<\/a>\n\n\n\n<a class=\"gb-button gb-button-3043572a gb-button-text\" href=\"https:\/\/shop.peaksports.com\/collections\/the-confident-athlete-series-digital-download\/products\/the-focused-athlete-digital\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">BUY NOW<\/a>\n\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Carr&#8217;s Positive Self-Talk Does negative self-talk make it difficult to focus during competitions? Do you wish you could be more positive after mistakes? Negative self-talk is when you berate yourself for making mistakes during practice or competition. Obviously, negative self-talk hurts your confidence and enjoyment in sports. How can you turn negative self-talk into positive self&#8211;talk, the mental &#8230; <a title=\"Positive or Negative Self-Talk. Which One Do You Use?\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/positive-self-talk\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Positive or Negative Self-Talk. Which One Do You Use?\">Sport Psychology Article&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5895,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,142,23],"tags":[324,496,603],"class_list":["post-3690","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mental-game-of-sports","category-sports-psychology-tips","category-self-confidence-in-sports","tag-focus-in-sports","tag-negative-self-talk-in-sports","tag-positive-self-talk-in-sports"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO Pro 4.9.5.2 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Does negative self-talk make it difficult to focus during competitions? 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