{"id":8045,"date":"2017-03-09T19:01:40","date_gmt":"2017-03-09T19:01:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/?p=8045"},"modified":"2025-06-17T06:01:02","modified_gmt":"2025-06-17T10:01:02","slug":"confidence-and-knowing-you-belong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/confidence-and-knowing-you-belong\/","title":{"rendered":"Confidence And Knowing You Belong"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-8050 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/confidence.jpg\" alt=\"Sports Psychology\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/confidence.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/confidence-300x150.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Performing_Confidently_in_Sports\"><\/span>Performing Confidently in Sports<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\/confidence-and-knowing-you-belong\/#Performing_Confidently_in_Sports\" >Performing Confidently in Sports<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/confidence-and-knowing-you-belong\/#Does_this_story_sound_familiar\" >Does this story sound familiar?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/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\/confidence-and-knowing-you-belong\/#Here_is_an_example_of_knowing_you_belong\" >Here is an example of knowing you belong<\/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\/confidence-and-knowing-you-belong\/#Effective_Strategy_for_Performing_Confidently\" >Effective Strategy for Performing Confidently<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/confidence-and-knowing-you-belong\/#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-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/confidence-and-knowing-you-belong\/#The_Confident_Athlete\" >The Confident Athlete<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Part of feeling <strong>confident<\/strong> as an athlete is &#8220;knowing you belong&#8221; in a specific team or competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>For a gymnast, &#8220;knowing you belong&#8221; may be competing at Nationals.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For a tennis player, &#8220;knowing you belong&#8221; may be closing out a match against a higher ranked opponent.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For a soccer player, &#8220;knowing you belong&#8221; may be breaking into the starting lineup for your team.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>You have fought hard to get to a higher level in your sport&#8230; You put in many hours of training&#8230; You&#8217;ve worked hard to improve your technique&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You didn\u2019t get to your current level by chance. You belong &#8220;here&#8221; because you did the work and have the skills to be &#8220;here.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Does_this_story_sound_familiar\"><\/span>Does this story sound familiar?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Sheila is a 14 year-old tennis player who has been playing competitive tennis for four years.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Sheila has watched as some of the more gifted players she trains with win local tournaments and have gotten their names in the newspapers.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Tennis seemed to come easy for other girls at her level while Sheila had to work hard and take private lessons to improve her game in matches.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Sometimes Sheila would compare herself to her competitors and feel as if she would never be as good as them.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Sheila struggled with <strong>confidence<\/strong> but, nonetheless, continued to work hard and improve her skills.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>In a recent Junior tournament, Sheila advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time in her career and won!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Sheila\u2019s hard work was paying off as she played aggressively, won her semifinal match and was now in a position to take home her first title.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Sheila was set to face a player she trains with everyday.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>A rush of negative thoughts flowed through Sheila\u2019s mind, &#8220;I wouldn\u2019t have won semis if that other girl didn\u2019t double fault on the final set,&#8221; &#8220;I just got lucky,&#8221; and, &#8220;I will never be able to beat her, she crushes me in practice every day.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Instead of taking credit for her <strong>successful<\/strong> matches, Sheila felt she didn\u2019t belong despite doing all the work to get there.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Sheila lost her <strong>confidence,<\/strong> looked like a totally different player in finals and lost in straight sets.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As an athlete, you can talk yourself right out of <strong>confidence<\/strong> when you feel you don&#8217;t belong. It&#8217;s easy to look for reasons why you don&#8217;t stack up&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Or you can think about why you belong by <strong>focusing<\/strong> on the evidence or reasons why you belong where you are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Here_is_an_example_of_knowing_you_belong\"><\/span>Here is an example of knowing you belong<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Edwin Diaz is a pitcher for the Seattle Mariners who is entering his first big-league camp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Last year at this time Diaz was preparing for his role as a starting pitcher in the minor leagues. After being called up mid-season last year and converting 18 saves out of 21 save opportunities, Diaz is penciled in as the Mariners closer for 2017.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At 22 years of age, Diaz is charged with the task of protecting the lead at the end of the game, a task that demands high <strong>confidence.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mariner manager Scott Servais is not worried about putting the young Diaz in such a critical role.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>SERVAIS:<\/strong> <em>&#8220;Diaz is very confident. He knows he belongs.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Robinson Cano concurs with Servais and attributes Diaz\u2019s <strong>confidence<\/strong> to the work and preparation he has put in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CANO:<\/strong> <em>&#8220;[Servais] came up and wasn\u2019t afraid to face anyone. When you have got a kid that age that has that <strong>confidence<\/strong> and that stuff, the hardest thing is to have <strong>confidence<\/strong> in yourself, but he has confidence and he works hard.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you can <strong>focus<\/strong> the reasons for why you &#8220;belong&#8221; in that competitive situation, then you will perform with <strong>confidence.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Effective_Strategy_for_Performing_Confidently\"><\/span>Effective Strategy for Performing Confidently<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Build a strong case for why you belong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Come up with a list of three or more reasons why you belong in a certain competitive situation (&#8220;I worked hard to get here,&#8221; or, &#8220;I put in the extra time to improve my technique,&#8221; or, &#8220;I am mentally strong&#8221;).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Be <strong>proactive<\/strong> with your <strong>confidence<\/strong> when you compete. Remind yourself these reasons before you compete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Look for reasons you belong, rather than excuses to fail!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/the-confident-athlete-cd-program\/\"><strong>And run over the Peaksports.com and checkout my most popular program to boost confidence.<\/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\/do-you-or-your-team-have-the-comeback-mindset\/\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/overcome-the-imposter-syndrome\/\"><strong>Overcome the Imposter Syndrome<\/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-grow-competition-confidence\/\"><strong>How to Grow Competition Confidence&nbsp;<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-preparation-boosts-confidence\/\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-to-build-stable-confidence-2\/\"><strong>How to Build Stable 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&nbsp;<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>&nbsp;on iTunes<br>*Subscribe to <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/0ynyaalKxbnNmsoeL8gF5X?si=8224669de9b3435b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/a> <\/strong>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>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Performing Confidently in Sports Part of feeling confident as an athlete is &#8220;knowing you belong&#8221; in a specific team or competition. You have fought hard to get to a higher level in your sport&#8230; You put in many hours of training&#8230; You&#8217;ve worked hard to improve your technique&#8230; You didn\u2019t get to your current level by chance. You &#8230; <a title=\"Confidence And Knowing You Belong\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/confidence-and-knowing-you-belong\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Confidence And Knowing You Belong\">Sport Psychology Article&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8048,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[142],"tags":[383,250],"class_list":["post-8045","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports-psychology-tips","tag-confidence-for-sports","tag-sports-psychology"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO Pro 4.9.6.2 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Part of feeling confident as an athlete is &quot;knowing you belong&quot; in a specific team or competition. 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