{"id":8597,"date":"2018-02-16T17:33:46","date_gmt":"2018-02-16T17:33:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/?p=8597"},"modified":"2025-06-17T06:23:54","modified_gmt":"2025-06-17T10:23:54","slug":"how-high-expectations-sabotage-athletes-mental-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-high-expectations-sabotage-athletes-mental-game\/","title":{"rendered":"How High Expectations Sabotage Athletes&#8217; Mental Game"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-8611\" src=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Managing-High-Expectations-in-Sports.jpg\" alt=\"Managing High Expectations in Sports\" width=\"600\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Managing-High-Expectations-in-Sports.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Managing-High-Expectations-in-Sports-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=\"Overcoming_High_Expectations_in_Sports\"><\/span>Overcoming High Expectations 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\/how-high-expectations-sabotage-athletes-mental-game\/#Overcoming_High_Expectations_in_Sports\" >Overcoming High Expectations 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\/how-high-expectations-sabotage-athletes-mental-game\/#High_expectations_lead_to_increased_pressure_and_others_negative_consequences_for_athletes_and_teams_such_as\" >High expectations lead to increased pressure and others negative consequences for athletes and teams, such as:<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-high-expectations-sabotage-athletes-mental-game\/#How_to_Managing_High_Expectations\" >How to Managing High Expectations:<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/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\/how-high-expectations-sabotage-athletes-mental-game\/#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-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-high-expectations-sabotage-athletes-mental-game\/#The_Confident_Athlete\" >The Confident Athlete<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p><em>&#8220;Shoot for the moon&#8230; Even if you miss, you&#8217;ll land among the stars.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Many athletes adopt this philosophy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately, athletes with this type of mentality heap <strong>excessive demands<\/strong> upon themselves believing this method will still result personal best or optimal performances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The reality is that excessively <strong>high expectations<\/strong> rarely result in high-level performance. When expectations are high, so is the <strong>pressure<\/strong> to meet those expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"High_expectations_lead_to_increased_pressure_and_others_negative_consequences_for_athletes_and_teams_such_as\"><\/span>High expectations lead to increased pressure and others negative consequences for athletes and teams, such as:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Reduced confidence<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Anxiety<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Fear of failure<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Overthinking<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Inability to move past mistakes<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Negative thinking<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Under-performance<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>One athlete who was crushed under the weight of high expectations was Mark Appel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Appel was selected by the Houston Astros with the No. 1 pick in the 2013 MLB draft and immediately received a $6.35 million signing bonus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Appel was heralded as the eventual cornerstone for the Astros pitching rotation after posting a 2.12 ERA during his senior year at Stanford University, striking out 130 batters and walking just 23 in 106.1 innings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Appel was viewed &#8220;as risk-free a pitcher pick as has ever been made&#8221; by Sports Illustrated and &#8220;the most significant investment the Astros have made in their history in an amateur player&#8221; by the Astros\u2019 front office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Expectations<\/strong> weren\u2019t just high for Appel, these expectations were sky high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Appel didn\u2019t come close to living up to those excessive expectations, compiling a disappointing 5.06 ERA during his five seasons in the minor leagues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>APPEL:<\/strong> <em>&#8220;I go out and pitch, and it&#8217;s the same thing every time. I can&#8217;t get an out. Walk. Hit. Walk. Hit. Then I&#8217;m out of the game. What just happened? Now it&#8217;s like I have four days before I get my hopes up again, get excited, build that confidence, not caring what happened in the past. Then the same thing happens again.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a result, Appel announced early in 2018 that he is taking an \u201cindefinite break\u201d from professional baseball.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If Appel chooses to not further pursue his career in baseball, he would become just the third No. 1 overall pick to never make the major leagues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Appel was &#8220;expected&#8221; to be a dominant MLB pitcher and consistently vie for the Cy Young award each year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Instead, Appel succumbed to the <strong>pressure<\/strong> that results from <strong>excessive expectations<\/strong> and eventually lost his passion for the game he once loved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>APPEL:<\/strong> <em>&#8220;I&#8217;m a guy who loves a game, who had expectations, goals and dreams and then has had everything tumbling, and then everything was unmet. Would I have loved to be pitching in the World Series? Absolutely. Some people have real struggles. I played baseball. I thought I was going to be great, and I wasn&#8217;t.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is just one story about how excessively <strong>high demands<\/strong> can destroy your athletic experience. If you truly want to achieve your potential, your goals should be within reach but also challenge you to stretch for their attainment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_Managing_High_Expectations\"><\/span>How to Managing High Expectations:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>You might have your own person expectations, such as I should not make any mistakes in the game or you might feel expectations from others, such as &#8220;I should be the leading scorer on the team.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You first want to uncover these high expectations that sabotage your mental game. Make a list of what you demand of your game&#8212;I also call these the &#8220;Shoulds&#8221; and &#8220;Shouldn&#8217;ts.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Instead of focusing on your expectations, replace them with more manageable goals that help you focus on your role on the team, such as to &#8220;find open space&#8221; or &#8220;make stops on defense.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Learn how to manage your expectations with &#8220;The Confident Athlete&#8221; audio program:<\/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\/fear-of-meeting-others-expectations-and-pressure\/\"><strong>Fear of Meeting Other\u2019s Expectations and Pressure<\/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-athletes-can-manage-expectations\/\"><strong>How Athletes Can Manage Expectations<\/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\/helping-athletes-manage-high-expectations\/\"><strong>Helping Athletes Manage High Expectations<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-normal-font-size\" id=\"block-5726d13f-f715-4ca4-8813-2f8a9ebd8bc3\">*Subscribe to<strong>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/sports-psychology-podcast-by-peaksports-com\/id152566009\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Sports Psychology Podcast<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>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>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Overcoming High Expectations in Sports &#8220;Shoot for the moon&#8230; Even if you miss, you&#8217;ll land among the stars.&#8221; Many athletes adopt this philosophy. Unfortunately, athletes with this type of mentality heap excessive demands upon themselves believing this method will still result personal best or optimal performances. The reality is that excessively high expectations rarely result in high-level performance. &#8230; <a title=\"How High Expectations Sabotage Athletes&#8217; Mental Game\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.peaksports.com\/sports-psychology-blog\/how-high-expectations-sabotage-athletes-mental-game\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about How High Expectations Sabotage Athletes&#8217; Mental Game\">Sport Psychology Article&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8612,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,230,5,13,142,4,39],"tags":[712,43],"class_list":["post-8597","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-confidence-in-sports","category-intimidation-in-sports","category-mental-game-of-sports","category-mental-game-skills","category-sports-psychology-tips","category-mental-toughness-in-sports","category-performance-anxiety","tag-high-expectations-in-sports","tag-pressure-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=\"&quot;Shoot for the moon. 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