What Mindset Do You Need to get to the Next Level?
What is the crucial element of performing your best on the pitch when you advance to a higher competitive level?
Getting to the next level is one thing, but performing at your peak at that level is a greater challenge.
Some players, even though they produced on the pitch in the past, have difficulty believing they can replicate that success at the next level.
For example, some junior varsity players who earned a spot on their varsity squad may doubt their ability to score even when they led the JV team in scoring the previous year.
Soccer players often falter at the next level, not due to a lack of ability, but because of a lack of confidence.
They compare themselves to players who have performed at that competitive level for a longer period and judge themselves as “not good enough.”
Comparison is the enemy of athletic confidence and peak performance.
Comparison breeds doubts. Comparing yourself to other players is like saying, “I might be good, BUT I’m not THAT good.”
If you were constantly told you don’t measure up to other players on your team, your confidence would flat-line. The same is true when you tell yourself that you are not good enough.
The underlying issue is not confidence but faulty messaging…
When you change the content and tone of self-messaging, you also change confidence and performance levels.
For example, if you were just selected to the varsity team and told yourself, “These players have played on the varsity team for over a year, and I just made the team. They are obviously better than I am.” This statement is a confidence-crusher.
However, if you changed the message and tone, the result would be improved confidence. “I may not have played on varsity last year, but there is a reason I am on the team this year. I proved through my play that I belong here. I earned my spot on this team.”
If you were to reality-check both messages, you can see that the first statement is illogical. Just because someone has played on the varsity soccer team for an extra year, does not indicate they are a better player.
The second statement is more logical. You earned your spot on the team by proving you can play at that level.
In 2023, Alyssa Thompson was named to the U.S. women’s national team for the Women’s World Cup.
Thompson, 18, was the youngest on the U.S. squad, and most of her teammates had years of experience playing on the international stage.
Unfortunately, Thompson wasn’t selected as one of the 18 players to represent the United States at the 2024 Olympics the following year.
This event could have crushed Thompson’s confidence, but she worked through her circumstances. Fast forward a few more months, and Thompson scored her first international goal against Iceland in a 3-1 USWNT victory.
Thompson stated that the key to her performing confidently at the next level was a matter of positive messaging.
THOMPSON: “Before the game, [U.S. head coach Emma Hayes] kind of just told me, ‘Be yourself. Do everything you know how to do this is why you’re here.’ I think that really helped me to know that I’m here for a reason, and knowing what I’m best at is why she called me in.”
What you tell yourself affects what you believe, and you rarely can outperform what you believe to be true.
When you control the content and tone of your internal messaging, your confidence will remain high no matter who you play with or against.
Be on top of your internal dialogue. Vigilance is key.
If you are under performing or fearful you are not good enough to perform at the next level, reality-check the messages you are replaying in your mind.
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