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Browse published articles attributed to Patrick Cohn, with full-archive search.
Intimidation is a massive mental barrier for many athletes. It often happens when you compare yourself to your opponent's skills before competition. Many athletes worry about the skill level of their opponents and then feel inferior, for example. What do you think about when you see the word ...
Are you or your players afraid other athletes will see you as weak if you have to do mental training or work with a sports psychologist? Still today, athletes buy into myths about sports psychology, which prevent them from embracing the benefits of mental training. I recently received an email from a young hockey player getting ready for try outs. This hockey player states: "I have friends who perform better than me and they don't read any mental training books.
Do you get frustrated when you are not playing up to your potential? Many tennis players experience frustration during a match. They may make the wrong decision on a shot, make an unforced error or lose a game when they’ve had the lead. These can all be sources of frustration for tennis ...
One of my mental coaching students, Joe (not his real name) had a unique gift (or so he thought). Since he was overly conce ed with what other people thought (coach, teammates, parents, spectators, etc.) about his performance, he often engaged in a process I call mind reading when ...
I recently worked with a high school athlete who was plagued by those nasty inner gremlins. You know the type – that little guy or gal inside your head who would not shut up and kept asking irrelevant questions. This kept my student from developing confidence and playing to his ...
The inner game of tennis is very important to your success. Timothy Gallwey wrote the “Inner Game of Tennis” many years ago and it was a groundbreaking book at the time. You should read the inner game of tennis if you have not. Tim says that players must achieve skill mastery first, which means ...
Athletes and coaches prepareto make each year their best in sports. One important step to consider is how to start a mental training program. No matter how much talent you or your team possesses or how money you spend on equipment and physical training, you cannot reach your potential with a ...
What does it truly mean to believe in yourself? When you believe in yourself, you have full confidence in your physical skills and ability to execute shots in tennis. My definition of self-confidence for tennis is how strongly you believe in your ability to execute a successful shot or win a ...
Do you play tennis with a ton of confidence in practice, but have trouble taking your practice game to matches? If so, you are not alone. Many of my players are more comfortable in their practice routines than in matches. They lose trust in their strokes that worked well in practice. I recently ...
NASCAR champions use a popular motto: "To speed up, slow down. " This may sound contradictory, but in mental game coaching, I use a similar motto: "To perform better, try less. " Just like in auto racing, it's common for other athletes to think that 110% effort is the optimal path to peak ...
I’m a youth soccer coach and sports mom/stepmom to four young athletes aged 8 to 19. Our kids dance, skate, ski, run cross-country, and play soccer, lacrosse, football and basketball. As a sports parent, I’ve dealt with sports kids who: 1. Are stars in practice but choke up during competition ...
To be a consistent performer you *must* slay the raging monster within (control your emotions during competition). I am sure at one time (or two), you became upset, frustrated, or angry with yourself and it cost you the game or match. How quickly you can recover from errors and mishaps will ...
Confidence and momentum in tennis are close cousins. When you have momentum, you have confidence squared. Yes, momentum is a huge psychological advantage in any sport especially tennis. Players feel a sense of exhilaration when they have momentum on their side – it’s a huge boost to your mental ...
Have you ever competed against an opponent who was not as dedicated as you or did not work as hard as you do, but somehow found a way to beat you in competition? Under performing can be super-frustrating for most athletes. My coaching students think it is frustrating. They says things such as, ...
Mistakes or errors occur every day in sports and life, but many athletes stifle their own performance because they simply can't let go of past mistakes. Missing shots, double faulting, and losing an important game happen often in the sports world and become a thorn in many athlete's mind. In ...
Self-confidence is the number one mental skill that your young athlete must possess to be successful in sports and life! Self-doubt is the number one mental barrier that blocks athletes from that success. Having high levels of confidence is so important that I spend most of my time teaching ...
There are two bad habits that many athletes today engage in - and they do it without even thinking about it. The habits I'm talking about are *not* drinking or smoking. The two bad habits I am talking about, which kill confidence are: 1. Setting unrealistic expectations 2. Engaging in ...
How successful would you be with Tiger-like confidence? Tiger Woods is known for having one of the best mental games in the world of sports. Why do sports-minded people think that Woods is so mentally strong? Maybe Tiger is successful because of his ability to come from behind and close better ...
Do you perform relaxed and tension-free in a practice but then race tense or scared in races or national events? This is a big sign that your mindset breakdowns when you go from practice to race situations. Why would your mind get in the way when you think the race really counts or is important ...
Many athletes I work with on a daily basis hold themselves back with a comfort zone. A comfort zone is a mental barrier that limits what you think you are capable of accomplishing and is really hard to shake. A comfort zone is a problem whenever an athlete is playing better than expected or is ...
All athletes love the magical, sought after state of mind known as the *zone.*This state of supreme focus helps athletes in all sports perform at their peak. Many athletes who want to reach their peak potential are always in search of secrets to hop into the '*zone.* But the zone is really not ...
Many athletes who are perfectionistic with their approach to sports think they have a great attitude about sports, until we talk about how perfectionism can hold them back from reaching their potential. Don't get me wrong. There are some advantages of perfectionism such as having a strong work ...
Sports psychology experts often talk about the importance of learning mental toughness to improve your performance. However, my 15 years of teaching the mental game to students makes me think that understanding mental toughness skills is not the whole enchilada. To be successful with mental ...
Are you in control of your own level of confidence prior to competition? Do you know how to harness the power of a confident mindset quickly when needed? If not, you need to take action - take confident action. Many athletes make the mistake of not taking responsibility for their own confidence ...