Continuation of Common Performance Anxieties Posts.
7) Common Anxiety: “It’s Losing To The Weaker Players That Kills Me…I Self-Destruct!”
“Self-destruction unknowingly begins in the preparation phase.”
The worst part about the feelings of self-destruction in competition is that the athlete is fully aware it’s happening but can’t do anything to stop it. Their muscles begin to tighten, they shank every other ball, and their brain is fixated on contaminating outcome thoughts. We’ve all been there. You’re choking, and you know it, the opponent knows it, even the spectators know it, but you weren’t taught any self-destruction solutions, so the match feels like a slow death.
Rehearsing self-destruction solutions on the practice court provide the athlete with a practical “go to solution.” The following are a few proactive solutions to employ during match play to aid in regaining focus:
- Focus on Hitting 3 Balls Deep Down the Middle
- Apply the Old School Bounce-Hit Method of Vision Control
- Return to your Script of Top Patterns of Play
- Reboot your Between Point Rituals
I recommend the player choose two of the above solutions and play a few practice sets while focusing exclusively on employing the solutions to stop the imploding.
Preparing for pressure requires pre-set solutions to common problems.
8) Common Anxiety: “I used to beat these toads…now I’m losing to them.”
“Revitalizing begins by assessing the athlete’s
efficiencies and deficiencies.”
When athletes aren’t getting the results they believe they’re capable of getting, I recommend conducting an honest assessment of their current training and match preparation. With few exceptions, I find that the athlete has changed their developmental routines…and not for the better.
I’m a bit more detailed than the average coach. When I’m hired to revive a stalled career, I begin with a 300 Point Assessment of the athlete’s life skills, weekly developmental routines, primary & secondary strokes, mental skills, emotional skills, and incorporate match video analysis. Together, the athlete and I assess their confidence level, under pressure in each category. By doing so, we relaunch their progression
with a new plan.
Preparing for pressure often requires rebooting training modalities.
9) Common Anxiety: “In real matches, I’m so stressed. All I think about is don’t lose …then I lose!”
“Internal dialogue refers to the unspoken conversations
we all have …”
Athletes are often unaware of the inner conversation they have through the course of a tennis match. Internal dialog is the conversation our ego is having with ourselves. The old Henry Ford saying is “Whether you think you can…or think you can’t…you’re usually right,” refers to one’s inner dialog. In match play, inner dialog takes place in-between points and during changeovers. This is when athletes are encouraged to program themselves towards a more constructive mindset. With practice, athletes will learn to focus on what they want versus what they don’t want.
It’s true that society programs a negative bias day in and day out. Athletes would benefit from committing to replacing the typical negative statement, “The problem is …” with “The solution is …”
Positive self-coaching revolves around a reoccurring theme of this book: Gratitude. It shifts our mentality from pessimistic to optimistic. I encourage my athletes to apply the mantra: There’s nowhere I’d rather be than right here, right now!
Preparing for pressure demands the athlete control their mindset because energy flows wherever their
internal dialog goes.
