Devolping Strength Within

Yesterday a former player of mine emailed to ask me how to develop mental toughness. She felt her team members were not displaying the attributes they should in terms of being mentally tough. I believe I know what many coaches might say. They would lean toward the physical part of practice to create the mental part.

In other words, many coaches believe the way to mental toughness is to put athletes in positions where they have to physically push through their self-imposed limits. For example, we make our players run 15 suicides in a row with only a thirty four second rest between each suicide. It is tough. It hurts. They gasp for breath but in the end most of them make their times. They see a result they didn't believe they could accomplish. This gives them confidence which produces mental toughness.

Confidence is really what mental toughness is. It is the belief system developed by players they can do and achieve what they desire. The problem is most players doubt. It is this doubt which doesn't allow them to achieve. It is not their abilities which hold them back; it is their belief system. When a desire is matched by a belief, then a player becomes mentally tough and all types of wonderful achievements occur.

While the physical part of practice is critical to success, the greater part of achieving goals is the mental part. No action in the world can overcome the inner belief system of not being good enough. Success has to start within the player.

We try to approach mental toughness training in a variety of ways. We have chalk talks every Thursday where we talk about the aspects of mental preparedness: how to respond to pressure; how to improve self talk; how to use rituals to get mentally prepared for games; how to play in the now.

We address self-awareness through the use of a journal. We ask them to answer questions about themselves where they have to think about their inner most thoughts. We might address their biggest strengths or weaknesses. We might ask them their state of mind before the best game they ever played. They might be asked to define the characteristics which prevent them from being a great player. It is through self-awareness they can create changes. If they don't know what they are thinking, they cannot change their thoughts.

In order for team members to become aware of what are the desirable traits, we have them fill out a questionnaire after each practice and game. By filling out the short questionnaires, they become more in tune with how they are developing their mental abilities.

We develop a great learning environment where we constructively criticize and provide positive feedback. We spend more time telling players what they can do versus telling them what they cannot do. We place more emphasis on recovering from a mistake than the mistake itself. We hold positive circles where each team member shares a positive trait. We emphasize the good about the team and team members.

Mental toughness is a difficult skill to teach, yet is it by far the most essential trait an athlete can develop. When a player learns to change her belief system to match her desires, she will not only become an elite athlete; she will experience success in all life endeavors.