383 | 3 Ways to Get Stronger Competitors

Let’s say your athlete sucks at free throws.  As a coach, you know what to do. You know to take a look at their form, correct anything that needs correcting, and have them spend lots and lots of time practicing free throws.  But what if your athlete is great at free throws in practice, but totally falls apart in competition. Then what?  I think we can all agree this scenario is a little trickier.  While coaching the physical side of competition is pretty straightforward, coaching the mental game is often abiguous. And sadly, even the best competitors are not always good at teaching others to be great competitors.  Many great competitors come to it naturally. Some are born with natural competitive instincts, and some simply play long enough that they eventually figure it out (but never really break it down into a teachable formula). As a coach, maybe you fall into one of these two categories.  If you’ve ever struggled to teach your athletes how to compete, you are not alone.  I was fortunate enough to have a teacher show me how to compete, and it’s my joy to pass their wisdom along.  Today, I’m breaking down my 3 part formula for creating better competitors (featured in my course, The Psychology of Competition). I believe that consistent routines lead to consistent results, so my system is built on time-tested, hands-on routines that you can bring back to your team and easily integrate into practice and competition. In this episode, I’ll teach you: Pre-Competition Routines - How you can help your athletes reframe their nerves, reflect on past performances, pay attention to their physiological mindstate before competition, and coach them through simple exercises to help them compete at their best. In-Competition Routines - Learn about our hard-hitting Mistake Ritual that will help your athletes re-set and re-center during competition when they need it most.  Post-Competition Routines - Including one powerful critiquing exercise your athletes should be doing after every game, win or lose.  Today’s extended episode will give you real-life, actionable tips to help you create relentless competitors. Here are links to the resources mentioned in this episode:  The Mistake Ritual: https://www.positiveperformancetraining.com/mistake-ritual  The Psychology of Competition: https://www.positiveperformancetraining.com/PSYCHOLOGY-OF-COMPETITION    RATE, REVIEW, & FOLLOW ON APPLE PODCASTS “I love Lindsey’s straight forward, realistic approach to motivation and living your best life.” <– If that sounds like you, we'd love for you to rate and review the podcast! This helps us reach more high performers — just like you — on a personal growth journey to become better leaders, competitors, and humans. Click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select “Write a Review.” Let us know what you loved most about the episode! Also, if you haven’t done so already, follow the podcast. We’re adding episodes to the feed each week and we don’t want you to miss out. Follow now!   OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THIS PODCAST Download on iTunes Listen on Spotify