How to Move on After Mistakes

Rebounding from Mistakes Mindset

Your performance has a lot to do with how you handle mistakes during competition.

Mistakes are often trip athletes mentally. Many athletes feel peak performance means perfect performance. This mindset causes a lot of negative emotion, in particular frustration, when the inevitable mistake pops up.

This leads to a split focus–a focus on the past mistakes and trying to perform in the moment! Not the best approach.

Sometimes, athletes feel sorry for themselves after a bad performance. It may be hard to admit, but it happens.

The following are various scenarios in several sports:

  • A gymnast who fell off the balance beam in a major competition and, immediately, had the feeling, “I always mess up.”
  • A baseball player who struck out with the bases loaded in the later innings of a game and said to themselves, “I can’t do anything right?”
  • A basketball player who missed several free throws in a game and told themselves, “I am the reason our team lost the game?”
  • A soccer player who had a bad playoff game and thought, “I always choke under pressure.”

Maybe you can identify with these scenarios at some level. Rebounding from mistakes and mishaps is everything in sports.

Nothing is perfect nor will it ever be. So your response to mistakes, losses and mishaps shape your mindset and performance and can linger to the next several competitions.

Let’s use a sport analogy to really drive home this point…

In basketball, it is unreasonable to expect to make EVERY shot. That is the reason REBOUNDING is so important.

You hear coaches, all the time, tell players to follow their shots in order to rebound and put the ball in the hoop.

If a player just hung his head after a missed shot (or felt sorry for himself), he would miss the opportunity to rebound and be successful. The only way to rebound is, first, stop feeling sorry for yourself.

This is true for all sports, even professional athletes…

For example, in the soccer world, Luton Town Football Club of the Championship League lost four consecutive soccer matches. After the last loss, 3-0, to Reading FC, Luton manager Graeme Jones talked about how the team gave up a bit and felt sorry for themselves.

JONES: “We started the game really well and then they scored. Then mentally, we felt sorry for ourselves, ‘what we’re going to do?’ and not enough attacking threat.”

Jones stated he would like to bring in a Mental Training professional to help his team overcome this obstacle his team currently faces.

JONES: “We’re at a point now where maybe we might have to think about going down that [mental training] route, because even if you look at last weeks’ goals, Nottingham Forest didn’t create their two goals, we gave them them. Today, we gave them three goals, so it’s an area that I’ve looked at deeply, it’s an area that I understand, it’s a reality for the mental step in the Championship [League].”

Rebounding from mistakes is a learned mental skill–you are not helpless. So with the help of a Mental Game Coach, you can develop mental skills to overcome mistakes and keep your head in the game.

How to Rebound from Mistakes:

Rebounding is a matter of responding to mistakes in a new way. Start by asking yourself a different question: “Can I really be perfect?” “Do others expect me to be perfect?” The answer is NO.

First, challenge yourself about what’s so awful about the mistake?

Next, remind yourself that you can’t change the past. The only thing you can do is more forward and focus on the next play, skill, pitch, or shot.


Learn Mental Game Strategies to Boost Your Confidence in Sports!

The Confident Athlete

If you’re an athlete who struggles with self-doubt, loses confidence, or cant take “practice confidence” to competition, The Confident Athlete is for you!

Self-confidence is what separates champion athletes from the rest of the competitors…

You can tap into my knowledge and experience to learn how to bring ultimate confidence to competition!

The Confident Athlete CD and workbook program consists of 2 audio CD’s that include 14 days of confidence fueling exercises and a simple to follow workbook that guides you through the 14 days, helps you apply the strategies and customizes the exercises to your personal needs.

Remember, confidence is a choice you make. You have to make a conscious effort to proactively seek confidence building thoughts and behaviors. Confident Athletes are proactive when it comes to confidence!

Learn more about one of our most popular CD programs in The Confident Athlete Series…

The Confident Athlete: A 14-Day Plan For Ultimate Self-Confidence

Take control of your mindset and performance today!

What are mental game customers saying about our confidence boosting program?

“I am a ASP world qualifying professional surfer and after beginning the ‘The Confident Athlete’ I had an almost instant change in attitude about my own surfing ability and my mindset going into competition. By using the Confident Athlete strategies, my confidence has done a complete 180 degrees. I won a local pro/am a few weeks back, and just had my best result of the year in one the last big events on the world circuit this last week in Brazil! It is my secret weapon!”*
~Shaun Burrell, Professional Surfer
(Listen to his success story)

“We are amazed at how much ‘The Confident Athlete’ program has helped my niece play her best tennis during matches. She literally made it to the farthest round of a tournament (semifinals) after finishing the CDs/workbook. We are going to do all 3 in the series.”*
~Jason Bourguignon, Uncle

“I bought The Confident Athlete and I have to tell you it is one of the best investments I’ve ever made in sports (and I’ve made quite a lot!)” I am a top amateur racquetball player. I have multiple state and regional titles, and 2 national titles. Your approach and ideas have snapped me out of a slump that has lasted way too long. The sport is fun again and I am playing like my old self for the first time in a long time!”*
~Mark Davis


Boost Your Self-Confidence And Focus With Expert Mental Game Coaching!

If you’re a top performer during practice but find yourself under-performing in competition, the most likely culprit holding you back is your mental game. In fact, many athletes struggle with the same problem….

Master mental game coach Dr. Patrick Cohn can help you overcome your mental game issues with personal coaching.

Meet with us via Skype, phone, FaceTime, or GoTo Meeting. With today’s video technology, we are able to connect with athletes and coaches all over the globe.

Mental toughness coaching helps serious athletes like you to uncover the beliefs and attitudes that keep you from performing to your potential. You’ll learn mental game strategies to perform at your peak more often, overcoming performance plateaus and lack of consistency

Call us toll free at 888-742-7225 or contact us for more information about the different coaching programs we offer!

What are our mental coaching students saying?

“I want to thank you for the great work you are doing with Ty. He seems to be soaring with confidence right now. We are flying out to see him pitch next weekend. He threw well Friday night and is drawing a lot of interest from several Division I schools. I’ll let you know how he looks.”*
~Randy Sullivan, Baseball Parent

“Thanks again for teaching me how to do mental game coaching with my volleyball team. We are already seeing results for just our FIRST meeting! I really enjoyed out work together in Orlando!”*
~Kurt Trout, Iowa Rockets Volleyball Coach

Disclaimer

*Testimonials found on this site are examples of what we have done for other clients, and what some of our clients have said about us. However, we cannot guarantee the results in any case. Your results may vary and every situation is different. No compensation was provided for these testimonials.

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