Perfectionism In Sports
Many athletes believe the pursuit of perfection is critical for success. These athletes feel the quest for perfection results in better and better performances.
But does perfectionism improve performance? Striving for perfection in practice, yes. Trying to perform perfectly, no…
The need to perform perfectly creates a tremendous amount of stress for athletes.
Perfectionists are their own worst enemies and harshest critics.
The strict expectations some athletes place on themselves can cause them to implode when they fail to perform up to their standards.
Perfectionists constantly worry about making mistakes, letting others down and not measuring up to their own high standards.
When perfectionists do not perform up to their expectations, they become frustrated, lose focus by dwelling on the past, and in some cases, quit their sport.
Sport psychology experts Andrew P. Hill and Thomas Curran investigated the relationship between perfectionism and burnout (Personality and Social Psychology Review, 2015) and found that perfectionism hurts athletes’ performance.
HILL: “Perfectionism [creates] fears and doubts about personal performance, which creates stress that can lead to burnout… It also can make it difficult to cope with setbacks because every mistake is viewed as a disaster.”
Think about it… If perfection is the goal, anything less than perfection is considered failure. The “need-to-be-perfect” mentality generates a huge amount of pressure, anxiety and fear of failure.
Eventually, you break under the weight of those unrealistic expectations and become physically and emotionally worn out.
Let’s make one important distinction, perfectionism is not having high standards; it is having unrealistic standards.
In reality, perfectionism often sabotages your competitive performance because athletes become excessively negative, self-critical and harsh on themselves.
Researcher Andrew Hill believes athletes should focus on achievable goals; the ability to objectively evaluate their progress; the faculty to learn from mistakes; and the ability to give themselves credit for the small successes as they work towards their goals.
HILL: “People need to learn to challenge the irrational beliefs that underlie perfectionism by setting realistic goals, accepting failure as a learning opportunity, and forgiving themselves when they fail. Creating environments where creativity, effort and perseverance are valued also would help.”
Instead of pursuing perfection, athletes are better served pursuing excellence.
- Excellence is pushing the limits of your performance.
- Excellence is the pursuit of trying to achieve more today than yesterday. Excellence is exploring your potential as an athlete.
- Excellence rewards effort and not just accomplishment.
- Excellence motivates; perfection decimates.
Tip for pursuing excellence while managing expectations:
Instead of trying to perform perfectly, focus on “functional” performances. Sometimes you can perform well and get the job done, but it does not look or feel perfect.
Lastly, plan for how you will manage mistakes that happen along the way. That is to say… How will you learn from your mistakes and weave into your plan strategies to cope with mistakes when they happen?
For example, remind yourself that the goal is not to perform perfectly and that mistakes are part of sports.
Improve Your Trust For Competition Today!
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“WOW!!! What a week I had. I was able to perform with a confidence that allowed my style to shine through–no more entering the arena with that “deer in the headlights” look or feeling. I stopped evaluating myself while I was performing, and I actually left the arena after my patterns feeling like I had experienced a lot of fun. Thank you so much.”
~Julia Dreyer, National Champion Equestrian
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“I first purchased The Confident Athlete to see how the program went and immediately saw results. I then purchased the rest of the confident athlete series and have noticed a dramatic improvement in my level of play or should I say consistency. I currently play NCAA Division 1 baseball for Lamar University, and even my coaches have noticed a change in the way that I approach the game. My attitude and confidence at the plate.”
~Tylor Prudhomme (Listen to his success story)
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We’ve got a great program for you called “The Confident Sports Kid: A 7-Day Plan for Building Ultimate Self-Confidence.”
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Packed with mental strategies that you and your kids can start using immediately, this program teaches your athletes how to identify confidence busters, proactively deal with them, manage expectations that undermine confidence, and mentally prepare to stay confident when faced with adversity.
What’s more, our program teaches you, as sports parents and coaches, how you may be hurting your kids’ confidence and gives you instructions for changing your behavior in ways that will improve your athletes’ performance, confidence and enjoyment.
Learn more about one of our most popular CD programs in The Confident Sports Kid Series…
The Confident Sports Kid: A 7-Day Plan for Building Ultimate Self-Confidence
Check out all of our products in The Confident Sports Kid Series!
What are parents and coaches saying about our program?
“I appreciate the advice to parents as to how to help your child become more mentally resilient to bullying in sports. The specific advice and scenarios are extremely helpful for any child on a team and very helpful in guiding parents, coaches and administrators in how to deal with bullying in sports. I cannot thank you enough for your input, and I am so reassured to know that there are people like you who are writing articles and doing interviews on such timely and important matters.”
~Julie Goot
“Dr. Patrick Cohn and Lisa Cohn are to be congratulated! Together, they offer a wealth of knowledge, information, and practical mental tools for sports parents on the substantial “mental game” challenges and pressures facing today’s young athletes.”
~Marc D. Anderson, LCSW, MGCP, Mental Game Coach
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What are coaches saying?
“I am really pleased with the Athlete’s Mental Edge workbooks – they are fitting in really well with my coaching! I find they offer a great framework for doing workshop sessions. I have also used the workbooks with a few individual athletes – for the younger ones (12 and under). They are giving a good structure and framework to our sessions. The workbooks have worked well with all of them!”
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~Tony Melito, MGCP