Taking Responsibility to Turn Your Game Around
Do you feel you never get any breaks in competition, as if you were cursed by bad luck?
Do you feel you get unlucky bounces, unfair officiating, bad seeding, unlucky draws, inopportune equipment failure, horrible competition conditions, injuries, and opponents who are firing on all cylinders just at the right time?
You probably question, “Why do these unlucky things always happen to me?”
That’s a good question… Why do these things happen to you?
Why does bad luck seem to follow you constantly?
When you think you’re unlucky, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Every bad break will become evidence to support your belief that you are unlucky.
The reality is all athletes get bad breaks…
It’s just that some athletes perpetuate the bad luck cycle by calling themselves unlucky while other athletes rely on effort to move past those bad breaks.
How can you turn your supposed luck around?
Take responsibility for your performance!
Don’t blame your performance on bad luck. Look to those performances for insight to improve future performances.
Taking responsibility requires that you focus on your strengths rather than misfortune.
Focusing on misfortune hurts your effort and leads to under-performance.
Focusing on your strengths will keep you motivated to try to turn the tide, to make your own breaks rather than passively waiting for some opportunity to come your way.
Focusing on your strengths will help you see what you can do, right now, to turn things around instead of getting stuck on what has already happened.
Taking responsibility also requires that you prepare for all contingencies.
Preparation is a proactive step that helps you develop the physical and mental tools to meet challenges.
If you take responsibility for your level of performance, then you have the power to improve future performances.
Taking responsibility puts the ball in your court.
Taking responsibility is what the Ottawa Senators know they need in order to break out of their mini slump.
The Senators had a stretch of six losses in seven games.
One particular loss really hit hard when they allowed the Tampa Bay Lightning to tie the game with 27 seconds left in regulation and then lost the game 14 seconds into overtime.
Ottawa defenseman Mark Borowiecki talked about the team’s need to take responsibility for their level of play in order to be better prepared for future games.
BOROWIECKI: “As a group, collectively, we’ve got to take some ownership for our play and our results. It’s been a few too many years here for us where the players haven’t taken ownership. We’re going through a rough patch here and this is where it’s a true test of our personalities and a true test of the group we have in here.”
Ultimately, the athlete that recovers from bad breaks is the athlete that asks themselves, “What now?” Instead of, “Why me?”
That is the essence of personal responsibility.
Turning Your Game Around:
Taking responsibility is a matter of focus and effort, not excuses.
Monitor your self-talk…
When you notice that you start blaming performance on outside sources, redirect your focus by asking, “What positive step can I do right now?”
Changing your luck is a matter of making your luck.
Improve Concentration in Sports!
If you’re an athlete who is frequently distracted, loses focus in competition, or wants to learn more about how to focus better under pressure, The Focused Athlete is for you!
Concentration and the ability to focus under adversity is what championship athletes do best.
It only takes one distraction to enter your mind for you to lose a critical point, miss a putt, or lose a second off your lap time. You cannot afford to let distractions run wild in your mind and cause you to make errors at critical times in the game!
The Focused Athlete is a complete system to teach you how to focus like a champion and harness the power of a zone focus every tie you step on the playing field, court, track or course in practice and games!
This workbook and CD program consists of 2 audio CDs that include 14 days of focus boosting exercises and a simple to follow workbook that guides you through each of the 14 days, helps you apply strategies, and customizes the exercises to your personal focus challenges.
You’ll Discover:
- How to quickly identify distractions that sabotage your concentration and how to quickly refocus after distractions.
- How to use pre-shot routines before shots or serves to help you be more task-focused instead of worrying about results.
- How to use pregame routines to help you harness the power of zone concentration before competition.
Learn more about one of our most popular CD programs in The Confident Athlete Series…
The Focused Athlete: A 14-Day Plan For Superior Concentration
What are customers saying about our mental game programs?
“As a result of reading and implementing ‘The Confident Athlete Series,’ I am once again enjoying golf and letting bad shots roll off my shoulders and appreciating my good shots without attaching expectations. Thanks Dr. Cohn!”
~Stu Blasius, P.G.A. Golf Professional
“Your response to the throwing problem in front of the coach covers so many situations in life…that is the beauty of playing sports…the life learning experiences. Keep up the good work…you are the best mental coach.”
~Bill Brennan, sports parent
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?
“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
“After your session, Mason had a game. He had the best game so far! He hustled, shot, no goals but two assists but he was cool with it because his focus was on shooting and not scoring (finally), defended well with his hands – finally put it all together. It was fun to watch and you could tell he felt really good about it.”
~Kelly, Lacrosse mom
“Peaksports.com website is so exciting. I researched them all and without a doubt your mental training site is the best! The vast amount of programs you provide helps athletes and coaches achieve higher levels of excellence in sports.”
~Doug Bolander, Hockey Coach
“Michelle had the best weekend of soccer she has ever played. I’m not just saying this because you have been working with her (I promise!). She was relaxed, did not get frustrated with herself or teammates, never once ‘shut down’ and actually smiled a couple of times. Numerous parents noticed a difference in her composure and attitude. A college coach sent an email last night expressing interest–commenting on her level of play during the weekend. Thanks again for EVERYTHING…Michelle is in a very good place right now!”
~Diana, Michelle’s Mother
“Thanks for all your help Dr. Cohn. You can rest assured that all our work came in very handy when I successfully qualified for the European Tour. I’m very happy and extremely thankful to you for helping me achieve this massive goal of qualifying for the European Tour! Thanks a lot again.”
~Alex Rocha, European Tour Player