Sport Psychology Tip of the Month

Learn your Strengths and ID Your Mental Weapons

Great athletes have a keen awareness of their strengths and areas needing improvement. As I listen to Serena Williams in the Wimbledon press conferences it is clear that she knows that she has the power from the baseline and the serve to beat anyone. Like Serena, it benefits all athletes to take stock of their game.

At this point, I challenge you to spend some time thinking about your mental game.

• How well do you set goals that motivate you to practice?
• Think about your past performances.

Now complete the following exercise. Rate each mental skill or characteristic on the scale of 1 to 5. 

1 = poor at that skill

3 = ok at that skill

5 = awesome, that is my mental weapon. 

Mental Skill/Characteristic                    Current Level of Performance

1. Motivation to practice/train                                                             ___
2. Desire; give full effort in competition                                           ___
3. Focus during competition                                                              ___
4. Ability to refocus after mistakes                                                    ___
5. Set goals that drive my training and performances                  ___
6. Positive during competition                                                           ___
7. Manage stress well during competition                                      ___
8. Control emotions during competition                                          ___
9. Ability to relax when nervous                                                         ___
10. Exhibit positive body language/posture during competition   ___
11. Prepared for competition                                                               ___
12. Practice with intensity                                                                     ___
13. Use mental imagery effectively                                                     ___
14. Use routines effectively during competition                               ___
15. Others:                                                                                              

Now that you have spent some time taking stock of your mental game it is important to do two things:

1. Rely on your mental weapons when you compete. Like a great pitch or move, use it often! If you are excellent at imagery, use it as a way to prepare for competition or to refocus while under pressure. If your mental weapon is being positive, use your positive thinking during games to overcome mistakes and to stay focused on the task at hand.

2. Assess your lower scores and develop a plan to improve these mental skills. Attempt to round out your mental game so that you have several mental weapons at your disposal. In future tips I will address many of these skills. You can also find more information as you search this website.