Understanding Why Elite Athletes Lose Confidence
There are two reasons why people consider elite athletes, elite. 1) They have performed consistently great over a statistically significant amount of time. 2) When they compete against other elite athletes at the most important competitions, they continue to perform at this high level.
So, how is it possible that an elite athlete can lose confidence? Two of the biggest factors that dictate one’s confidence is preparation and prior success. Both of which elite athletes have no problems with. Moreover, elite athletes typically are masters of preparation and have won on the biggest and brightest stages as well. Therefore, from the outside looking in, one would never think losing confidence is a problem an elite athlete would have to deal with.
However, this just isn’t the case. Elite athletes struggle with confidence just as much as any other athlete. The reason for this is that more than any other factor, confidence is a matter of perception. Perception is one of the 5 elements that define one’s mindset. It’s how we uniquely process our thoughts to create our reality. For example, two athletes could prepare and win in the same way, and one will gain confidence an another may lose confidence. This is because one’s perception of a situation is unique to them based on years of conditioning from their environment.
Therefore, in some cases, some elite athletes will perceive their success as failure and their failure as success. Indeed, being 2nd in the county, state, nation, or world may be a win for some, and a complete failure for others. Therefore, if an athlete loses control of their perception of a situation or outcome, they lose control of their confidence.
Once an athlete understands this fact, more specific confidence coaching can then shape how they perceive their experiences.