Counterpoint: Lacking Confidence is Not Fixed By Focusing on Confidence

One of the biggest mistakes parents and coaches make when trying to help an athlete who lacks confidence is to focus too much on the fact that the athlete lacks confidence. Taking this approach will just reinforce the fact that the athlete lacks confidence. Which is exactly what you don’t want to do. Lacking confidence […]

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A Warning for Athletes Struggling with Mental Toughness and Confidence

I have a simple warning for parents and coaches of athletes who struggle with mental toughness or confidence problems. Just like most problems, mental toughness and confidence problems don’t solve themselves. In fact, they get worse with time. If you see a young athlete in middle school having problems with mental toughness or confidence, it’s […]

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Metaphor: The Coach Provides the Map, But You Must Bring the Compass

One of my favorite metaphors for pursuing difficult goals is the story of the compass and the map. I first heard the story retold by Seth Godin, as he retold the account retold by Steve Pressfield. It’s the story of an escaped soldier during World War II: A Ghurka rifleman escaped from a Japanese prison […]

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