Building mental toughness in athletes is central to top performance. Sports is more mental than physical almost without exception. The need for strong discipline, regular conditioning and self-sacrifice is absolute in all sports, and hence, mental toughness to build these virtues upon is necessary.
Instructions
1. Find heroes in sports for those who you are coaching. Role models who lived a life of firm self discipline are an excellent way to inspire athletes to continue to build these virtues. Heroes are role models, inspirations and models for imitation.
2. Build the virtues of persistence and patience in your athletes. These are the foundation stones of mental toughness. Continuing to struggle, overcome problems and move forward are the benefits of patience. Professionalism will not come all at once, it must be built slowly and surely.
3. Encourage positive self-communication. Part of the structure of mental toughness is to always build up the positives at the expense of the negatives. Struggle is normal and natural, not a sign of weakness. Failure is a normal occurrence, not a sign of inferiority. Mental toughness begins with positive self identification.
4. Build new friendships with those who are on the same path, or have already succeeded. Peer groups are central to the process of building mental toughness. The peers that your athletes should be part of should also be athletes, regularly working to achieve maximum fitness and professionalism in their work.
5. Focus on results. However, this focus should be based on hard work and perseverance, not on quick fixes like steroids or other gimmicks. Mental toughness is precisely about saying "No" to quick fixes and realize that real professionalism comes from years of work and the struggle through failures.
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