If you play a sport in which you or your team has a direct opponent that you are competing against (football, basketball, soccer, hockey, tennis, etc.), what is your primary goal when you start playing? Is it to win? Is it to execute your game plan or do your job? Is it to play well? […]
read moreRecently, I asked the readers of this blog what challenges they were facing while competing and one of the most popular responses was the ability to focus for long periods of time and that’s what I would like to address in this post.
read moreCongratulations! You’re having a great season. You’re playing well, the victories are piling up and you’ve never felt better about your game. And of course, you want this feeling to last for as long as possible. In order to keep things going as they are, use the following 3 points as a guide for keeping […]
read moreIt’s that time of the year in high school and college when practice for Spring sports is getting ready to start or has perhaps even just begun. It can be a nerve wracking time for some. There may be uncertainty as to whether you’ll play or where you might be in the lineup, and your […]
read moreAs many of you know, my work with athletes and teams through PerformanceXtra has been a part-time venture for the last couple of years, but as of January 2014 this has changed. PerformanceXtra is now my sole focus and mission, and I’m excited for the challenge. Originally, I started this business for two reasons: 1. […]
read moreThere are times in competition in which we face opponents who are better than we are. They may have a better record than us or perhaps they have more achievements. Regardless, that’s not nearly as important as how we react to the challenge of facing this opponent. In this type of matchup, our mental attitude […]
read moreIn order to be successful in life and in sports, there are two important concepts to understand and adopt: Choice and Control. What we think and how we react is our choice. What we choose to focus on should be things that are under our control. There are times in life when these concepts get […]
read moreLet’s face it – being mentally tough in competition is difficult and one of the reasons for that are the many apparent contradictions as to what to do and what to focus on in a given moment. There are no black and white answers that tell you to focus on just this one thing or […]
read moreHave you ever seen the Marshmallow Test? If not, check it out on YouTube as it’s quite humorous. The object of the test is to gauge how well children can delay gratification in the presence of temptation. It has been shown that those who can delay gratification are typically more successful in life than […]
read moreThere are moments or situations in all sports that are crucial to deciding the outcome. In tennis, it might be a tie-breaker or a 10 point tie-breaker in lieu of a 3rd set. In football, it’s the two minute drill. Every sport has at least one, and to be the best competitor you can be, […]
read moreSubscribe now to receive tips on how to be mentally tougher!