I often talk about the pursuit of excellence, in both sport and life, being a journey not a destination. And while its much easier to talk about it in concept it is a long hard road fraught with setbacks, disappointment and failure. But for those who continue to pursue it, (more…)
The difference between people who can perform under pressure and those who crack under pressure is simple. They have put themselves in the situation before, either in practice or in games, they have been willing to fail and in so doing have learned a valuable lesson. They’ve learned that it’s just another shot and they […]
Managing the moment is one of the most crucial parts of playing with confidence and the mental game! A lot of the other skills, including ones I have addressed in earlier post like “DEAL” are directly related to it. The goal is to get to the point where you use them together to help you […]
“Winning isn’t everything; it’s the only thing” is a well-known quote in sports. Its origin is said to have come from UCLA Bruins football coach Henry Russell (“Red”) Sanders, who gave two different versions of the quote. In 1950, speaking at a physical education workshop, Sanders told his group: “Men, I’ll be honest. Winning isn’t […]
I was playing golf with a friend the other day when something happened that we have all experienced before. My buddy was even after 5 holes but when we got to #6 he saw the sign in the picture to the left just 15 feet to the left of the tee box. He approached his […]
A good friend of mine was helping coach a high school basketball team in a recent tournament. They were a few players short so he took his younger son to fill in. He knew his son had the ability and would be able to contribute. Well, he did help the team and he got an […]
So many times we talk about the mental game in concept, about focus or positive self talk but not in context. I want to share 2 questions I received via email from someone who has read my articles at http://www.hoopskills.com/basketballarticles.html “Performing Under Pressure” and “Winning.” I am posting those two questions and my responses, with […]
When I was younger and participating in youth sports it wasn’t uncommon to play 3-4 different sports through out the year. For example, soccer, baseball, basketball, football.. Some would even “letter” in multiple sports in high school. I think this still happens but on a much smaller scale. (more…)
