Question Your Mindset

Ask yourself these five questions.

Do you believe you have adapted the right mindset to make it professional? There are certain characteristics elite athletes have that have helped them to get to where they are today. Sports psychology has advanced so much in recent years and is now known to be a key part of sport. Improving your cognitive thinking can have positive affects on your sporting performance. The good thing is, mentality is something that can be trained and improved. So if you have different answers to the ones below, work on them. Train your mind as well as your physical skills.

1. Are you taking risks?

An elite athlete would usually answer yes to this question. The reason for this is that it shows that they are comfortable going outside of their comfort zone. When you go outside of your comfort zone you grow and improve. Taking risks also relates to in-game scenarios. As a player you need to brave, especially for strikers. Do you take risks and get into a position where you have a chance to shoot or do you hide away?

2. Do you take onboard advice from coaches/teammates?

Taking on advise is 100% necessary to grow. If you dislike feedback then you are not allowing yourself to improve. Advice is their to improve performance and make you a better overall player.

3. Are you afraid to fail?

The best athletes are those who are not bothered about failure. Concerns about failure can infect hold a player back. Some players don't take risks because they are worried about failing. This worry prevents growth and improvement. If you are afraid to fail, get rid of this mentality because in fact it will hinder improvement. Have the 'It is what it is' mindset.

4. Do you try and improve and want to become the best?

It is important that you have a growth mindset. Always wanting to work and become better is key to getting to the place where you want to be. As well as this, this mindset will fuel energy and motivation to train.

5.Are your goals challenging?

Goals need to be challenging but at the same time realistic. Make sure your goals make you work harder. Having goals is also a great way to improve confidence, especially when you have reached them.