Mental Skills

Tips for Athletes
Tips for Coaches
Tips for Parents

Most people would agree that participation in scholastic sports is vastly beneficial. UPMC Sports Medicine offers the following tips to enhance the experience for student athletes, coaches, and parents.

Tips for Athletes

• Stay committed.
  If you truly want to succeed in competition, commit to being the best athlete you can. Maintain that commitment through specific, performance-oriented goals for yourself. Write them down and put them in a place where you can see them as a constant reminder.
  
  
• Control your emotions as well as your play.
  The ups and downs of a season can have a dramatic effect on your confidence and your emotions. Remember that mistakes, losses, and injuries are a part of sports. Don't hang it up just because things get difficult. In fact, you can practice how to react to these adversities before they occur.
  
  
• Keep it realistic.
  Being the best player on your team doesn't mean that everything will always go perfectly for you during competition. Sometimes expecting perfection during competition can backfire into disappointment and frustration. During competition, play in the present and always try to do your best. Leave the expectations for perfection on the practice field.

Tips for Coaches

• Don't forget the fun.
  As a coach to student athletes, it is important for you to keep the atmosphere around your team positive and enjoyable. Find a good balance between working hard and having fun. One of the most common reasons given by children for quitting their sport is that they no longer enjoy it. Coaches should try to emphasize the positive aspects of competitive experiences and reward the efforts of their players.
  
  
• Bag the pre-game pep talk.
  Although pre-game pep talks have their time and place in sports, this practice can easily backfire. These talks may actually push adrenaline levels too high for some athletes disrupt players' coordination and concentration. You may be better served to focus on specific, competitive goals and game strategies during your pre-game talk. If your team isn't ready to play, getting them "fired up" moments before the game probably won't help.
  
  
• Don't play favorites.
  Your interaction with each player is important to those individuals as well as the entire team because how you treat an individual player affects team chemistry, cohesion, and morale. Back-up players should be treated with the same respect as your star players, and rules of conduct should apply equally to every member of the team. Remember, your back-ups are one injury away from being your starters.

Tips for Parents

• Stay in control.
  While everyone wants their child to perform well and win, it is important for you to stay in control of your emotions and keep the sport participation experience in perspective. Your child looks to you as a role model of appropriate behavior and how to maturely handle emotions.
  
  
• Remember why you are there and why they are playing.
  Through sport participation, children often learn and practice important life lessons. Your son or daughter can develop physical fitness, emotional maturity, and a healthy lifestyle by playing competitive sports. They can also learn about overcoming adversity, being a part of a team, and committing to excellence. These lessons are often more important than whether your child's team wins or loses.
  
  
• Sometimes it's better to listen.
  Your children may not always want (or need) to hear what you think of their backhand, but they will always need your support and encouragement for their competitive efforts. Sometimes, this simply means to listen to your child following a bad performance or a losing effort.