Leadership lessons from Sports Psychology

"The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind." - William James, Harvard University

The difference between a good athlete and a great one is mental toughness and training for mental toughness is a key part of a top athletes’ preparation. Coaches around the world are consciously weaving mental tools used in sports or performance psychology when coaching leaders and entrepreneurs.

Here, I am going to list some key tools used by top sportsmen as a part of their mental training regimen and what leadership lessons we can learn from the same.

Attitude. Much is always said about how attitude makes all the difference between a good and a bad life. But it couldn’t be more important on the field. A bad attitude can cost an athlete everything! There are times when the odds are extremely high, but she must “choose” to stay positive; all the time remembering that a negative setback is temporary rather than making it a permanent companion.

Positivity Self-Talk. Positivity is much better at setting things in motion as compared to negativity. Negative people become victims of their own thinking; it drains them out eventually. Athletes are taught to turn things around in their head, to generate positive emotions by positive self-talk. Don’t over analyze something or second-guess yourself too much; that only results in a negative self-talk and low confidence. Interrupt any negative self-talk the moment you sense it.

Imagineering/ Visualization. There is a story about the legendary Brazilian soccer player, Pelé. Prior to every game, he would go to the locker room an hour early, find a private corner and lie down using a pillow to cover his eyes. He would begin to watch a movie in his mind’s eye recalling the joy that the game brought to him. He would relive some of his greatest moments from prior tournaments and put himself in touch with his love for the sport. He would visualize himself performing at his absolute best for the upcoming game and thus prepare himself for victory. Visualization is a very powerful technique that is also used by actors, theatre artists and musicians before their big events. You basically show your mind how you like things to go and set the stage for success.

Self-Belief. Begin by believing that you have what it takes; and well begun is half done! Stronger your self-belief, the better is your performance. Using a combination of meditation and visualization techniques, self-belief can be built up without prior experiences and memories, which is especially true for younger athletes.

Its really ironical but a lot of us are far more afraid of success than we are of failure. For the simple reason that we just don’t know how to handle success. We are rather comfortable preparing to protect ourselves from risks and downfall as that is known territory. Set yourself up powerfully for success like athletes do; on the field there are only 2 options – win or lose and a great athlete will always go into the game setting himself up to win.

The training for mental toughness that top athletes go through begins with a decision and a commitment to that decision - to stay the course no matter what the circumstances. Studies in Brain Neuroplasticity have shown us that with continuous exercise of our mental muscles, our attitude and habits can be altered. We too, like top athletes, can turn things around for ourselves as we play the field to win in our own game every single day.