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Focusing on what NOT to do in soccer puts you into a self-defeating cycle
“Stop telling yourself what NOT-to-do on the soccer field”. I got this wonderful little piece of advice from Ben Freakley, Head of Mental Performance for the Toronto Blue Jays, during a mental performance skills coaching course put on by United Soccer Coaches. And it makes so much sense – if you truly want to play better, and learn how to stop diving in or how to hit more shots on target, the first thing you need to do is quit threatening yourself about what NOT to do and focus your self-talk on things that are more productive and will actually help you in the moment.
Here are some common things soccer players tell themselves NOT to do in a soccer game:
- don’t dive in!
- don’t stab!
- don’t make bad passes!
- don’t miss!
- don’t lose the ball!
- don’t mess up!
- don’t play badly!
- don’t suck!
Telling yourself what NOT to do in soccer is setting yourself up for heartache right from the start. By telling yourself NOT to do something, you are actually way MORE likely to do it! Crazy right? But true – you are much more likely to make the mistake than if you weren’t hyper-focused on avoiding that exact mistake. This is because all of your attention is on it.
When you put all of your attention onto something that you are trying to avoid, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. It takes over your thoughts and infiltrates your self-talk, leaving zero room for any of the good, useful or constructive thinking that could actually help you make a positive change.
So, not only does this mindset NOT help avoid mistakes, but it’s detrimental to the rest of your game as well because it leaves you without the mental capacity to focus on the things you need to be focusing on in order to play well (such as decision making based on what’s happening around you on the soccer field).
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The problem with playing to not make mistakes
{Take the quiz! Is PERFECTIONISM negatively affecting your soccer game?}
Playing with passion, intensity and creativity takes a backseat when you are fully occupied with thinking about what NOT to do in soccer games. Good decision making requires situational awareness, and situational awareness is harder to come by when you are spending all of your time and energy thinking about that one thing that you DON’T want to do.
{Related read: How to OVERCOME perfectionism in sports}
Take action to improve your game
Changing your self-talk is the key
If you have a weakness in your game for stabbing (prematurely reaching for the ball and getting off-balanced and beat when defending 1v1) and want to know how to stop stabbing in soccer, the key is this: you must switch your thoughts away from “don’t stab!” and toward things that are useful and constructive, aka positive self-talk and specifically: instructional self-talk.
{Related read: How a habit of POSITIVE self-talk can help you elevate your game}
Helpful reminders during the run of play
For example, when you are pressuring an opponent with the ball, instead of repeating over and over again in your head ‘don’t stab! or don’t dive in!’, consider using something like this instead, ‘close the space ASAP! get low! chop steps! stay balanced! take away their time and space! delay! stop forward progression!’ This will take your attention away from stabbing and getting beat and refocus you on delaying forward progression, which is what you are ultimately after.
Your personal self-talk message
Yes, this is a DRASTIC change from the way you typically talk to yourself during soccer matches, but I challenge you to step outside your comfort zone and try to stop telling yourself what NOT to do in soccer the next time you play. You might be pleasantly surprised at what happens.
Hi everyone! I’m Jenn and I create content to help female soccer players and coaches maximize individual and team potential by developing healthy mindset skills. Join other subscribers and sign up for the newsletter for all my best tips and advice!
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