Is your team's pre-game mentality hurting their development? Here's how mentally strong teams show up to the field, stay growth-focused & find value in EVERY TYPE OF GAME.
Do you sometimes feel like your team is THEIR OWN WORST ENEMY on the soccer field?! Do they self-defeat by showing up to difficult games thinking that they’ve already lost? Or show up to easy ones acting like it’s in the bag?
Teams that lack the self-awareness to recognize what they are doing to themselves in these situations, set themselves up to fail before the match even starts. A mentally strong team isn’t like this. A mentally strong team doesn’t go into a game with a pre-game mentality that GETS IN THEIR WAY. A mentally strong team has the mental toughness to get into their optimal performance zone, and regulate their focus, no matter what the circumstances or the environment.
Team’s getting in their own way with poor or overconfident pre-game mentality is actually extremely common. Many players, teams and coaches get caught up in the emotions of the moment and let them run the show, ever stopping to examine them or question that their might be another way. These are shared experiences that worm their way into the mindset of many teams across all levels of competition, age groups and genders.
This Post Contains:
So how DOES a team increase their mental toughness factor and become a mentally strong team who is able to look at ANY TYPE OF SOCCER GAME and find value in it? First, before answering that, let’s examine these two scenarios (difficult games and easy games) a little further:
Red flag #1: Already thinking you've won
Say you are going into a game against the last place team that’s been losing to everyone. Maybe you even beat them big time earlier in the season, by a handful of goals – so in your head you are thinking that you’ve already won this. The whole team feels this way and is in high spirits. Everyone is very chatty at warmups and is feeling light and free of the usual pressure and pre-game nerves.
When teams have this mindset, it’s dangerous. It’s dangerous because, since they already believe it’s a done deal, and they come into the game with complacency and overconfidence. News flash, it’s never a done deal, you are never guaranteed a win. Ever.
Coming into the game this way causes teams to be loose and unfocused with their play. They are not operating from their optimal performance zone and this results in sloppy soccer and lost games.
Overconfidence leads to under performance, and so many players in this situation end up surprised to see themselves playing so poorly – after all, aren’t they the better team? As a mental skills coach, I am not surprised at all when I see this. I’m not surprised because the signs were there, on full display, for all to see.
The difference between an average team and a mentally strong team is that the mentally strong team can RECOGNIZE this happening when they see it. They can recognize when the collective energy feels unfocused and the team feels overly sure of themselves. They recognize the red flag and see the danger in the situation. And then they course correct (more on that below).
Red flag #2: Already thinking you've lost
On the other end, let’s say you’re headed into a game against a strong opponent that is sitting at the top of the division. Your whole team arrives to the soccer field in a bad mood and has the collective attitude that this game is NOT going to be good. You got beat bad by this team last time and that is what’s going to happen again today (or that’s what you are telling yourself at least because you can’t actually predict the future).
When you have it in your mind beforehand that you are already going to lose and that you don’t have a chance, you fulfill your own prophecy. You lose because you already see this as a loss so you think there’s no reason to try.
In this sort of environment, your inner critic runs wild and your inner coach gets drowned out. Self-doubt takes over and you have zero confidence or belief in yourself or your team. The worst part of it is, you’ve essentially created your own reality.
When you are thinking about things like this, you are not in your optimal performance zone and you are unable to play your best soccer. So what does this look like in game play?
- Your effort levels drop, you are frazzled and unfocused, and you easily get caught up in overthinking.
- Your perfectionism kicks into high gear as you try to chase your unrealistic expectation of not messing up.
- You are consistently in your head, thinking about missed opportunities or ruminating about the loss, which hasn’t even happened yet.
- You are quick to get angry or frustrated and are unable to maintain composure and focus.
- The list goes on….
Grow your confidence through preparedness.
Subscribe to our email list to
Get your FREE Weekly Soccer Planner!
We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe anytime.
Expectations are at fault
When teams get into either of these pre-game mindsets, they self-defeat before even stepping on the field. This can be attributed to the fact that these players are fully identified with results and hold themselves to outcome-based expectations. How do we know this? Well, these ways of thinking only pop up when the ONLY THING THAT MATTERS is winning.
The most unfortunate part of all of this, is that soccer players and teams essentially WASTE these games. And if you are a player that wants to develop and grow and get better at soccer, this is a problem. Sure, you might not get the win, but does that mean it’s totally a worthless game? If you are stuck in a win-at-all-costs mentality then yes. If you are a mentally strong team that is growth-minded and development focused then no.
The prize is not always the win
See, the thing is, each of these games actually possess the unique opportunity for growth, improvement and the chance to GET BETTER AT SOCCER.
Example, that hard game could actually be reframed as the best thing that could ever happen to you if you want to grow, because it gives you the opportunity to really get a clear picture and a roadmap for specific areas you have space to grow in. The easy game? That one gives you more space and a slower speed-of-play, the PERFECT place to push yourself to the edge of your ability and try more challenging things that you wouldn’t be able to do in a more difficult environment.
In every soccer game, you want to keep your eyes on the prize. And the prize is NOT ALWAYS THE WIN. Sometimes the prize is the opportunity to squeeze the situation and get everything out of it that you can. Sometimes the prize is to get 1% better today at a new skill. Sometimes the prize is to learn that you have a hard time reading the trajectory of the ball on a deep to wide early-cross.
Whatever it is, there’s always a prize, always value, to be found when it comes to learning, growth and self-improvement, IN EVERY SINGLE GAME.
How a mentally strong team is always able to find value
1 - A mentally strong team has good self-awareness
Everything starts with self-awareness and being able to objectively see things for what they are. A mentally strong team might still encounter these self-defeating pre-game mindsets, but the difference is that they are able to recognize what is going on before it gets out of control. To gain awareness of the situation, a mentally strong team checks in with themselves before the game and works together to identify how the group is feeling heading into the match .
2 - A mentally strong team is able to reframe any situation
Once they see what is happening, a mentally strong team will work together to reframe the situation. Reframing basically means to look at the situation differently, in a new light and in a way that is helpful and not hurtful. After seeing the red flag and objectively identifying the situation, a mentally strong team can quickly come together to reframe and find the opportunity for growth that resides OUTSIDE of the bounds of win or loss.
3 - A mentally strong team sets different types of expectations
Results and outcome based expectations are the number one reason for the pressure soccer players deal with day in and day out. A mentally strong team is able to see past this social norm. A mentally strong team decides, instead of grading themselves based on the win or the loss, to grade themselves based on pieces of the process and what the team decides it wants to work towards collectively (completing forward passes, urgency on transition, high-pressing in the right moments, etc.)
4 - A mentally strong team is able to self-regulate their emotions
Emotional control and self-regulation on the soccer field can be hard things to master. Emotional control doesn’t mean not having feelings, but it DOES mean being aware of them and catching yourself before you react in a way that is unhelpful to your game. A mentally strong team is a team that is able to regulate themselves and RESPOND by choosing how they act in moments of adversity or challenge.
5 - A mentally strong team is able to keep their minds in the present moment
When your mind is in the past worrying about that mistake or in the future thinking about how you NEED to win this game, your mind is not in the present moment. If you are not focused on the present moment, you are not able to play your best soccer. This is just the truth in the matter. A mentally strong team is a team that has the mental skills to keep their minds in the present moment. They are able to stay in their optimal performance zone and not get dragged into the past or the future.
6 - A mentally strong team focuses on what they can control
A mentally strong team is able to find value in every game because they have learned to ONLY GIVE MERIT TO THE THINGS THEY CAN CONTROL. They do this by setting controllable game-day objectives for themselves and for the team based on their new expectations (see #3 above).
Controllable objectives are manageable, specific, small actions that you have the power to do, no matter what everyone else is doing. They are conscious choices that YOU have complete control over. They are focused on the process of self-improvement, not on the outcome of the game or on eliminating mistakes.
soccer Is 90% Mental
So what are you doing to train that part of your game?
Introducing the Mindset Mastery Academy
A 10-week 1:1 mental skills mentorship experience for female soccer players
Mental skills training is the key
A mentally strong team makes mental skills training a priority as a part of their development. Teams that train this piece of their game are able to level up and gain an edge on their competition. Through mental skills training they become more resilient, confident and mentally tough. These teams are able to adapt, adjust and keep going when things go wrong. They are able to come into any type of soccer game with a growth-focused mindset and find value in any situation.
And yes! You can still love winning and enjoy winning with this mindset. After all, winning is fun, rewarding and exciting. The difference is that a mentally strong team understands that if they are ultimately working to be the best player they can be, that simply walking away with every W isn’t how they are going to get there. They understand that they’ll never reach the top of the game without facing adversity and using it as fuel to improve their game, grow their grit and build stable self-confidence.
If your soccer team is interested in gaining an edge and making mental skills training a priority, check our our team mental skills training sessions.
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!
We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe anytime.
