the tuesday transition - issue 57
November 7, 2023: If you are like a lot of players I know, you spend hours, days, weeks and months working your butt off on the physical, technical and tactical pieces of your game. But there’s one other piece that’s CRUCIAL to you playing your best soccer – and majority of players are NOT doing it.
Right now we are a few months into the fall soccer season and we’ve all had the time to feel and experience some of the heavier pieces of the pressure, expectations and self-defeating mentalities that can infiltrate our thinking and make soccer harder and less fun. Because of this, I felt it was time for a public service announcement to everyone on the importance of incorporating mental skills into our training plans. Coaches, parents and players, this is for all of you.
Let’s start here. If I asked all of you what percentage of soccer is mental, I’d get varying responses, but they would most likely all be in the range of 50-90%. Regardless of what number you picked (and there’s no right or wrong answer), it’s safe to say that the number is regularly pretty high. I know this because I’ve asked a lot of people this question (like, A LOT) and this is always what comes back.
Now comes the second part of this question, and the piece I really want you to think about: how much time do you spend training this part of your game (the mental part) as compared to the physical, technical and tactical pieces? Most people answer between 0-10%.
See the problem here? This is a HUGE MISMATCH.
This wild discrepancy right here proves the importance of mental skills training. We are all collectively admitting that the game is majority A MENTAL GAME, yet we spend little to no time dedicated to training this piece of our game? What are we doing?! Why is this crucial piece of the game not a crucial piece of our training?
Here’s another interesting thing to consider when trying to deduce how crucial mental skills are to your game: I know you think soccer is fun right? Well, isn’t playing well part of that fun? Is getting out on the field and dominating and positively impacting the game fun? Is being a difference maker fun? Yes? Well – mental skills work helps you play better, and playing better is way more fun, as we just established. Just another reason why this piece is SO CRUCIAL.
How do mental skills help you play better? Here's how: all that work that you do on the technical, tactical and physical sides of the game, mental skills work is how you maximize all of those - meaning it is HOW YOU FULLY ACCESS all that skill and all the talent you've been building in all those areas.
Instead of getting frazzled and breaking down under pressure, wouldn’t it be nice to stay calm and composed and EXECUTE under pressure? Mental skills work is how you actually USE your skills in the right moment, instead of folding. It is also how you ADD ON to everything else good that you are already doing, it’s how you you LEVEL UP your game and gain an edge on your competition.
So, what IS mental skills work actually? Mental skills work is a combination of enhancing performance AND working on wellbeing. And here’s the best part of this, mental skills are SKILLS. This is great news because SKILLS are things you can learn. They are not things you either have or you don’t, they are things anyone can get with intentional focus and work.
Here are some useful definitions to help understand the differences between mental skills and other similar, frequently used words in this same space:
Mental Skills: the actual skills that you gain during mental skills training and the tools you use on and off the field (examples: controllable objectives, useful self-talk, meditation, etc.)
Mental Fitness: continual work to set good habits and work on this piece of your game; just like physical fitness, you have to keep doing mental skills work in order to stay on top of it and have a good mindset
Mental Wellness: overall how you are feeling about yourself, about life, soccer, etc.; not defining yourself based on performance, separating your self-worth from results and impossibly high, unrealistic standards of perfection
Mental Toughness: your ability to recover and stay focused and keep going when things are hard; resiliency, grit, patience, perseverance, etc.
Many of the things that show up for players and get in the way of them maximizing their potential (inner criticism, self-doubt, overthinking, fear of failure, perfectionism, lack of composure in high-pressure situations, etc.) are shared experiences that show up for many players as a result of the pressure, expectations and culture of constant comparison that have all become a consistent part of the competitive youth sports world.
All of this stuff is HARD, difficult to manage and left unchecked, can take a toll on a player’s performance, their confidence, and their overall wellbeing and mental health.
By bringing mental skills work into your environment and working to help normalize conversations around these difficult topics, you are preparing yourself to be better able to navigate obstacles and challenges not just right now, but in all moments going forward.
Another thing about mental skills work, it’s not just for players that are having a hard time, not at all. Mental skills work is for EVERYONE and can help any player, no matter where they are in their soccer journey. Even if you are a player that is at a really good spot right now, you can lean into mental skills work to help you take everything up a notch. You can use mental skills work to help you hone your on-field attention and acute awareness and present moment focus. Mental skills work is what can take you from good to great, from great to elite. Mental skills work can change your game and your life.
Coming full circle back to the original reason for this post, my public service announcement: Want to learn how to move through some of the harder pieces of the game, AND help yourself play your best soccer? LEAN INTO MENTAL SKILLS WORK. It’s a crucial component of your game, and if you are serious about becoming the best player you can be, you need to make it a crucial component of your training.
Reach out if you need ideas, resources or advice on HOW to bring mental skills work into your training. I’m here to help!
Till next time,
💎 What I’m digging: I am THRILLED that Chelsea head coach Emma Hayes is headed to the US to lead the USWNT. This is going to be fun.
👩🏽💻 What I’m reading: This is a great read about how goalkeepers have an enhanced ability to integrate auditory and visual information compared to other players. Love interesting stuff like this.
🎧 What I’m listening to: I’m behind on my podcasts, but I can tell you which audiobook is up next on my list: Excellent Sheep by William Deresiewicz.
Grow your confidence through preparedness.
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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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