Total Soccer Psychology.pdf

Total Soccer Psychology

Total Soccer Psychology

INTRODUCTION

Everyone who’s played sport seriously knows the power of the mind. They've

experienced their own incredible performances that come from being in "the

zone". With abundant self-confidence nearly anything is possible. Without it

you might as well hang up your boots.

The techniques in this book are desgined to help you reach a state of peak

performance – a feeling of alertness, confidence and energy. In many cases,

the nerves, aggression or even fear that debilitate performance have to be

eliminated before more empowering states can be achieved.

Many of the exercises below originate from the science of Neuro Linguistic

Programming (or NLP for short). Developed in the early 1970’s, NLP

techniques are now used widely by business people, therapists and athletes

alike.

At the heart of NLP is the assumption that we all have our own unique view of

the world based on our values, beliefs and past experiences. Even two

people sharing or witnessing the same event can view and remember it very

differently - just think about how opposing sports fans can have a very

different perception of the same game.

Imagine that two team mates play equally as well in a game of soccer.

However, one player remembers only their mistakes, their misplaced passes

and wayward shots. The other player, notorious for having a high self-

opinion, recalls only their best moments. In their mind, they subconsciously

exaggerate the number of well-timed tackles, a successful 30-yard pass is

remembered as a 40-yard defence splitting through ball and their mistakes

are dismissed entirely. Which player is more likely to feel confident and self-

assured next time out?

And which player is right in their assessment of their performance? The

overly pessimistic player or the player with an exaggerated sense of self-

confidence? Or is the opinion of the coach, who watches “objectively” from

the sidelines, the one that should be taken as gospel?

In truth, no one is right or wrong and even the coach has his or her own

unique perception of the game. From a sporting point of view the best

strategy is to choose the perspective that helps to produce the best

performance. NLP techniques allow you to do just that – consciously choose

your own perception of past and future events. Fortunately, you don’t have to

become egotistical and big headed to play with consistency and self-

confidence!

The techniques in this book are not simply about positive thinking. Trying to

affirm your own success from a state of fear or low self-esteem does little to

bolster your self-confidence . Many of the activities will seem strange written

Total Soccer Psychology

down. They may also seem a little time consuming as you read them word for

word. However, when you apply them you’ll find that they are quick, fun and

most of all, highly effective.

10 MENTAL TECHNIQUES

FOR SOCCER PEAK

PERFORMANCE

Total Soccer Psychology

Technique 1 – Set SMART Goals

As boring as it may sound, effective goal setting is the first step to success in

any field. You cannot hit a target if you don’t have one in the first place. In

terms of your soccer performance it’s a good idea to set longer term goals that

you might have for your career, intermediate term goals for the season and

short term goals for each match.

The acronym SMART is a quick and easy way to set effective goals…

S pecific – Clearly state what you want in the positive (not what you don’t

want) and be as specific as possible. For example, it’s better to write “I will

score at least 20 goals this season and be my team’s leading goal scorer”

than “I want to score more often”.

M easurable – How will you know when you’ve accomplished your goal? If

you want to have “the best season of your life” how do you determine that?

Write the evidence you will see, hear and feel that confirms you have reached

your objective. By the same token, if you want to “score at least 20 goals”

then a short term goal (for a single match) might be “to have at least 6 shots

with 4 or more on target” – something you can measure.

A ttainable – The perfect goal should inspire you and allow you to believe that

it’s possible. It may be a stretch, it may require hard work and dedication but

you must believe that if you’re willing to pay the price you can achieve it. Only

you can decide whether you are able and willing to do what it takes to get to

where you want to be. A goal can be ambitious but still realistic as long as

you truly believe it’s possible.

R elevant – It can be easy to become fixated on a goal for the sheer sake of

achieving it. It may be something you identified as important in the past and

it’s now become the end in itself rather than a means to a larger outcome.

Ask yourself if your goal is really relevant to your long-term objectives. Is it

the most efficient use of your time and energy?

T ime-Based – Set a time frame for your goals. It’s good to have several

longer-term objectives, perhaps to play professionally or to secure a college

scholarship. Set intermediate goals for the season – maybe to win player of

the year, be your team’s leading goal scorer or play every game. Then set

weekly goals for your training and for each match. These will be the most

specific and also the most realistic. Don’t try to conquer the world in 7 days!

An example of a short-term goal (i.e. for an upcoming game) might be “to feel

confident and full of energy”. You could make it more specific by using a

scale of 1 to 10 – “ I will feel confident and assured to at least a level 8 out of

10 where 10 is unshakeable self-confidence.” Write how you will know that

you’ve achieved that state. Will you have more shots at goal? Attempt

intricate skills? What will hear from teammates or your coach? Will you have

more possession of the ball because you go looking for it?

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