The ability to stay focused on the present moment is a key factor to a positive performance. Untrained, however, our attention span is limited and focus strays from the important factors.
When we get into match play, the adrenaline kicks in and we are propelled into survival mode. This can mean attention turns to beating ourselves up for the mistake we just made, or for example, wondering what teammates, coaches or fans might think of us. The desire to play well only compounds this by triggering memories of previous mistakes, poor performances and criticisms. Thus, it is pain, anxiety and fear which arise - all of which can lead to a negative psychological spiral across all the key pillars - confidence, commitment, consistency and focus.
In the midst of a game, these thoughts are generally not relevant or conducive to greater performance. More than likely, they add to nerves, cause us to tighten up and to become distracted, which lead to mistakes and a sub-par performance.
There are a couple of ways to maintain focus in matches and to avoid this spiral:
1. Reflect on when and why you lose focus. Perhaps it is following a mistake - in that case, altering the perspective of similar scenarios through a range of cognitive therapies can be extremely useful. This requires the development of mental skills over time.
2. Learn how to return focus to the present. This can be as simple as setting an optical trigger e.g. turning attention to the farthest point of the stadium before returning it to the ball. This is an easy action to apply for regaining focus.
3. Improve at finding and maintaining a state of flow. Most simply put, this is when there is a difficult but achievable task to complete. Therefore, adjusting perceptions over the ability of the opposition, or setting specific in-game goals can help to find flow easier.
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