Confidence and Trust!

I often inform my players about the three Cs for athletic success.
These three keys include: (1) clarity, (2) confidence, (3)
concentration...

But today I'd like to introduce another "C" for your success in
sports. This overlooked mental skill is a close cousin to
confidence and trust in your skills. Without it, you are doomed to
lose.

Today's tip is about commitment. Commitment to your decisions when
perform. The opposite of hesitate...

I'm sure you know the commitment I'm talking about. Lack of
commitment or hesitation leads to bad outcomes. Here just a few
examples:

--> A golfer who second-guesses his club and can't swing freely. He
swings too easy and pulls the shot.

--> A baseball player who can't decide on a plan at the plate as he
silently rejects the third-base coach's decision.

-- > A tennis player who's caught between two shots; down the line
or cross court. She dumps the ball into the net.

-- > A quarterback who second-guesses the coaches call and can't
commit to the play resulting in a broken play.

-- > A basketball player who can't decide whether he should shoot
or pass the ball and loses the chance to take the open shot.

Can you identify with any of the above scenarios? It happens every
day in sports--when athletes are wishy-washy and can't commit to a
plan.

The problem: indecision can cause you to hesitate just long enough
that you lose the open shot. In self-paced tasks such as serving,
second-guessing your plan can cause you to undermine trust in your
performance.

PGA Star Rory Mcilroy confessed that he lost commitment on the
greens during his final round blunders at the Masters. "I was sort
of second-guessing lines and second-guessing my speed, and on these
greens you can't do that."

I recently coached an NHL referee who was hesitating with his
calls on the ice. Justin was second-guessing his calls, which led
to a lack of commitment and indecision before other calls.

Justin was worried about what other officials thought about his
call. "Did I make the right decision," he pondered?

What started his indecision on the ice? Self-doubt was eroding his
confidence. A lack of confidence caused him to hesitate with his
officiating.

If you don't have confidence in your ability to perform, it's
harder to make quick split-second decisions or be committed
to your decisions.

Thus, the key is build a stable level of confidence and learn not
to second-guess your decisions....

The moment a batter "thinks" if it's a good pitch to take, the ball
is past him. In this situation, you have to react and allow your
talents to take over.

Here's the formula for success:

**Confidence in abilities --> Commitment to decisions --> TRUST**

For more information on how to be a mentally stronger athlete click below:
http://www.peaksportsnetwork.com/members/695.cfm