Mental Game Expert, Dr. Cohn

Get Answers from Your Sports Psychology Expert. As a Premium Member of peaksports, you can email Dr. Cohn questions about your mental toughness challenges and get a detailed answer 365 days a year! Even with regular membership, you can browse Dr. Cohn's mental game responses to other members in the "Ask Dr. Cohn" section.

Here are some recent samples of an "Ask Dr. Cohn" Q and A this month:

Golfer:

"I just recently received a full ride golf scholarship to a Division 1 University. Although my season has not officially started, I am already feeling pressured to do well. I feel that I need to play well in order to maintain my scholarship or prove I deserve it. What should I do to take the pressure off myself?"

Dr. Cohn's Answer:

Congratulations on your accomplishment. I suggest you stay focused on the reasons you like to play golf and your goals for golf. You don't want to shift your attention to keeping your scholarship or proving to others you deserve it--this is not the best way to play golf. Besides, as you said, this is too much pressure. They gave you a scholarship for a reason--because you already deserve it!

You'll need to focus on playing the game well, one shot at a time, and how you will improve your game each week. Let go of the need to impress others or make others happy with your golf game!

Also, I suggest you check out The Golfer's Mental Edge:

http://www.peaksports.com/golfers_mental_edge.php

Baseball Parent:

"My 11-year-old son plays Baseball. He actually told me today for the second time is that he is nervous when he hits. And that he feels different in the game than he does when he is practicing. Is your program designed for kids of his age. He is a very good hitter arguably one of the best hitters in his age group. He and I practice together on drills and hitting. I, as a parent/coach, continue to struggle watching him struggle when he says he is nervous and cannot bring practice to the game."

Dr. Cohn's Answer:

As a matter of fact, this is the number one reason why parents contact me -- their kids struggle taking their practice game to competition. He is nervous and feels different in the game because he's worried about results and his performance. This will cause athletes to tighten up and play tentatively or afraid to make mistakes. And practice drills do not always transfer over to game situations. I think that's part of the problem as well is that kids don't practice in the same competitive conditions of the game situation.

I do offer mental coaching programs for kids as young as 11. To engage in personal coaching, your son has to be motivated to learn the mental game and understand why he's participated in the coaching. Some kids want to resist mental training thinking that it shows weakness.

I also have other options for young athletes mental training. One option is Kids Sports Psychology. This is our online mental training program for parents and their young athletes. Here's the link to Kids' Sports Psychology:

http://www.kidssportspsychology.com/

Hockey Parent:

"I am writing about my son who plays in the OHL. He is an extremely good hockey player but he has a big issue with emotional control when things don't go right he breaks into tears and is unable to focus on the game and everything falls apart for him. How do I get him to change the frustration into positive behavior to make it easier for him?"

Dr. Cohn's Answer:

You first need your players to buy into the idea of improving their composure and how it will help them. If they understand the need to improve their composure, this is a bonus and you're already ahead of the game. Athletes with high expectations lose composure both more quickly and more often. "Athletes' expectations" is defined as 'demands they have about the quality or outcome of their performance'. These are often the root of why they become frustrated with mistakes.

You must help your athletes manage the expectations or absolute demands that they take into practice and competition ("I must," "I should," or "I have to"). Doing so sets the foundation to help them be less judgmental and more accepting of their mistakes. Instead of performing to meet their own expectations, a better option is to help them focus on simple tasks they can accomplish most often, thus they don't feel like they are underperforming. These smaller goals, sometimes called mini-goals or process goals, help athletes focus on execution instead of results and to be more accepting of mistakes.

I suggest you check out The Composed Sports Kid CD and workbook program:

http://www.peaksports.com/the_composed_sports_kid.php

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