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Ending practice early to building mental toughness in young athletes

building mental toughness in young athletes

Ending Practice Early to Building Mental Toughness in Young Athletes? 

There are not many secrets to success. There is also no short-cut. 

However, one secret that I think holds true is the ability of one more. When we are tired and fatigued, the key is to be able to endure just one more.

One more rep, writing one more page, one more sales phone call.

Just one more is how we build mental toughness. 

Often, it is effective. Yet, there is a prerequisite to implementing this strategy and that is we first must have the passion and will to do “one more.”

As parents, we all have announced this just “one more” technique. We push, just a little bit, (some unfortunately, a lot) for our son or daughter to give more effort.

Add up the number of practices and seasons of just one more and that is a lot of externally driven motivation in the form of nagging, or strong-arming our son or daughter into practice.

Remember, It’s tough to be driven when you’re being driven. 

Here’s what to do instead:

-Click Here to Watch BONUS Video-

Hall of Fame tennis coach Jeff Smith, used a different technique to help build the passion in his son Bryan Smith, also a Hall of Fame tennis coach. 

He would start by ending practice early to building mental toughness in young athletes.

Here’s the technique:

He would first tell Bryan how long they were going to hit tennis balls on the court, say 45 minutes. So, after 20 or 25 minutes, he would then start ending practice early to build mental toughness in young athletes. 

Bryan, having fun, didn’t want to end early.

Instead, He would ask his dad to continue… Voila, the seed of passion and internal motivation was slowly built without the nagging, pleading, or coercion of one more.

It’s tough to building mental toughness in youth athletes, this one will help with parents, but be sure to  check out our book- Don’t Should On Your Kids: Build Their Mental Toughness 

 

dr rob bell speakerDr. Rob Bell is a Sport Psychology Coach. DRB & associates coach executives and professional athletes. Some clients have included three different winners on the PGA Tour, Indy Eleven, University of Notre Dame, Marriott, and Walgreens. 

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hinge quarterback

The Horrible Hinge Quarterback

hinge quarterback

This hinge quarterback threw more career interceptions (220) than touchdowns (173).

He completed only 50.1% of his passes and his career QB rating was 65.5. This quarterback also lost more games in his career than he won—68-71-4. (Mark Sanchez would be the hands-down starter compared to these numbers).

However, this quarterback was also inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1985 because it only takes one.

The Hinge…

 There were two leagues during the late 1960s, the National Football League (NFL) and the American Football League (AFL). The winner of each conference played in the “Super Bowl.”

The NFL, however, was vastly superior to the AFL.

In 1969, quarterback Joe Namath and his AFL team, the New York Jets, were 19-point underdogs going into Super Bowl III against the NFL team, the Baltimore Colts; 19 points!

On Thursday night before the game, at the press conference, Joe Namath stated, “We’re gonna win the game, I guarantee it.”

He orchestrated the iconic victory, winning 16-7 and despite not even throwing a touchdown pass, was awarded the Super Bowl III MVP. The win by the Jets and the guarantee by Namath solidified his career and the NFL.

The next season, the two leagues merged.

Joe Namath’s  ONE hinge moment became one of the biggest in the history of the game because of the impact he made. I like Joe Namath and injuries led to much of his later demise as a QB, but his status was cemented because it only takes one! 

It only takes one… Our ability to believe, have confidence, and to trust is the most important mental skill we possess.

dr rob bell

Dr. Rob Bell is a Sport Psychology Coach. His company DRB & Associates is based in Indianapolis.  Some clients have included: Indy Eleven, University of Notre Dame, Marriott, and Walgreens. Check out all the books.   

Please check out the podcast 15 Minutes of Mental Toughness as we interview expert athletes and coaches about Mental Strength and their Hinge Moment.

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