The phrase “mentally tough” gets thrown around often on soccer fields all over the world. Coaches constantly tell you that you need to be mentally tough and for good reason! There are so many aspects of the sport of soccer that make it mentally stressful.
If you aren’t mentally tough, you will severely limit your success. But, saying you need to be more mentally tough without providing a means of increasing your mental toughness, is like trying to squat 500 pounds without ever spending time in the rack. There has to be a method in place. One way to improve your mental toughness is to practice putting yourself in uncomfortable situations outside of games.
The idea that you should look to practice putting yourself in difficult and uncomfortable situations correlates with one of the key ideas of the Soccer Mindset program – everything is important, nothing special. You cannot make anything special, and you should treat your practices the same as you would treat any game. You can’t expect to improve something without working on it. It is unlikely that you’re going to be in a game and find yourself in a difficult situation and simply be able to summon some sort of mental toughness, as if it were as simple as flipping a switch – you don’t rise to the occasion, you fall to the level of your training!
That means that you have to practice being in difficult, adversity situations that you could face in a game so that it’s nothing new when these situations arise (and they will – they’re unavoidable). If you practice it consistently, when you find yourself in a difficult situation in a game, you’ll more easily be able to stay relaxed and avoid creating unnecessary stress. You’ll remain calm, confident, and be ready to address the issue because you know that you have already experienced adversity – this difficulty will be nothing new.
Going forward, look to put yourself in difficult situations in practice and training. Remember, nothing is special. If you can’t develop mental toughness in practice situations, why would you expect to be mentally tough in a game?
Renowned hunter and long distance runner, Cameron Hanes, said that he likes to schedule his runs in the hottest part of the day to be able to add difficulty in training. Look to do things like challenging teammates who are better than you to 1v1 or 2v2 situations outside of practice. Train in extreme heat or cold. Get some extra sprints and ball control drills in after practice when you’re already tired. Be willing to take calculated risks, and when difficult situations arrive, keep pushing!
By putting yourself in adverse conditions during training, you are better preparing yourself for anything that could come your way in games. Continuing to push forward when you encounter adversity is a sign of mental toughness and ultimately it make you a better person on and off the soccer field!