Productive Responses to Performance Ruts and Eroding Confidence
Every team and competitor at some time will experience a rut, a loss of confidence, a negative patch. They’ve done the work but are suddenly not feeling it. They’ve lost trust in each other and the process. They start to doubt, tighten up, or lose belief. This is because qualities like trust, belief, confidence, and hope are states—not traits—that ebb and flow over a season, competition, or even a single match. When they dip, we don’t wait to feel better—we act our way out of it.
Explore these key concepts:
- Mood Follows Action. We counteract our negative states by identifying the helpful responses that increase confidence, and the negative responses that undermine the work we’ve put in.
- Confidence as Response-Ability. We have control over our responses, not the outcomes. Trusting in our preparation and ability to adjust and respond to whatever unfolds is ultimately what increases our confidence and belief.
- Fruits and Roots. We must pursue the Roots—the daily physical, mental, and emotional habits and preparation that are in our control. When we pursue the Roots, the Fruits ensue!