Being able to anticipate and manage challenges during games is a key component of a strong mental game.
In this article, we’re going to discuss the idea of anticipating challenges and making sure that you have strategies in place for when you face those challenges during competition.
Anticipating Challenges During Competition
One of my favorite exercises to run athletes through when I’m working with them one-on-one is an exercise where we think about the different challenges they can expect during competition. These can be mental challenges, but they can also be physical challenges that tend to cause them to underperform.
When we’re working on the mental game, we spend a lot of time talking about mentally preparing for competition. We also talk about the best mindset for you to be in when you compete.
Once we have those two parts of your mental game in place — so you are preparing well mentally and you know what mental state you want to be in when you compete — then we need to examine what would pull you out of that mental state.
What would throw you off your game while you play?
This could include things that will lower your confidence, things that will cause you to feel more anxiety or fear, or something that impacts your physical game in a way that results in underperforming.
Example: A College Baseball Player
An example I want to share is a college baseball player I’m currently working with. He’s a first baseman, so his main priority is hitting.
Something that we’ve uncovered throughout our work together is that when he’s at the plate, if something happens during the at-bat — like a bad call from the umpire or if he puts a good swing on the ball and fouls it off — this can throw him off for the rest of the at-bat.
If it’s a bad call, he can get frustrated and distracted for the next pitch. If he fouls off a good pitch that he feels like he should have driven somewhere, he sometimes feels like he missed his only opportunity that at-bat to get a hit.
In both cases, he’s not as focused or confident for the next pitch.
What we’ve discussed is a strategy he can use when those things happen during the at-bat, because we don’t want to just hope that he won’t get distracted.
This pattern has repeated itself over and over again. So now, he knows what he needs to do within the at-bat to help himself reset and refocus.
Developing Your Own Strategy for Managing Challenges
For yourself, if there’s anything that happens during a game that causes you to lose confidence or feel more pressure or anxiety, you want to have a strategy in place for when that happens.
The reason we need a strategy rather than simply hoping to avoid the situations is because we never want to rely on a perfect scenario to have a perfect mental game. You must accept that there will be roadblocks and bumps along the way.
If we can expect these things and then have a plan for them, it’s much more likely you’ll finish the game strong and play well.
When you just hope you won’t get distracted or lose confidence, you aren’t prepared for when it inevitably happens.
Anticipating Negative Thinking
A common challenge to anticipate is negative thinking. This can pop into your head without warning. Maybe something happens during the game and you start doubting yourself, worrying about what will happen, and your mind becomes filled with negative thoughts.
Instead of saying, “I hope I don’t think negatively today,” go into the game saying, “When I start thinking negatively, here’s what I’ll do.”
That’s a strategy.
The whole idea behind anticipating mental challenges is accepting that your mental game won’t be perfect — and being prepared for when it goes wrong.
Be Prepared, Not Perfect
It would be great if you never have to use these strategies. If you go into a game and never notice a drop in confidence, never think negatively, and never feel worried, that’s perfect.
But it’s always better to be prepared and anticipate the challenges you might face rather than just hope they won’t happen.
So, what you can do right now is brainstorm what challenges you can anticipate that will affect you mentally.
Whether it’s making a mistake and thinking negatively, your coach saying something to you, or a bad call that throws you off — write down those different challenges and then come up with some strategies.
The strategies will often involve some kind of resetting technique to bring yourself back into the moment.
For that baseball player, he steps out, takes a deep breath, tells himself something simple, and refocuses on the next pitch.
For athletes dealing with negative thinking, I use a reframing technique where they reframe their thoughts in the moment.
If there’s a bad call, you can use a resetting technique as well. The idea is to refocus yourself off whatever just happened and bring yourself back to what’s happening right now — with confidence.
Anticipating Physical Challenges
The other side of anticipating challenges involves physical challenges. These could be difficulties performing certain skills — maybe your swing feels off, your throws don’t feel accurate, or you don’t feel as fast.
You can also anticipate challenges in the playing conditions: a wet field, a rim that feels off, or a muddy course.
We’re not trying to manifest these challenges. We’re simply accepting that they’re not fully in our control. You can’t control if the umpire has a tight strike zone, or if your swing feels off that day.
Since these things are part of the game, you want to have a plan to manage them.
When you have a plan to manage both mental and physical challenges, you’ll have more confidence to play freely and handle them when they happen — instead of letting them throw you off your game.
These physical strategies might look different depending on your sport or position. Maybe you have a cue you rely on when your shot feels off, or a way to adjust for field conditions.
The key is to have strategies you can review before the game so you feel prepared when it starts.
Then, as the game progresses, you know that no matter what happens, you have a plan to help you succeed.
Final Thoughts
We don’t want to go into games hoping everything goes perfectly — that’s a recipe for disaster. Things rarely go perfectly.
But if you have plans in place to manage a drop in confidence, negative thinking, or bad officiating, you’ll trust yourself more and perform more consistently.
You’ll be the one who plays well in poor field conditions. You’ll be the one who stays composed despite trash talk or bad calls.
Because you’ve thought it through — and you’re more prepared than everyone else.
So, take some time to anticipate both mental and physical challenges you might face, and write down what your strategy will be for each one. That’s how you build a strong, consistent, and confident mental game.
If you’re interested in learning more about my one-on-one mental coaching program, click here to schedule a free introductory coaching call, or fill out the form below.
I’ve also created two online mental training courses for athletes:
And if you’re more of a reader, check out my books:
Thank you for reading and I wish you the best of success in all that you do.
