The CEP Mindset Podcast

Confidence is arguably the most important ingredient in succeeding as an athlete, but athletes often struggle to find and keep this elusive trait.

The problem lies in that they have a skewed understanding of what confidence actually is and where it comes from.

Here are the 4 main reasons why athletes struggle with self-confidence:

Yo-Yo Confidence: Tying their self-image to external results or praise

Imposter Syndrome: Believing they are not worthy and/or don’t belong

Victim Mentality: Blaming others and not taking responsibility

Negativity Bias: Constantly beating yourself up and overly focusing on the negatives

However, you can overcome these limiting beliefs by following these 3 steps to play with confidence:

Step 1: Stop Focusing on Confidence

Telling yourself that you have a confidence problem is one of the most common reasons athletes continuously struggle with confidence. If you reframe it as a problem with owning your capabilities the solution becomes much more attainable.

Instead of relying on external results and praise to give you confidence, make the shift to focusing on what you can control - putting in the work and owning your capabilities. This is the difference between yo-yo confidence and having a stable self-image.

True confidence is about owning your capabilities, but the word confidence is tainted. It’s associated with external results and praise. So an easy first step is to just stop using the word and shift your focus to owning your capabilities.