Good Players vs Great Players
The Difference is Mental Performance
We’ve all seen it, the athlete who steps off the bus looking like an absolute monster. They have a naturally intimidating presence, but when it comes to game time, they are about as threatening as a rubber duck. Why is that?
Most athletes spend so much time sculpting their bodies and practicing their physical skills but they haven’t spent the requisite time developing their mental performance skills. Mental performance is one of the most overlooked aspects of the game, especially the higher-up in competition you get.
Mental Performance is Critical to Greatness
Mental performance is the combination of conscious and subconscious thoughts, feelings, and actions that dictate your ability to deliver results in any given situation. Whatever level of competition or stage of life you find yourself in, mental performance training is the easiest way to give yourself an edge over your competition. By having better focus & grit, and experiencing less anxiety or stress than your opponents in any given situation, your mental toughness will allow you to out-will your competition to victory.
Every athlete at the highest levels of competition has the physical skills to excel. The ones who do also have the mental skills to do so. Think of the best player in whatever sport you like. How did they do when the pressure was on? They excelled and it likely defined their career - think Kobe Bryant. If they weren’t and overcame it, they were probably famous for it - like Peyton Manning.
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Manning vs. Kobe: A Difference in Mental Performance
Peyton Manning is one of the greatest football players ever to play the game. He set multiple regular-season records but was known, for years, as a player who couldn’t win when it mattered most. He finally won the ultimate prize - a Super Bowl Ring - but the losses in playoff games had people questioning his mental toughness for years.
It took Manning 6 seasons to finally win his first playoff game. (Ironically, he beat the Denver Broncos, with whom he would go on to win his second Super Bowl in 2016.) He was back-to-back regular-season MVP in 2003 and 2004 but was known more for failing in the playoffs than for his in-season success. These failures include an AFC Championship Game in 2004 in which he threw four interceptions against his rival Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. Manning would finally get the monkey off his back and win the Super Bowl with the Indianapolis Colts in the 2006 season.
Compare that to Kobe Bryant. Kobe defined his career as a clutch player with incredible mental performance skills. His mental toughness was so well known it got its own nickname - The Mamba Mentality. He was ruthless when the pressure was on. He did better because of it. That is why he won 5 NBA Championships.
While it took Manning 6 years to win his first playoff game, it only took Kobe 4 seasons to win his first championship. He is the youngest player to ever win three championships, accomplishing the feat at age 23. He developed a reputation as a player who could carry his team through the 4th quarter to victory in any game.
There were players who should have been better than Kobe because maybe they could jump higher, or shoot the ball better, but they weren’t. Kobe would outwill his competition. Kobe had the mental edge and outperformed everyone when it mattered most.
The difference between these two players was their mental game. Kobe seemed to always have it while Manning needed to develop it throughout his career to get over the hump and finally win a championship. While both of these players are great, it shows how truly vital mental performance is to reach that level of greatness.
Developing Your Own Mental Performance
When it comes to your mental performance are you a Kobe or a Manning?
There doesn’t need to be something wrong with you to start working on your mental game. You also don’t need to be an athlete for mental performance to be critical to your success in life. At the end of the day, we are all in some form of competition or performance, and optimizing the mental side of that - your focus, confidence, grit, mindset, etc. - can be a game-changer in your life.
If we start to look at our mental well-being like we do our physical well-being, we can finally move away from the stigma that there has to be something wrong with you to work on your mental health. The easiest way to get an advantage is to start training your mental performance before everyone else picks up on it.
The best time to start working on your mental performance is now! Check out our blogs to learn 4 easy ways to start improving your mental performance today
Title Graphic Photo Credit: Keith Allison, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
