Unless you have been sleeping under a rock, you have seen Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers unforgettable moment in NBA history. He hit an impressive buzzer-beater in Game 5 against the Oklahoma City Thunder that had everybody amazed! When you want to talk about pressure, the average person couldn’t imagine the amount of pressure he felt in that moment or could they? According to Lillard, the average person experiences way more pressure than that moment could ever amount to.
He states “Pressure, nah. Fam, this is just playing ball.” “Pressure is the homeless man, who doesn’t know where his next meal is coming from.” “Pressure is the single mom, who is trying to scuffle and pay her rent.” “We get paid a lot of money to play a game,” “Don’t get me wrong ― there are challenges.” “But to call it pressure is almost an insult to regular people.”
While Damian Lilllard’s statement is very true, it does bring to light how we raise our athletes to recognize pressure and deal with it appropriately. First, we start with assisting our athletes in understanding what pressure is. A simple definition can be, the feelings an athlete has about performing in a sporting situation. There are different levels to the feelings an athlete can have regarding his or her performance but, it's all about how they deal with it. No matter if it’s a little or huge amount of pressure your athlete is experiencing, there are four key things they should always implement when dealing with pressure.
Remember They Will Have Multiple Opportunities. While the pressure is on, it's easy for an athlete to think that they will never get that opportunity again. However, in most cases they could and they would. Remind them that in sports, opportunities will always be there. If they didn’t get a chance to take advantage of that one opportunity, another one is right around the corner.
Let Go Of Winning. Most athletes put pressure on themselves due to they are holding on to just winning the game. However, the most important aspect for an athlete to focus on is executing their role. Assist your athlete in understanding that winning takes a team not an individual, therefore putting all the pressure on themselves only increases their chances to lose. Encourage them to focus on what they can control, execute their role to the best of their ability and allow for others around them to share the responsibility.
Remember That They Belong. When athletes make mistakes under pressure, they feel their value on the team diminishes. However, its important to encourage your athlete in understanding that their role on the team will always have value because they were picked for a reason. Encourage them to understand that mistakes will happen, but their purpose on the team will always be needed.
Practice Tangible Strategies. When athletes are under pressure, sometimes they do not have strategies to utilize in the moment. Encourage them to make a list of three things they can do when they are in the moment. For example; practice breathing techniques, meditate on positive affirmations or find a focal point in the game to refocus their thoughts. These things will allow them to have resources in place to activate as soon as they are in high pressured situations.
Everyone handles pressure differently, attempting to assist your athlete in understanding how to recognize and handle it now, will only benefit them throughout their sports career. Start implementing these tools with your athletes now and you will begin to see changes that will make a huge difference in how they approach the game.
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Candice Lodree is a Professional Family Life Coach that is passionate about assisting families live healthy, productive and positive lives. As a wife of an athlete and raising little athletes, she enjoys providing helpful tips and resources to parents raising aspiring athletes.