Having a strong mindset and strong positive belief system in place in sport enables you to focus on your desired outcome and can give you the edge in performance. Sports can teach us a lot about ourselves and even about the game in general.

Watching old footage of a Champions League final between Liverpool and AC Milan, I thought constantly of the overused sports cliché about imposing your will on an opponent.

What looked like a comfortable win for AC Milan going 3-0 in the first half to then have Liverpool FC fight back and bring it to 3-3, when Liverpool FC got the ball back after getting the third goal you could see it in the body language of both Liverpool (elated that they had fought back to draw with AC Milan and go into Extra time where they could win) and AC Milan (knowing they could have easily won the final already but allowed Liverpool FC to come back into the game and score three more goals and possibly facing a loss they began to lose focus). Watching Liverpool FC come out after the 2nd half guns blazing after being beaten in the first half by three goals was a strong test to their mental attitude and mindset, strong beliefs in themselves and their team mates were needed. Was I watched the 2nd half of the game unfold, it was like the thought of losing by 3 goals never even entered their mind.

So was it confidence in their beliefs that they could do it or was it competence? I think it was both. Liverpool FC knew they could come back from 3 goals down, because they had been there before, Their Manager then Rafael Benitiz could have put more pressure on them by reinforcing the fact it was a final and they were down 3 goals already. But what he was very clever, he reframed the whole situation to make it an achievable outcome. Instead of saying to Liverpool FC they needed 4 goals to beat AC Milan, all he said was to go out like it was the start of a new game and win the second half. This statement was the very statement that got Liverpool FC to do just that and actually win the final of the Champions League.

So your probabilly wondering, can anyone get a strong mindset and can anyone generate a positive belief system, that if they truly believe they can do something, their body and actions will do the rest to create that desired outcome?

Muhammed Ali used to say that ” It isn’t bragging if you can do it”. And I believe that.

When someone has a strong mindset and it enables them to be actively positive through sports, they begin to never get the sense that they expect anything less of them self but excellence in their field.

If you expect amazing things through the use of being positive and having a strong belief in yourself, most of the time you will.

Instead of pondering what could be just having the confidence to visualize something and acting on it, you will surprise yourself with what you will achieve.

So the point I’m trying to make is that expectations and self talk are a big deal, and you can definitely affect the way you play in sports by having unhealthy and unrealistic expectations. So by having a positive belief system in place for yourself, not only will your confidence sky rocket but you will be able to generate a positive mindset when others feel the pressure, you will stay calm and mentally focussed and this 1% you will have over everyone else will separate the winners from the losers in a sports.

I was once told “Expect the best prepare for the worst”, but I disagree, I think you should expect and prepare for the best and then adapt if something else happens.