Sport mimics life certainly. For younger athletes sport also mimics school in so many ways. One way is in the comparison of report cards. In academics the student who comes to class most prepared for an exam will likely receive a high score for their test performance.
Likewise in softball the athlete that shows up on Game Day most prepared has a much greater likelihood of achieving a high level of performance success on the field.
Both the exam in school and competition on the diamond will equate to a report card, a progress report of sorts, to assess where student or athlete is in terms of subject/sport mastery.
So now that I have made that correlation let's dig a little deeper into the softball Game Day report card, and what determines an "A," to "F" grade.
Like any subject in school an athlete must spend the required time to learn how to perform their best on Game Day. This effort must include both physical and mental preparation. An athlete preparing only on their physical game (and not their mental game) would be akin to a student studying only the text book and never going to class to hear the teacher's lecture and taking appropriate class notes. Ultimately the student would not be prepared enough to excel in the class and would likely receive less than an "A" grade.
With extraordinary physical and mental preparation your athlete has the right to, and will likely achieve, consistent and sustained Game Day success found in the "green zone" and even domination...an "A" grade!
With a lower level of preparation and commitment to being her best your athlete will fall into the "yellow zone" or "red zone" with the appropriate Game Day results and grades.
In short the game of fastpitch softball is just too hard to take the ultimate physical and mental preparation necessary for granted. There is no question that there are days and moments when the game will "get" your athlete. The only question is how frequently, and how well she will bounce back from that Game Day adversity.
Click here to change her game forever.
Bouncing back from the inevitable mistakes and adversity is far easier if your athlete can frame her Game Day performance in terms of a report card; meaning, like school, a report card (or progress report) tells student and parent the weaknesses and areas that need improvement to improve the student's grade.
Likewise the "game" will always give your athlete a daily report card on the areas she is both strongest and weakest in, and areas she needs to work on to improve her Game Day grade. Game Day failure or adversity always offers within it a tremendous opportunity to go back to practice, motivated by the challenge of turning a weakness into a strength!
The achievement of consistent and sustained Game Day success is difficult but possible for every athlete if she is willing to put forth the effort to prepare both her mind and body for the rigors of the game.
So after your athlete's next game encourage her to give herself a report card on her performance, to be honest about what the game told her she needs to work on, and to take her next step on the ladder of softball mastery. Hopefully she will look at the process as a challenge and opportunity as she continues to show up on Game Day in the "green zone" eager to get another Game Day "A."
***My FREE three part online video training series, How to Reach Full Athletic Potential on Game Day, is coming on June 1!
Sign up in the form to the right to receive the activation link to the first video immediately upon the worldwide release of the training series on June 1.
Be sure to follow me on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
Follow @KellyEdge
Likewise in softball the athlete that shows up on Game Day most prepared has a much greater likelihood of achieving a high level of performance success on the field.
Both the exam in school and competition on the diamond will equate to a report card, a progress report of sorts, to assess where student or athlete is in terms of subject/sport mastery.
So now that I have made that correlation let's dig a little deeper into the softball Game Day report card, and what determines an "A," to "F" grade.
Like any subject in school an athlete must spend the required time to learn how to perform their best on Game Day. This effort must include both physical and mental preparation. An athlete preparing only on their physical game (and not their mental game) would be akin to a student studying only the text book and never going to class to hear the teacher's lecture and taking appropriate class notes. Ultimately the student would not be prepared enough to excel in the class and would likely receive less than an "A" grade.
Game Day Success = Proper Physical Preparation + Proper Mental Preparation
Here is what your athlete's Game Day report card might look like if she fell into the green zone ("A" grade), yellow zone ("C" grade), or red zone ("F" grade):
With extraordinary physical and mental preparation your athlete has the right to, and will likely achieve, consistent and sustained Game Day success found in the "green zone" and even domination...an "A" grade!
With a lower level of preparation and commitment to being her best your athlete will fall into the "yellow zone" or "red zone" with the appropriate Game Day results and grades.
In short the game of fastpitch softball is just too hard to take the ultimate physical and mental preparation necessary for granted. There is no question that there are days and moments when the game will "get" your athlete. The only question is how frequently, and how well she will bounce back from that Game Day adversity.
Click here to change her game forever.
Bouncing back from the inevitable mistakes and adversity is far easier if your athlete can frame her Game Day performance in terms of a report card; meaning, like school, a report card (or progress report) tells student and parent the weaknesses and areas that need improvement to improve the student's grade.
Likewise the "game" will always give your athlete a daily report card on the areas she is both strongest and weakest in, and areas she needs to work on to improve her Game Day grade. Game Day failure or adversity always offers within it a tremendous opportunity to go back to practice, motivated by the challenge of turning a weakness into a strength!
The achievement of consistent and sustained Game Day success is difficult but possible for every athlete if she is willing to put forth the effort to prepare both her mind and body for the rigors of the game.
So after your athlete's next game encourage her to give herself a report card on her performance, to be honest about what the game told her she needs to work on, and to take her next step on the ladder of softball mastery. Hopefully she will look at the process as a challenge and opportunity as she continues to show up on Game Day in the "green zone" eager to get another Game Day "A."
***My FREE three part online video training series, How to Reach Full Athletic Potential on Game Day, is coming on June 1!
Sign up in the form to the right to receive the activation link to the first video immediately upon the worldwide release of the training series on June 1.
Be sure to follow me on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
Follow @KellyEdge
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Learn more about the 21 mental performance killers that may be holding your athlete back. http://SoftballSmarts.com