3 Major Steps to Improve Your Mental Game This Summer

Summer is the perfect time to focus on improving your mental game if you're a middle school or high school basketball player. A strong mental game can be the difference between good and great performance on the court. Here are three major things you can do this summer to elevate your mental game, and how you can work with Coach Dave, a renowned mental performance coach, to make the most of your off-season.

1. Develop an Elite Mindset

Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Set Clear Goals: Define what you want to achieve this summer. Whether it's improving your shooting percentage, becoming a better defender, or enhancing your leadership skills, having clear goals will give you direction and purpose.

2. Positive Self-Talk: Replace negative thoughts with positive affirmations. For example, instead of thinking "I can't make this shot," tell yourself "I can make this shot."

3. Visualize Success: Spend a few minutes each day visualizing yourself succeeding in specific situations on the court. See yourself making that game-winning shot or executing a perfect defensive play. Also, visualize yourself making a mistake, or missing a shot (don’t forget, no one is perfect!) and see yourself overcoming that mistake and how you will shake it off and stay in the present moment not letting that bother you.

2. Create and Use an Alter Ego

Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Identify Your Strengths: Reflect on your strengths and what makes you unique as a player. Your alter ego should embody these strengths.

2. Design Your Alter Ego: Give your alter ego a name and personality. This should be a version of yourself that is confident, fearless, and resilient.

3. Practice Becoming Your Alter Ego: Before practice or games, take a moment to mentally shift into your alter ego. Use physical cues, like putting on your jersey, to trigger this transformation.

3. Focus on Staying Present

Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Mindfulness Practice: Spend a few minutes each day practicing mindfulness. This could be through meditation, deep breathing exercises, or simply focusing on your senses during everyday activities.

2. Game-Day Routines: Develop a pre-game routine that helps you stay present and grounded. This could include listening to a specific playlist, doing a series of stretches, or repeating a calming mantra.

3. In-Game Focus: During games, focus on one play at a time. If you make a mistake, acknowledge it, learn from it, and then let it go. Stay in the moment rather than dwelling on past plays or worrying about future ones.

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By focusing on these three major steps—developing an elite mindset, creating and using an alter ego, and staying present—you can significantly improve your mental game this summer. Working with Coach Dave will provide you with the tools, strategies, and support needed to take your mental performance to the next level. Don't miss this opportunity to gain a mental edge and become a more confident, resilient, and focused basketball player.

Not only are we available for 1 on 1 coaching, group coaching, online coaching, but we are planning on LIVE classes that will begin in mid-July as well. We will hold weekly classes for 4 weeks and will have more information out on that this week!!!

Stay resilient,

Coach Dave

Founder Flow State Basketball

P.S. If you want to work with us in any capacity, there are 3 ways we can help you:

1 - TOGETHER with Coach Dave. www.flowstatebasketball.com
2 - ON YOUR OWN with our monthly membership platforms. www.flowstatebasketball.com
3 - FOR FREE on YouTube and our social media platforms.