By Tyler Beling and Eric Martin
(June 9, 2022)

What is self-talk?

An athlete tells themselves “I can do this” during a critical part of their match or, feeling defeated, says “I am too tired, I can’t keep going”. These are examples of self-talk or thoughts that athletes express to themselves during competition and training. An athlete’s self-talk can influence a number of factors including performance-related anxiety, something that will influence an athlete’s performance during competition. As a coach, you want your athlete to perform to the best of their abilities and changing how an athlete talks to themselves can have a significant impact on how they compete and train (Amado et al., 2019).

Self-talk is the internal dialogue that you have with yourself (either spoken aloud or internally within an athlete’s head), based on how you interpret your feelings and emotions and your perceptions of your environment. The self-talk that athletes express to themselves can be positive, negative, or unrelated to the task. Athletes utilize self-talk for a variety of reasons including to regain composure when stressed, regulate their focus and attention, and enhance and optimize their performance. Additionally, an athlete’s self-talk can be goal-directed (e.g., keep the elbow in) or it can be unrelated to the task at hand (e.g., what will I have for dinner?; De Muynck et al., 2020).

By knowing what self-talk is and how athletes make use of this skill, a coach can help an athlete express more productive thoughts that can positively influence their performances.

Positive self-talk

Goal-directed self-talk can be seen as a positive form of self-talk as it is used to intentionally solve or make progress toward the task at hand. The specific use of this type of self-talk is to enhance performance by increasing concentration or effort toward the goal. When an athlete’s self-talk is goal-oriented, it can be an effective tool to elevate and enhance their performances.

Ideally, athletes should use self-talk focused on things under their control as these have a positive effect on performance, especially in regards to their fear of failure. When an athlete encourages themself by saying things like “I am prepared” or “I can make this shot”, they are less likely to be afraid of failing and can focus on their performance instead of distractions during competitions. Based on a number of studies (Herbalis et al., 2008, 62-69) (Edwards et al., 2008) (Hamilton et al., 2007), positive self-talk can also increase an athlete’s confidence, sports performance and reduce their anxiety, which should increase your athletes’ execution within their sporting domain (De Muynck et al., 2020).

Negative self-talk

Negative self-talk is seen when an athlete has thoughts or feelings of worry, criticizes themselves, or begins thinking about the worst-case scenario (e.g., “What if I mess up?, “I am such a failure”, and “everything is going to go wrong”). All of these aspects can disrupt an athlete’s concentration on the task at hand and may lead to a higher degree of worry and nervousness expressed by an athlete. From a motivational perspective, negative self-talk harms an athlete’s perceived competence, perceived autonomy, and the likelihood of entering into a flow state during competition. Further, when an athlete engages in negative self-talk, the athlete might not persevere in tough situations, especially when they encounter unexpected obstacles. Essentially, if an athlete is telling themselves they are not good enough, they will not work as hard and not persevere through challenging situations.

The importance of noticing your self-talk

It is important for the athlete to be able to identify their thoughts and whether they have positive or negative self-talk during competitions and training. This focus will make it possible for them to adapt or change their thoughts. There are a number of ways for an athlete to identify their self-talk. One of the best is to have athletes reflect on their past sport experiences and think about what they were saying to themselves at that time. As you do this exercise with your athletes, ask if those phrases were motivating or discouraging at that moment. In essence, have athletes ask themselves, “Is what you are telling yourself helping or hurting your performance?”

Once an athlete understands their self-talk, the next step is to challenge those negative thoughts and to focus on the relevant stimuli at that specific moment (Amado et al., 2019). For example, if after an athlete makes a mistake, they think, “I can’t believe I made another mistake”, they should instead identify their feelings in that moment, and change their own narrative by telling themselves, “I made a mistake, but I am capable of a comeback” or “I feel tired now, but I can keep pushing for 2 more minutes”. These more goal-directed thoughts are going to be more helpful to their performance than their negative thoughts.

Using Self-talk is in no way meant to trick yourself in believing that everything is always wonderful as this is not necessarily productive. Instead, using self-talk in a positive way is intended for you to see the entire scope of the environment and not solely focus on the negative aspects surrounding a performance. By utilizing positive self-talk, it is possible for the athlete to feel more in control of any situation and this will allow an athlete to achieve the goals they set out for themself (The Conflict Center, 2018).

Using cue words to improve self-talk

Self-talk entails specific phrases, certain statements, and cue words that an athlete can express to themselves in order to aid their performances. As a coach, you can encourage your athletes to use specific cue words or productive phrases during practices and competitions. By emphasizing the importance of these cues or phrases regularly, the athlete can form positive habits that they can rely on during challenging times. When an athlete is confronted with a difficult situation during competition, they must be able to shift their mind to produce thoughts they have practiced in the past in order to maintain or regain focus.

Like most things in sport, it is important to practice self-talk regularly. Self-talk can be used with an instructional or motivational purpose. As a coach, you and your athlete can decide on specific situations or times during a competition where they should have specific cue words. Athletes should remember and utilize these cues during practices, especially in practices that are simulating competition. In your own practice, you and your athlete should think about where attention is most necessary and then select appropriate cue words that direct their focus to those desired aspects. The cue word itself is not as important as what it means to the athlete using the cue word.

To provide a bit more of a concrete idea of how to use cue words, an example of cue words an athlete could use while running a 1600 m race is included below:

• For the first 400m, an athlete might use the cue “get out hard” to indicate they should start the race fast.
• For the next 400m, the athlete could use the cue “float” to help the athlete maintain a fast but relaxed pace.
• In the third 400m of the race, the athlete might use the cue word “wind it up” which means that they should be aware of their competitors’ pace and anticipate that the pace might suddenly get faster.
• Finally, in the final 400m, the athlete might use “push” to stay focused and engaged in the moment and to sprint to the finish with all the reserves they have left in their tank.

One important aspect to remember is that harsh and negative self-evaluation will hold no benefits for an athlete.  For example, if a player misses a shot or a pass, instead of them reacting by saying, “I am terrible” or “why do I even try,” they must be conditioned to tell themself something more positive. Examples include “I made a mistake, but now I’ll work harder” or “React quicker / run that line / create space”. As a coach, you can assist your athletes with these modifications. Take note of when your athlete feels frustrated, reacts negatively, or their body language changes as these are cues that they need a new cue word. Remind them at that moment to use a positive phrase or practice a cue that has been used in the past. As a coach, you can be the initiator of this change.

Conclusion

Ultimately, each athlete is in control of their own thoughts and what they tell themself. By utilizing specific techniques with your athletes, you can help them change their negative self-talk to more positive self-talk and direct their attention to the most important aspects of their performance. Making these changes will make it possible for your athletes to positively adapt to the competition circumstances and improve their overall athletic performance by increasing their confidence levels. It will take practice to modify these thoughts, but it will certainly be beneficial in the long run.

References

Amado, D., Maestre, M., Montero-Carretero, C., Sánchez-Miguel, P. A., & Cervelló, E. (2019). Associations between self-determined motivation, team potency, and self-talk in team sports. Journal of Human Kinetics, 70(1), 245-259.

De Muynck, G. J., Soenens, B., Delrue, J., Comoutos, N., & Vansteenkiste, M. (2020). Strengthening the assessment of self‐talk in sports through a multi‐method approach. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 30(3), 602-614.

Edwards, C., Tod, D., & McGuigan, M. (2008). Self-talk influences vertical jump performance and kinematics in male rugby union players. Journal of Sports Sciences, 26(13), 1459-1465. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640410802287071.

Hamilton, R. A., Scott, D., & MacDougall, M. P.M. (2007). Assessing the effectiveness of self-talk interventions on endurance performance. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 19(2), 226-239. https://doi.org/10.1080/10413200701230613

Herbalis, T., Hatzigeorgiadis, A., & Theodorakis, Y. (2008). Self-Talk in wheelchair basketball: The effects of an intervention program on dribbling and passing performance. International Journal of Special Education, 23(3), 62-69.

The Conflict Center. (2018). Positive self-talk: What it is and why it’s important? Retrieved 10 19, 2021, from https://conflictcenter.org/positive-self-talk-what-it-is-and-why-its-important/