Blake Snow

writer-for-hire, content guy, bestselling author
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Tagged confidence

6 ways to become a more confident athlete

 

  1. Let go of fear. Play for yourself, never others. Play for fun. If it’s not fun, you won’t play well. So learn how to play freely for yourself, don’t hold back for fear of judgement from others, and have fun.
  2. Play efficiently, not perfectly. Accept that you will make mistakes but commit to reducing them instead of getting frustrated when you mess up. Accept mistakes as opportunities to learn and get better instead of something to fear or get overly upset about.
  3. Harbor confident, self-talk thoughts. Think, “I’m a good player and will only get better the more I play. I can do this. That mistake will not define my play today. Chin up, low and slow is the tempo, follow through, etc”
  4. Focus on the process, not the result. If you’ve trained hard, remind yourself that the hard work has already been done and now you can play freely.List the things you’re good at and things you need to work on.
  5. Practice like it matters instead of just going through the motions. Simulate in-game maneuvers over lazy warm-ups that teach you nothing.
  6. Visualize your next successful play. Tell yourself what you’ll do to make it happen.

The discouraging odds of becoming a professional athlete

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To many boys (and some girls), professional athletes are modern-day heroes. Iconic celebrities with fame, fortune, and power. What wide-eye youth wouldn’t want the same?

Turns out, a lot of them do. (With oversized Bo Jackson and Michael Jordan posters adorning my childhood walls, I certainly did.) But as with all desirable things in life, getting paid to play sports isn’t easy.

In fact, the odds are downright nasty for aspiring players, according to new data from the NCAA.

Continue reading…

7 things I learned in Costa Rica last week

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I’m writing this at 30,000 feet just off the pacific coast of Nicaragua. Twenty minutes ago I left San Jose, Costa Rica on a Delta flight bound for Salt Lake City via Los Angeles.

I was in Costa Rica this week as a guest of the tourism department. They want me to write about all the reputable adventure here in my travel column for Paste Magazine. Thanks to the renowned canyoneering, rappelling, cliff jumping, rain forrest-ing, mountain biking, waterfalls, surfing, zip lining, Tarzan swinging, river rafting, and exotic fauna and wildlife—all within close proximity, mind you—I gladly will.

But as usual, encounters with new (and familiar) humans while here had the greatest impact on me. Here’s what I really learned from Costa Rica:  Continue reading…