Talk to most athletes and they’ll say that they want to “level up.”

This desire is the first step. Unfortunately, that won’t take most athletes far enough. What separates those athletes that want to level up and those that actually do?

In my experience playing at the collegiate level, being a head coach for the past 10 years, and as a mindset coach for high-performing athletes, the ones that actually level up have these things in common…

They Have a Clear Vision

Athletes that play and excel at the next level have a vision of what they want. They are specific about what level they want to be playing at, what it will look like when they get there, and what it will feel like to achieve it. 

They may not get exactly what they want, depending on how specific they are, but they know that they will absolutely be able to achieve another level of performance by embodying the mindset, habits, and behaviors of the athlete that competes at the level they desire. 

In support of this vision, these athletes ask for advice, study how others got there, and emulate their path to success. 

They Put In the Extra Reps

Now that these athletes have a clear vision, they know that they can’t get there without sweat equity. “There are no shortcuts” as they say. 

They are typically the hardest workers in the gym. The ones that come early, stay late, seek extra training, and embrace all feedback as necessary to getting them closer to their goals. 

They don’t wait on other people to make them work hard. 

They Prioritize Their Mental Game

Average athletes who don’t tend to level up miss this important step, either because they don’t see the importance or they don’t know how to do it. 

The best athletes and the ones that compete at higher levels understand that training the mind is just as important as training the body, so they make it a high priority. 

This includes visualizing their success, having a daily mindset routine, establishing clear and effective pre and post competition routines, having strategies to reframe negative self-talk and skills to be able to come back from mistakes quickly (to name a few). 

They seek out ways that they can be supported and guided in the process of improving their mental game because they know that their physical skill can only get them so far. 

As parents/coaches, it’s also your job to support them in their pursuits, provide opportunities, and allow them to access the next level by utilizing these three key drivers to their success! 

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