The Underrated Superpower of Champions
Picture this: You’re in the final seconds of a game, the crowd is roaring, and the pressure is at an all-time high. In this moment, what separates the great from the good? It’s not just talent or training—it’s focus.
Focus is one of the most underrated elements of sports performance and life itself. It influences confidence, resilience, and the ability to execute under pressure. In this article, we’ll explore why focus is the ultimate game-changer, how to channel it properly, and quickfire techniques to sharpen it. By the end, you’ll have a challenge to take your focus to the next level.
The Science of Focus: Why It Matters in Competition
Studies show that the average athlete spends just 53% of their time in the present moment. This means that more than half of an athlete’s attention is either stuck in past mistakes or worried about future outcomes.
Your unconscious mind works seven seconds ahead of your conscious mind. This is why muscle memory, developed through repetition, allows you to react instinctively. In high-pressure moments, if you overthink, you slow down and miss the opportunity. As a former basketball player, I can tell you: when a defender reaches for the ball, the best players have already moved it without thinking.
To maximize your skill potential, you must align your mind and body in the present moment. Trust your training, let go of unnecessary thoughts, and perform with clarity.
The Enemy of Focus: Mental Time Travel
Our minds love to time travel—reflecting on past mistakes or anticipating future scenarios. While goal-setting and reflection have their place, they can be a distraction during competition.
Let’s break it down:
- If your mind is stuck in the past, replaying a missed shot or a turnover, you’re splitting your focus and operating at only 50% capacity.
- If your mind is focused on the future, worried about making another mistake, again, you’re only using 50% of your potential.
Top athletes don’t just have superior skills—they have the ability to stay locked into the moment. The present is where peak performance happens.
Managing Stress to Maintain Focus
Competition naturally brings stress. Even when things are going well, your body experiences a level of physiological duress. Research suggests that to achieve ‘flow state,’ athletes need to be challenged up to 4% outside their comfort zone—not too much, not too little.
But when stress levels tip too far, cortisol and adrenaline flood the body, leading to fight-or-flight responses. This can cause overthinking, shaky confidence, and loss of control.
Fact: Around 80% of our thoughts have a negative bias, and 95% of these thoughts are repetitive. This is why errors, mistakes, and adversity stick in our minds more than successes.
The key? Learning to regulate stress so you stay in the optimal performance zone rather than spiraling into self-doubt.
The Role of Confidence: It’s Not What You Think
Many athletes assume they have a confidence problem, but in reality, they have a focus problem. When your attention is on things outside your control—like the outcome, the opponent, or past mistakes—you feel unstable.
A peak performance mindset is about controlling only what you can:
- Your effort
- Your preparation
- Your ability to stay present
Confidence isn’t about eliminating mistakes; it’s about bouncing back quickly and focusing on the next play. Graham Betchart, mental game coach for UCONN’s back-to-back National Men’s Basketball Champions, calls this competitive compassion—having high standards but also self-compassion to move on from errors fast.
The Breath: Your Greatest Tool for Focus
When stress takes over, your heart rate spikes, and everything feels faster than it is in reality. The way to regain control? Breathing.
Brené Brown once said, “Trying to go from negative thinking to positive thinking is like trying to jump the Grand Canyon.” Instead, find middle ground by using your breath as an anchor.
Here’s why it works:
- It is physically impossible to be anxious and calm at the same time.
- Slowing the breath sends a signal to the brain that there is no threat.
- It brings awareness back to the present.
Try this: Inhale slowly, then exhale even slower. Focus on a single sensation—your breath, your heartbeat, or the rise and fall of your chest. This simple action re-centers your focus and primes you for the next play.
Your Challenge: Implement Focus Training Today
Now, it’s time to put this into action. Here’s my challenge for you:
- During your next workout or game, practice breath control. Use slow breathing to bring yourself back to the present moment.
- When you catch yourself stuck in past mistakes or future worries, ask: “What’s next?” This keeps your attention on what matters—the next play.
- Track your progress. Tag me on social media using #headstrong or email me at coachcal@riseaboveadversity.com.au—I’d love to hear about your results.
Your best performances come from a state of calm and control. The greatest athletes in the world train their mental game as much as their physical game.
Growth is uncomfortable, and challenges will always come. But with the right focus, you don’t just survive them—you thrive.
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