It’s an age old question isn’t it? And one that many coaches come across at one point or another. How do I get my players to perform in games the way they do in practice?
If you find yourself asking this question, I promise, you are not alone. Here are a few things for you to consider …
1. First is Mental approach …
I wrote up an email called 3 causes of inconsistent performance and 1 way to fix it … Read it here.
2. Next is practice …
Is practice game like enough? Example given in this article about when your team is hitting well in practice but not in games. Read it here.
3. Last but not least, remember that being able to execute a skill (i.e. field/hit/throw a ball) is one thing … but being able to do it well is quite another.
And being able to do it well consistently, yet another.
Then there’s being able to do it well while under pressure. That’s yet another level.
Add fatigue to that mix and that’s yet another step in the process of mastery.
Where would you say your team is on that path? Are they still at the point of just having learned the skill and being able to perform it? Or have the moved on to being able to perform it well? What about consistently well? What about being able to perform it under pressure? Perform it well under pressure? Perform it well, consistently, under pressure? And can they do it while under pressure and fatigue?
AND where do they spend the most time training?
- Do they ever practice under pressure?
- Do they ever do drills that require them to execute a skill well?
- Do any of your practice drills require them to be consistent in their execution?
- Do they every have to perform a skill in practice while under fatigue?
- What about while under both fatigue and pressure?
Or are those higher levels of execution ONLY required during games?
If you’re looking for great softball drills that also develop the mental game at the same time, check out the Fail Forward Practice Bundle put together by Mental SweetSpot.
It’s a game changer. You can get it here.
To your ultimate success in this season and beyond,
Stacie
P.S. – this week I’m doing a free training in the Fastpitch Inspired FB group. We’re going over the mindset you need to effectively empower athletes to be the best they can be. Jump in here <3
