An athlete’s mind can create a champion or turn into one’s worst enemy.

Mental toughness is as important as physical strength when it comes to shining in sports, achieving great success in your careers. Adversity strikes all, in different ways. Challenges come when least expected, at different stages of success. High performers must learn how to stay focused and confidently move through any kind of setback, such as a mental block, performance plateau, prolonged slump, or injury. They must also develop ways to reduce off-field issues, or non critical issues or concerns that interfere with their training and work success.

During competition, the key word is “performance” because if you focus on performing (rather than on any results or other extraneous factors), then you’re totally in the present. Being in the present and staying purposeful lets you “own the moment” and maximize your abilities.

One important lesson is that we either win or we learn. Forget about losing and focus on continual improvement. Give yourself credit where credit is due and celebrate what you did well. But then if you didn’t do as well as you wanted, say, “What did I learn from this that’s going to help me perform better next time?”