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(2) Team goals are more important than individual ones. Individual players are able to sacrifice their trophies and personal goals and adopt team goals. Having a shared goal is only way to develop team unity and have teamwork.
(3) Elevated expectations or self-confidence. Any championship team has belief that they are ready, willing, and able to win big one. If a team has doubts about it’s overall ability level, then team will fall short of winning championship. If you think your team can get to playoffs, but not win big game, then team will realize this shortfall.
(4) No excuses to lose. I tell athletes I work with that if you show up to play with excuses to lose, then you might as well not show up to play. If you think your team does not play well under lights, against a particular team, or when conditions are not optimal, then you have excuses to lose. Championship teams don’t have built-in excuses to lose—they expect to win and will settle for nothing less.
Dr. Patrick J. Cohn is a master mental game coach who works with athletes of all levels including amateur and professionals. Visit Peaksports.com to gain access to over 500 exclusive mental game articles, audio programs, and interviews with athletes and coaches to enhance your athletic potential: www.peaksports.com/membership or call 888-742-7225.