You know that voice inside your head? The one that reminds you of something negative at the most inopportune moment? We’ve all got it. Those voices are our minds at work. Over the course of our existence, our minds have developed to keep us safe by solving problems. However, while they strive to keep us safe, they don’t always do so honestly. That’s right: our minds sometimes tell us things that aren’t true or helpful in order to solve problems.

If you’ve ever been reminded of the last shot you missed while standing at the free-throw line, or the last pass you bombed the moment you were throwing the ball, you’ll surely be aware of the effects it can have on your performance. While it might not make sense that these thoughts would “help” us, our minds are trying to remind us of these old actions in hopes that we might not repeat them. (This goes back to those old survival instincts where repeating the same action twice might result in death.) While we can’t stop our minds from their constant input, we can train ourselves to place that input on the back burner when we really need to. Here are 3 tips from psychotherapist Bobbi Emel:

1. Thank your mind. When that little voice starts telling you that your shirt is so last year, just acknowledge it. Tell your mind that you appreciate that it is looking out for your best interests, but that you’re fine. Soon, you will be able to separate yourself from your thoughts, and see that those thoughts aren’t you.
2. Become aware that some of the thoughts your mind produces may not be true.  Your hair does look fine. You will make that next shot. Your next time will be better. You’re mind is simply worried that once you reach good enough that you won’t strive to do better. Again, all you need to do us understand that your mind is trying to solve problems. After you do that, just tell yourself that it’s not true and move on.
3. Label thoughts as stories. Our minds create patterns of thoughts that are like stories. Recognizing that not all of those stories are true is key. Once you do that, you can take a step back from your own thought process and allow yourself to be more objective. Not all stories are true.

At first glance, it may seem a bit difficult to turn down the volume on your own thoughts. The important thing to remember is that like any sport or skill, it takes time to learn, practice and apply. With enough work, you will be able to apply these with ease and focus on what’s really important: the moment you’re in right then and there.

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Confidence is an integral part of success. Without this trait, it is difficult to triumph on any type of playing field. Luckily, we can learn how to be confident (or more confident). While preparation builds confidence — try winning any competition without working on the physical, technical, and tactical parts of your sport — mental skills also create confidence.

In Prime Ski Racing: Triumph of the Racer’s Mind, author Jim Taylor, Ph.D., gives us numerous mental techniques to help us construct confidence. First, “walk the walk”. Successful competitors move with confidence: Head held high and chin tilted slightly up, eyes facing forward, shoulders are back and with a spring in their movements.

His next piece of advice — “talk the talk” — means making our self-thoughts and spoken words more positive. Dr. Taylor points out that it “takes 12 positive experiences to equal one negative experience.” So every time you tell yourself you are a loser, you need to tell yourself you are a winner 12 times to cancel out that one saying. Think about the most common negative statements you tell yourself and ponder when you are most likely to say them. Then write positive statements to counter-act these harsh words. Then next time you say or think a negative statement, say “stop” or “positive” to yourself and then say one of your positive thoughts.

Dr. Taylor also suggests creating a “Ski Racer’s Litany.” This is a list of self-statements that infuse your mind and body with confidence. Write a list for your own sport. Dr. Taylor’s list includes these lines: “I love to ski race; If I give my best effort, then I am a winner; I think and talk positively.” Say this list every morning and evening and before you train and compete. And say it with conviction. Even if you don’t feel each item on your list to be one hundred percent true, saying it like you mean it will help you start to believe every word.

Of course, you don’t have to try to build your confidence all by yourself. A sport psychologist can help you become a more confident athlete.

Have you ever really thought about focus? Prime Ski Racing author Jim Taylor, Ph.D., looks at focus from an athlete’s perspective, helping competitor’s concentrate attention in a winning way. He introduces us to the term “attentional field”: The thoughts, emotions, and physical responses within you as well as the outside sights and sounds you focus on. He asks us to think of focus as “the ability to attend to internal and external cues in your attentional field.”

A well-focused athlete knows where to focus her attention for the best results on the playing field. Some people find success through an internal focus style; they concentrate on their sport and technique while training or competing, knowing they can be “easily distracted by activity in the immediate surroundings.” Other competitors do best with an external focus style, focusing on outside sights and sounds right up until the moment of competition or while training, knowing that they over think if they are concentrating on their sport too much.

What type of focus works for you? Dr. Taylor suggests analyzing past races, thinking about the types of focus you used and which type of focus led to good results.

Dr. Taylor has many tips for developing focus. The simplest way to train your focus is to place your eyes where you need to focus. To get rid of external distractions (if this works for you) keep “your eyes down and on the course.” Or, if critical thinking ruins you, look around you and talk to other athletes before competition or during training breaks.

Dr. Taylor also tells us to “focus on what we can control.” We have heard this before and we will hear it again: The only thing under our control is ourselves. Unfortunately, the weather and everything else is just not under our jurisdiction. Dr. Taylor offers us the four P’s to help align our focus on ourselves:

Positive: Avoid negative thinking or replace each negative thought with a positive statement.

Process: “Focus on what you need to do to ski [play] your best,” from training to honing your technique.

Present: The past is over and winning is in the future. What are you doing at this very moment? Focus on the here and now.

Progress: Comparing yourself to others is a no-win situation. “Focus on your own improvement.”

Focus may seem simple, but developing the right type of concentration is vital. A sport psychologist can help you create the focus you need to play your sport at your optimum level.