The Secret to Motivation
So many athletes in recent times have experienced sharp drops in motivations both in and out of their sport, but why? Is it fixable? Did covid ruin the next generation of athletes? That depends on the intention someone has behind reaching their goal(s); this is assuming that they have some to begin with. If you noticed yourself or others suddenly going from the 100% down to grind mindset to just coasting by, there may be a number of reasons behind that.
One of the most referred to theories of motivation utilized in Sport Psychology is Self-Determination Theory (SDT) (Deci & Ryan, 1985). Now, many people use other models of motivation, though this is often integrated within them at the root. SDT suggests that there are three primary factors that influence someone’s ability to be motivated towards achievement: Competence, Autonomy, Relatedness.
Essentially, for an athlete to be motivated, they need to genuinely believe that they have the ability/skillset to perform. In a sense, self-confidence in their ability to perform. They also, however, need to feel that they’re able to perform on their own accord, as if to say that they’re in control of their own actions. Competence without Autonomy drives the mindset that you’re performing for the sake of someone else. Relatedness, looks at the desire for one to support others, and feel supported by them as well. Are you feeling backed by your coaches, teammates, or trainers? Each of these components play off of each other, and ultimately create the drive for that intrinsic motivation we seek to have day in and day out
Take a look at yourself now while applying these principles. In terms of competence, are you still capable of performing? Has anything changed in your skillset that prevents you from performing as optimally as you’d like? If something has, what are you going to do to change it back in your favor? You’re on the team you’re on for a reason, and if you’re reading this, you’re likely in a position already in which you’ve made it to a solid level of competitiveness. Don’t take that lightly. Look at your strengths that brought you to that position. Reinforce them. Look at your weaknesses —stop calling them weaknesses, they’re areas for improvement and every athlete has them, whether you’re Lebron James, Christiano Ronaldo, Novak Djokovic, or Tom Brady. What’s going to separate you from the next athlete is actively choosing to put in focused effort towards these targeted areas.
Utilize the phrase of controlling the controllables and make change happen. When looking at things logistically, very rarely is there something that quite literally prevents us from at the very least working towards our desired outcome. You’re still the same capable YOU. We have more control over our own actions and behaviors that we give ourselves credit to. In a slump? Whether your shots are off, your accuracy isn’t hitting, or your technique is breaking, there’s ways to work around it. Put in the time yourself outside of practice, or better yet, break it down in your mind. We go through various stages of motor learning when we play a sport and eventually things become automatic in nature by the way we perform. When things diverge, take the time to look back at the fundamentals you’ve already learned. You’d be surprised with how much much of a coach to yourself you can be by spending 15 minutes to analytically criticize yourself.
Relatedness is often the most difficult one to manifest, as it seemingly relies on the actions of other people at face value. This isn’t necessarily the case. At the end of the day, your coaches mindset is getting the team to win. With that, requires putting players in a position to be victorious with technique among other physical factors and ideally a champion mindset. Does every coach do this perfectly? Absolutely not. Does every teammate have the diehard mindset of wanting every win? Of course not. This is where the give and take relationship comes though. You have to keep in mind that not everyone is going for your success, whether neutrally of actively hoping for failure. That doesn’t mean, however, that you don’t share the same champion mindset with people around you. Be the inspiration for others that you need and absorb that of those who already have it.
I hope this brought some perspective on your own motivational status. Motivational plateaus and declines are a tax to all athletes no doubt, but understanding why it is how it is, and pushing yourself through them develops the type of grit and resilience necessary to make it far in your sport and in life.
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior. New York: Plenum.
