Anthony Beeler
FIVE WAYS TO PLAY A MORE CONFIDENT GAME OF POOL ANTHONY BEELER
When asked, many pool players say that they want to play their best pool so they can feel more confident. Most players believe the cause-and-effect relationship between having more confidence starts with improved play.
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ut this isn’t entirely true. Confidence is a skill like any other and can be worked on daily, but you must know the right techniques first. Furthermore, working on your confidence first will directly impact your ability to also play better pool. So, let’s take a more direct look at where confidence really comes from... and some methods for improving your confidence both “on” and “off” the table.
1. SELF-TALK How you talk to yourself daily shapes you as a player. People have an emotional response to words... especially when the words come from ourselves. Uplifting and encouraging words help you feel more confident and help you to play your best. Research reveals that the more “negative” self-talk you have is a leading cause of performance anxiety in sports. A common misconception is that “thoughts” and “self-talk” are the same. This isn’t true. Thoughts happen to us whereas self-talk is a choice. The right self-talk can help get you into a positive mindset before playing, help you focus on what’s important, motivate you, and guide you through negative situations. Some of the best players in the world rehearse a list of positive things they
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want to believe about themselves. They say these things to themselves until they fully believe they are true. Positive self-talk doesn’t work if you don’t believe it. When I coach a student, I help them to create self-talk scripts, so they develop a winning mindset.
2. TRAINING OPTIMISM Confidence and mental toughness are both related to your personal perspective. Is the glass “half-full” or
“half-empty”? Are you seeing yourself “succeeding” or “failing”? What is positive about your current situation and your future? The world’s best players believe that something “good” is about to happen on their very next shot... not something “bad”! A player’s negative bias will always pull them towards negativity and what could go wrong. The good news, however, is that optimism can be enhanced with the right training exercises and mental rehearsal.
