We’ve all seen the player.
Too much pressure can change behaviour in unexpected ways | Iconic Media
Brilliant in training, confident in his ability, composed, and technically excellent.
It’s the start of the new football season, and the big game arrives.
Suddenly, the passes are off. The dynamic risks disappear. A mistake is followed by another mistake. The player who normally looks like they love having the ball suddenly looks like they’re trying to get rid of it fast.
And everyone watching wonders the same thing: “What’s happened to him?”
Well, nothing has happened to his talent. The problem is we treat talent and performance as the same thing. But they aren’t. Especially when everyone is watching.
I call this ‘The Spotlight Test’ It’s what happens when the pressure of being watched changes how you perform.
You know you’re being judged – no, scrutinised – and that starts to interfere with the very qualities that made you really good in the first place.
Footballers operate under a level of scrutiny that most of us will never experience. A poor game isn’t just a poor game.
Within minutes, there can be clips circulating online, pundits analysing tactics, supporters questioning commitment and journalists asking whether the player has lost confidence.
Or worse, had their day.
Pressure can interfere with the very qualities that made you really good in the first place
If you’re a young player trying to establish yourself, a new signing trying to justify a transfer fee, or an established player suddenly fighting for your place, the spotlight can become even more intense.
And that pressure you’re now under, changes your behaviour. The creative player starts playing safe. The player who normally demands the ball suddenly doesn’t want it.
And that’s what’s so frustrating about pressure. It doesn’t necessarily make you worse at your job, but it does make you behave differently while you’re doing it.
I’ve seen the same thing outside football.
A leader (let’s include today’s politicians here) who is excellent in a room suddenly becomes overly cautious when they’re presenting something controversial, or bad news.
A talented performer suddenly becomes obsessed with what everyone else is thinking. It’s not surprising though is it? Now that social media has given people the right to say what the heck they want, hidden behind a ‘keyboard’ of course.
Footballers are no different, but because their mistakes are so visible, they have fewer places than most to hide.
It’s a myth that high performers don’t feel pressure. Of course they do.
Sometimes they feel it the most, because they’re also carrying the weight of expectation on their shoulders.
But telling a footballer to ‘be confident’ isn’t particularly helpful when they’ve missed a sitter in front of 50,000 people.
Neither is telling them to ‘stop thinking about it’.
You know that though, don’t you?
Try telling your brain not to think about something and see how well that works.
The real work is understanding what happens to you when the spotlight gets more intense. How do you change?
Do you become more cautious? Or start trying to prove yourself?
You might worry more about making mistakes or even become desperate to impress.
Some people become more aggressive, emotional or impulsive.
There isn’t one pressure response, we’re all different, and all footballers are different too. That’s why generic advice rarely works.
Every player has their own version of what happens to them in the spotlight. You can’t remove the spotlight, that’s impossible, but you can (we all can) learn how to perform under it.
At the highest level, football is full of talented people.
If you’re spotted, talent will get you into the room, but it’s no guarantee that you can perform once you’re facing the spotlight.
Because when everyone is watching, the temptation is to become the player you think everyone wants you to be.
That’s The Spotlight Test.
Recognising the signs of stress in the workplace is crucial |
Everyone has a camera, and even if you’re not a footballer, or in a high-profile position, you’re being watched- by your boss at work, your colleagues, your friends and even by people you don’t even know.
So how can you handle yourself well when eyes are on you?
Here are three ways.
1. Know what pressure does to YOU
Pressure doesn’t affect everyone in the same way. Some people become cautious. Some overthink; some try too hard to impress. Others become impatient or reactive. Whichever way you are, be aware that you’re affecting the people around you too – that has consequences when you’re in the spotlight.
Ask yourself, “What do I actually do when I’m under pressure?” (If you can’t answer that, ask someone who knows you well). Self-awareness is that all important first step, and once you know, you can work with it and learn to perform extremely well under pressure.
2. Don’t change who you are
One of the biggest dangers when under pressure is trying to look like someone you’re not.
You become more controlled, more distant and more careful. You might stop challenging people. You start to second-guess decisions. You try to say or do the ‘right’ thing.
What often happens is that the harder you try to perform, the further you move away from what you’re normally good at.
Instead, focus right back onto the behaviour, the style of play, and the very things that made you successful at what you do.
3. Stop trying to control the spotlight
You can’t control what people think. And you never will be able to.
You can’t control the commentary, the questions, the expectations, the scrutiny or whether someone thinks you made the wrong decision.
Give yourself a break, it’s pointless.
But you can absolutely control your preparation for being in the spotlight, your response to how you feel in it and your next decision.
No footballer can’t control the crowd, just as no leader or person under pressure can control every reaction to a decision made.
But they can be in control of their actions, and what they then do next.
You don’t perform well under pressure by getting rid of the spotlight. You perform well by learning how to be yourself at your best, when it’s on.
We can all do with a bit of that… can’t we?
amana
Straightforward. straight talking coach.