What are some of the mental characteristics associated with excellence and top performance?
Goal setting Mental rehearsal (visualization and imaging) Risk taking (performing under pressure) Relaxation Concentration Directing beliefs toward success Isn’t it the case that athletes either have or don’t have certain traits such as poise, mental toughness, and drive? An important conclusion in optimal performance is that the mental qualities associated with top performance are learnable skills. Certain athletes have the optimal performance characteristics naturally. They are naturally high risk takers or excellent visualizers. Others, however, can acquire these traits by learning them. Because these characteristics are skills, they can be learned and developed intentionally. By developing the mental characteristics associated with top achievement and excellence—goal setting, relaxation, visualization, risk taking, concentration, and directing beliefs toward success—athletes accelerate their development and further the performance level that they can reach.
