The Anatomy of an Elite Mindset

You may watch some of your idols in sports and think about how they do what they do. How they overcome challenges, how they stay cool under pressure, how they keep their motivation when things don’t go their way, and so much more

While being skilled and sometimes physically elite works, many will talk about how their mindset is the defining piece of the puzzle.

Note: While it isn’t a requirement to have all of these, and this is also my experience, you may want to check these off as a form of internal list. As well as the headings, look out for other characteristics that are highlighted in bold.

And so, in no particular order…

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Seek challenge

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Without challenges, you cannot grow. You have to want to find ways to make situations slightly more difficult than they are. that will provide you enough challenge to grow; this could be training under pressure, trying new things, or increasing the difficulty of something you already do.

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Motivated

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Motivation helps get started in pursuing goals, whether it’s achieving a goal or the process. The trick is to set motivations based on intrinsic motivations such as doing something because you enjoy it, the process, your values, and more. But often too much is focused on extrinsic motivations (outcomes, results, success, fame, etc.), which are not in our full control.

Intrinsic motivations keep you motivated even in moments when things aren’t going according to plan.

Having ambitions, dreams, and goals helps drive motivation, and determination will help you stay on the path, even through the highs and lows.

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Letting go of limiting beliefs

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Elite mindsets have the ability to let go of limiting beliefs. If they can’t do something, it’s not a limitation of themselves but merely a limitation of where they are right now.

They are aware and accept that they are a work in progress.

They have a deep self-belief that they can achieve what they want to achieve and can sometimes even visualise doing it.

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Control what they can

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Most of the anxiety, nerves, frustration, and anger that many feel during performances comes from trying to control things that we can’t.

The best people focus on what is in their control; they are honest with themselves about whether they are focused on the right things or not. When they aren’t, they move back to what is relevant and in their control.

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Growth mindset

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You could argue that if you can get this part right, everything else will fit into place.

Having a growth mindset helps you always look for a learning opportunity, take feedback constructively, embrace failure as a part of the process, and value effort over outcome.

Having a growth mindset instead of a fixed mindset unlocks so many possibilities in the way you see the world and the experiences you have.

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Process driven

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Being process driven means being disciplined in their processes through routines, habits, structures, and systems. And these are 100% in your control. So if there’s something that you are getting frustrated about, go back to doing your best at trying to execute your process.

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