Every lacrosse player has at least two coaches. The one on the sideline and the one inside your head. While the one on the sideline can influence your performance by what they say, so too can the one in your mind, and far too many players are unaware of what their inner coach is saying.
Of course, while there isn’t quite literally a coach inside your head, we all engage in different forms of what is called "self-talk," in psychological terms. There are two main types of self-talk: intentional and automatic selftalk. Essentially, intentional selftalk is what you say to yourself and automatic self-talk is what your mind says to you. What I’m referring to as your inner coach is merely a way to frame your automatic self-talk and what your mind is saying to you about your performance on the field.
Now, ask yourself a few questions. First, what does your inner coach say to you when you miss a ground ball? What does it say when you’re facing down a defender when the game is on the line? What does it say after your team wins or loses a game?
