Confidence in Sport: Why You Don’t Have to Feel Confident to Perform Confidently

Confidence is something almost every athlete wants more of. It can feel like the difference between stepping into competition feeling ready and stepping in with hesitation or nerves. When an athlete is confident, we often assume they believe in themselves, trust their abilities, and feel ready to perform.

But what happens when you don’t feel confident?

Does that mean you can’t perform well?

I don’t think it does.

One of the most important things athletes can learn is that you don’t have to feel confident to perform confidently. Confidence is not a feeling you have to wait for. Confidence can be thought of as trust in your ability to handle what is in front of you. It doesn’t mean believing that everything will go perfectly or knowing that you will win. Sport is unpredictable. There will be mistakes, difficult opponents, bad days, unexpected situations, and moments when things simply don’t go the way you hoped. If an athlete believes they need to feel completely confident before they can perform well, those moments of doubt can become another source of pressure.

Instead, we can shift the focus from:

“Do I feel confident?”

to:

“What can I do right now that shows confidence?”

That might mean committing to a decision, trusting a skill they have practiced, staying engaged after a mistake, or continuing to compete even when they feel nervous. These actions can happen even when confidence doesn't feel particularly strong. Confidence then grows through action. One of the biggest misconceptions about confidence is that it needs to come first. Often, it works the other way around. Athletes build confidence by taking action, experiencing challenges, learning from them, and seeing evidence that they can handle difficult situations.

Think about an athlete who makes a mistake early in a game. They might immediately think, “I’m not playing well today.” That thought can lead to hesitation, frustration, or playing more cautiously.

Instead, they can focus on their next controllable action:

What is my job right now?

Where does my attention need to be?

What can I do on this next play?

They may still feel frustrated or unsure; however, by continuing to respond effectively, they are building something much more valuable than a temporary feeling of confidence: trust in themselves.

Confidence doesn't mean never doubting yourself. Even high-level athletes experience self-doubt. Being confident does not mean walking into every competition thinking, “I’m going to be amazing today.”

Sometimes confidence looks much quieter.

It can look like:

• “I know I’ve prepared for this.”

• “I can handle being nervous.”

• “I don’t need to be perfect.”

• “If I make a mistake, I can reset.”

• “I can focus on what I can control.”

• “I trust myself to respond.”

  
  

These thoughts don't require an athlete to feel completely confident. They help an athlete move forward despite uncertainty.

What can athletes focus on instead?

Rather than constantly checking whether you feel confident, try focusing on the things you can control.

Prepare.Put in the work and develop the skills you want to rely on.

Focus on the present.Confidence can disappear quickly when your attention is stuck on the last mistake or worrying about what might happen next.

Use your routines.A consistent pre-performance or reset routine can give you something familiar to return to when emotions are high.

Respond to mistakes.Mistakes are part of sport. Learning how to reset and refocus after them is a skill that can strengthen confidence over time.

Look for evidence.Instead of only focusing on what went wrong, recognize the moments when you handled challenges well. Confidence grows when athletes begin to notice their own ability to cope, adapt, and improve.

What can parents do?

For parents, it can be tempting to try to give an athlete confidence from the outside.

We might say:

“You’re going to do great!”

“You’re the best player out there.”

“You have nothing to be nervous about.”

These comments usually come from a good place, but sometimes, they can unintentionally make an athlete feel like they need to live up to that confidence.

Instead, try helping your athlete trust themselves.

Ask questions such as:

“What are you focusing on today?”

“What is within your control?”

“What will help you reset if something doesn't go your way?”

“What are you proud of from today?”

These conversations shift the focus away from the outcome and toward the athlete's ability to prepare, respond, and learn.

Confidence is something you can build. Confidence is not a permanent state. There will be days when an athlete feels confident and days when they don't. That is normal. The goal isn't to make doubt disappear. It is to help athletes develop the skills to keep moving forward when doubt shows up. When athletes learn that they can perform even when they feel nervous, uncertain, or less confident than usual, they begin to develop a deeper kind of confidence. And that is a kind of confidence worth building, not just for sport, but for life.