“Just Visualize Success!”: 3 Truths About Practicing Imagery for Young Athletes
I work with a high school football player who became a starter this season. He is also being asked to play a different role than he has in the past.
He’s a tireless worker. It’s one of the reasons I love coaching him.
However, his default setting is “I have to prove myself.”
The result can be overthinking.
A Missed Assignment, Not a Missed Effort.
My client is a linebacker with “contain” responsibilities, which means he’s tasked with preventing ball carriers from getting to the outside of the field.
Linebackers who break contain often do so when trying to make a big play on the ball. In football language, they don’t “stay home.”
My client — we’ll call him Luke — failed to stay home in his first varsity start.
His eyes got big when he saw the opportunity to make a big play deep in his opponent’s territory.
The result?
A missed tackle and a big run for the other team’s quarterback.
The hardest part for Luke was that we’ve been working on how he can maintain his focus on containment through pre-season practices.
I love that his practice has been intentional. It’s something I’m constantly reinforcing with young athletes.
Intentional practice got Luke ready.
It didn’t make him bulletproof.
Still, emotions get in the way, often when we least expect them to.
This is exactly what happened with Luke’s mistake.
He knew what he wanted to do.
He practiced what he wanted to do.
And then?
He saw an opportunity to make a big play, and his containment discipline quickly took a backseat.
It happens with young athletes all the time in every sport.
The next step?
Learn from it.
So that’s what I have been helping him do. I’ve introduced imagery — or visualization, as it’s more commonly known — to his mental training.
👉 Want to learn more about mental performance coaching?
Imagery: A World-Class Performer’s Take.
I show my athletes a short video about a snowboarder named Alex Deibold.
He won a bronze medal at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.
Before that, he was the wax tech for the U.S. snowboard cross team — the guy prepping everyone else’s boards.
If you watch the video, Alex will take you through his imagery practice.
He vividly describes all of the elements of a boarder cross run.
Pre-race. In-race. Crossing the finish line.
What he’s thinking. What he’s feeling. How he’s moving.
It’s painstakingly detailed.
And that’s what effective imagery does. It creates a vivid, controllable 3D image of performance.
What Imagery Training Actually Looks Like.
I introduced imagery to Luke after we identified that his pre-snap routine could be a source of stress that impacted his ability to be ready at the start of a play.
Football players have a lot of information to process in a very short amount of time. If their attention isn’t in the right place at the right time, the result can be bad.
So, we identified each element of his pre-snap routine:
- Communicating calls to his teammates
- Getting into a strong stance — hips low, back flat, hands ready
- Eyes locked in on the ball
- Staying calm and patient, waiting for the ball to be snapped
First, we detailed that process in words using as much detail as possible. It is called an imagery script.
Imagery scripts try to paint a 3D picture that incorporates all of an athlete’s senses — sight, sound, feelings, even smells.
I wanted him to paint that picture as vividly as possible to identify the approach he wants to have before every single play.
Once the script was set, he committed it to audio.
Then? Practice. Intentional, consistent practice before practice and before games.
The result?
“It felt like I had been there before because I could see the lights, and it was pretty much the same picture in my head that I see in the game.”
Exactly what imagery is designed to do. It immerses his mind in the situation over and over before actually being in the situation.
Preparation — physical and mental together — breeds confidence.
3 Truths About Imagery for Young Athletes.
1. It’s Not Just About Seeing Success
Most people say something like, “Just visualize having success!”
Sure, that is one application of imagery for young athletes.
However, imagery for young athletes is really about imagining an experience in “3D” using all of your senses.
An effective imagery practice places the athlete in a situation before it happens.
This type of mental rehearsal creates neural pathways that allow the brain to believe the athlete has done something without actually doing it.
Being able to incorporate all senses is what makes visualization imagery. It also makes it much more effective.
2. Imagery Has Applications Beyond Just Seeing Success
Imagery for young athletes has multiple applications:
- Experiencing successful results to build confidence
- Executing routines and processes
- Managing energy and performance anxiety
- Skill acquisition
3. Imagery Might Not Be for Every Athlete
Imagery for young athletes is hard.
First, it requires consistent, intentional practice to develop the skill. A great deal of willingness and open-mindedness is required to experience success.
Second, we know that some athletes have better imagery ability than others. I often use a tool called the Sport Imagery Ability Questionnaire (SIAQ) to assess the likelihood of success before jumping in.
This brings me back to my core value of intent over content — coaching each individual as they need.
Try Imagery Yourself.
Before your next big conversation, meeting, or moment that makes you nervous, spend 60 seconds imagining it in detail — not just the outcome, but what you’ll see, hear, and feel getting there.
Then notice: does it change how you walk in?
Not ready for imagery yet?
Take my 10-Day Level Up Your Mental Game Challenge to try to 10 simple mental performance tools in 10 days. You’ll be up to imagery in no time.
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I am a Certified Mental Performance Consultant® with a Master’s Degree in Sport Psychology. My mission is to help athletes ages 14 to 22 be themselves when everyone is watching. Learn more about me.