Communication: your words can destroy the performance of your athletes.

In the last article, we talked about the importance of communication between you and your athlete. Today, I want to get down to business. I want to talk to you about a trap that 90% of coaches fall into, even the most experienced ones.

This trap? Instinct.

You think you know your athletes inside and out. You think that "saying what you think, when you think it" is proof of authenticity and leadership.

That's wrong. And it's sometimes disastrous for their mental health.

Purely instinctive communication is the best way to paralyze a stressed athlete with an overly long speech, or to frustrate an angry athlete with poorly targeted criticism. In mental preparation, we learn a golden rule: an excellent message delivered at the wrong time or in the wrong way is useless.

Communication is not an innate gift. It's a strategic tool. For it to transform performance, you need to build a well-thought-out communication plan .

Here is the exact, step-by-step method to structure your interventions and have an immediate impact on the ground.

The 7 Steps of a Mentalized Communication Plan

1. Define the communication situation with the athlete (The context)

Before opening it, take a second to analyze the temporal and situational context. We don't speak in the same way at these different times:

• Before the competition: The goal is motivation and stress management.

• During competition: We seek ultra-fast adjustment and recentering.

• After the competition: It's time for debriefing and planning.

• In the event of conflict or crisis: The aim is de-escalation and reconstruction.

• In case of doubt or a drop in performance: We provide reassurance and mental boost.

👉 Your tool: Summarize the current situation in a single, simple sentence. Example: "My tennis player is about to play an important final and is showing signs of nervousness."

2. Identify your athlete's mental state

This is where the expert's empathy and keen observation come into play. What is your athlete's emotional state at this precise moment?

• Confident but overexcited? You need to channel and stabilize your energy.

• Stressed and hesitant? He needs stable reference points to calm his mind.

• Demotivated or frustrated? We need to reignite the desire and revive the commitment.

• Angry after a mistake? You need to calm things down and refocus immediately.

• Distracted or unfocused? He needs to be brought back to the present moment by force.

👉 Your tool: Don't react to their surface behavior, name the underlying emotion precisely. Example: "My basketball player just lost possession several times at the start of the game and is starting to get frustrated."

3. Set a very specific objective for your communication

What do you want to provoke in him by opening your mouth? Choose only one priority:

• To boost his self-confidence.

• To restore clarity and focus to it.

• Transforming negative emotions into a source of motivation.

• Create a dynamic of progress and learning.

• Boost engagement and intensity.

👉 Your tool: Formulate your goal in a single action sentence. Example: "My objective is to refocus the football team on tactical instructions and to remobilize positive collective energy after a difficult first half."

4. Select the right communication strategy

Each objective requires a specific communication strategy. Stop doing the same thing all the time. Vary your approaches:

• Direct encouragement: Ideal for reassuring and motivating immediately ( "You have the ability, trust yourself!" ).

• Structured feedback: Ideal for giving clear technical or tactical direction ( "Work on your support to better control your passes" ).

• The open question: To involve the athlete in their own reflection and empower them ( "What is blocking you right now?" ).

• The quick reframing: To stop a negative spiral instantly ( "Forget that action, stay in the game" ).

• Storytelling or mental imagery / inspirational example: To hack the mindset with a strong metaphor or a memory of success ( "Remember that match where you turned the situation around, you are capable of it!" ).

👉 Concrete example: In alpine skiing, before a decisive slalom, use a key phrase and a strong mental image: "Visualize the finish line, feel the power in your legs."

5. Build your message in "3 parts" (The structure)

Don't launch into endless monologues. Your athlete's attention span is limited under pressure. Structure your presentation into 3 precise blocks:

1. The opening line: You capture their attention and prepare their mind.

2. The main message: You give clear direction, a precise action to be taken, or a motivating direction.

3. The inspiring closing: You anchor confidence, positive energy and commitment.

👉 Concrete example (Time-out in volleyball):

• Hook: "Okay, we're in the money time now."

• Main message: "Keep it simple, have fun, and follow our plan."

• Closing remarks: "We're in this together, we'll get him!"

6. Embody your message (Non-verbal and tone)

What you say represents only a tiny part of the impact. The rest lies in your attitude. Your athlete reads your body before listening to your words.

• Your gaze: Direct and assertive to strengthen your credibility.

• Posture: Stable and open to inspire confidence.

• The voice: Dynamic and positive to generate energy (or calm and composed depending on the emotional need).

• Gestures: Adapted to support your message.

👉 Example: In boxing, before the last round, the coach adopts a piercing gaze, a firm voice and places his hand on the athlete's shoulder to anchor confidence.

7. Evaluate and adjust (The expert's learning loop)

Once the message is delivered, observe the reaction. This is your dashboard:

• Did the athlete react positively?

• Has his attitude or mental state changed since your communication?

• What could be improved?

👉 Your personal debriefing tool: If after a pre-race cycling briefing you realize that your message was too long, write it down and shorten it next time.

As a mental coach, I see too many coaches exhausting themselves shouting on the sidelines, thinking that volume replaces absolute precision.

The reality of high performance is brutal:

The right words, spoken at the right time, can change the course of a career. The rest is just noise.

Mentalized communication must always respect these three fundamental criteria:

1. Clear and structured: No vague or overly long messages.

2. Adapted to the athlete's emotional state: A good message delivered at the wrong time simply doesn't work.

3. Inspiring and action-oriented: It must provide an immediate lever for progress.

Stop communicating on instinct. Starting this week, take your coaching notebook, choose a difficult situation coming up with one of your athletes, and write down the 7 steps of your mental Communication Plan.

You'll see the difference at the next training session.

To go further, know that all of these methods and communication tools are part of the comprehensive mental preparation training for coaches, available on NEXOO.

Download your work materials HERE: www.nexoo.ch/fiches-linkedin