In the world of sports, there’s a word athletes avoid like the plague. It’s the equivalent of wizards in Harry Potter refusing to say “Voldemort.” That word? Choking.

For this post, let’s define choking as failing to perform at your best—and even playing well below your capabilities—when the stakes are at their highest. It’s a gut-wrenching experience, and if you’ve been there, you know how devastating it can feel.

Approval Created Through Outcome

One of the biggest culprits behind choking is outcome-based approval seeking. Many athletes tie their self-worth to their performance. When they win, they feel validated and accepted. When they lose, they feel like a failure. This kind of mindset shifts their focus to outcomes, which has serious negative impacts on their performance.

The Uncontrollable: Outcome

Let’s get one thing straight: you cannot control the outcome of a game. Many athletes and coaches have tried to argue this with me, but they always come around to my point.

Think about it—how many factors are involved in determining a game’s result? The competition, the weather, your teammates’ performance, the referees’ calls, and so much more. Focusing on the outcome increases anxiety because it places your energy on things you can’t control. And as we’ve discussed in previous posts, when you focus on things you can’t control your anxiety increases, and your performance decreases.

How Choking Happens

Choking happens when an athlete’s mind is locked onto the outcome (which they can’t control), especially when they attach the outcome to external approval—what their coach, parents, teammates, media, or fans will think of them. This builds enormous pressure, creating the perfect storm for a high-anxiety, low-performance scenario.

My Experience with Choking

I’ve been there.

It was my senior year at Washington State University. We were playing our rival, the University of Washington, on the road. The stakes couldn’t have been higher: a win would secure the Pac-12 North Title and send us to the conference championship against USC—a team we had already beaten earlier that season.

In the lead-up to the game, my mind became obsessed with the outcome:

• Winning the Pac-12 Title
• Worrying about my legacy
• If we won, I could be considered one of the greatest WSU quarterbacks.
• If we lost, I’d be remembered as a QB who went 0-3 against Washington.
• My NFL Draft stock

All of this focus on the outcome and my need for approval caused my anxiety to skyrocket. As a result, my performance crumbled. I choked.

We got blown out in a brutal 41-14 loss. I personally accounted for four turnovers—three interceptions and a fumble. And just like that, my collegiate career ended on one of the worst performances of my life.

Have you experienced a gut wrenching performance like this?

How to Avoid Choking

The good news? There’s a way to avoid the mental traps that lead to choking. Next week, I’ll walk you through a performance-enhancing Mind Strength Coaching strategy that will help you deliver in the clutch and perform your best when it matters most.

Stay tuned—you won’t want to miss it.

Get caught up with our mini-series on an athlete’s biggest hurdle: Needing Approval and steps to overcome it.

1. The Biggest Hurdle for an Athlete: Needing Approval
2. The 59% Reality: Embracing Self-Worth When Approval Isn't Universal
3. Mirror Method: A Step to Freedom from Approval-Seeking

4. What Not How: Turning Your Coach Into A Resource Rather Than A Source of Interference