🎱 Mindset in Matches: Don’t Let Other People’s Opinions Define Your Game in Sport or in Life…They Don’t Know the Full Story…

Last night I had an interesting dream.

It wasn’t really about snooker. It was about life, confidence and how quickly people’s opinions can change when circumstances change.

In the dream, I returned to a place where I’d previously been underestimated. This time, however, I arrived with someone well known – a famous face. The reaction from a small group of people was fascinating. Most were surprised, but one person simply couldn’t accept what they were seeing. A male as it happens – but I would say most don’t accept responsibility. Their view of me was so rooted in the past that they struggled to reconcile it with the present.

The small group though really just aren’t worth the effort anymore – anyway.

When I woke up, it struck me that there was a coaching lesson in it.

As snooker players, we sometimes spend too much time worrying about what other people think of us.

This is another one of my favourites. You should never stop believing in yourself and what you’re capable of – it doesn’t always come quickly, but EVERY new step forward is PROGRESS AND DIRECTION AND POSITIVE.

DON’T STOP BELIEVING…

“They don’t rate my game.”

“They think I can’t make big breaks.”

“They’ve already made their mind up about me.”

The truth is, none of those opinions pots a single ball.

They take the mickey WITHOUT KNOWING THE FULL STORY to your journey!

Your cue action doesn’t improve because someone suddenly believes in you.

Your safety play doesn’t become stronger because someone changes their opinion.

Your break building improves because you put the hours in.

One of the most important lessons in sport is understanding that not everyone will see your progress immediately. Some people will celebrate it. Others will be surprised by it. A few may never change their opinion at all.

That’s perfectly okay.

Your responsibility isn’t to convince everyone else.

It’s to become the best player you can be. IGNORE THEM.

If your game keeps improving, the scoreboard and your performances will eventually speak far louder than opinions ever could.

AS IT SAYS HERE ON THE FRONT OF SNOOKERZONE: “THE SCOREBOARD DOESN’T DICTATE HOW I PERFORM.”

Repeat that affirmation when you play.

Keep practising. Stay patient. Stay involved. Don’t panic.

Those are the things you control.

Everything else is just background noise.

Beyond Snooker…

Although this article began with a dream, I don’t think the lesson applies only to snooker or even to sport.

As we move through life, we all change.

We gain experience, learn from setbacks, develop new interests and sometimes become very different people from who we were five or ten years ago.

The challenge is that not everyone updates the picture they have of us.

Sometimes people continue to judge us based on an old version of ourselves. They remember who we were, rather than taking the time to understand who we have become.

In my opinion, that’s something worth thinking about.

Whether it’s the way someone looks, the way they dress, the job they do or the company they keep, it’s easy to make assumptions without knowing the full story. Most of us have probably done it at some point.

The important thing is to remember that your progress doesn’t depend on everyone else recognising it.

You don’t need universal approval to move forward. MOVE IN SILENCE. AND CELEBRATE IN SILENCE.

Some people will celebrate your growth. It doesn’t really matter if they do or not!

Some people will gradually change their opinion. Again, it doesn’t really matter what they’re opinion is.

Others may never do so. And for that, those others who don’t, don’t have to follow you on your journey. They can go and follow whatever journey suits them, but if they aren’t happy with your journey, let them leave and go…

That’s their choice. IF THEY DON’T LEAVE YOU ALONE, then there’s something wrong with them…

Your responsibility is simply to keep becoming the best version of yourself.

In snooker, as in life, improvement comes from the work you put in—not from the opinions other people hold.

So keep learning.

Keep improving.

Keep moving forward. One step at a time or one ladder at a time.

And remember that you don’t have to remain the person someone else decided you were years ago.

KEEP MOVING…FORWARD…