Perform Under Pressure Quotes

“The big mental shift in performance under pressure comes when we can feel fear but accept deep inside that we will mentally survive the moment. Once the mental threat in a situation is contained, it loses its power to overwhelm us emotionally and shut us down, allowing us to re-energise and face the challenge.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“The things that are really worth chasing involve pressure and that’s what makes them rewarding.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“Pressure is perilous. The knife-edge, risk–reward seesaw explains why many people do everything they can to avoid or escape from stressful situations. But a minority of people do the opposite. They walk towards these moments of truth, seeking the things they also fear.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“Our mirror neurons – specialised nerve cells that allow us to pick up on how other people are feeling – allow us to feel the fear in others. And when we see people feel the fear but take on the challenge anyway, we are inspired. It is a signature moment for performance under pressure.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“Paying attention to tension in a different way – going towards it, feeling it, activating it, then releasing it – reverses this process. As the fear and emotion are felt, they naturally diminish and the tension dissolves.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“We always start with what worked well, then consider where we fell short of our intent. This protects us from looking more at the negative more than the positive.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“The place to start is with ourselves, because if we are vulnerable to judgment from others, the chances are we are even harder on ourselves. It’s easy to underestimate how much disapproval, criticism and scolding we put ourselves through.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“If you restrict yourself to performing only in comfortable situations, your life will miss the fulfilment available to those who don’t restrict themselves. But if you embrace them, those challenging, high-pressure moments can be especially powerful and rewarding.
]”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“Ngaire notices how the anxiety of a big match affects her teammates differently: some go silent, some get chatty; some laugh a lot.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“Instead of being distracted by doubt, we need to trust our ability to handle what is in front of us. This self-trust forms the RED backbone to support our BLUE focused attention. Banishing doubt and worry avoids overthinking – that busy mind that arises from an internal debate about what we’re doing.”
― Ceri evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“When we are ‘in the RED’ we can lose emotional control, overthink and get diverted. When we are ‘in the BLUE’, we can hold our nerve, maintain our focus and stay on task.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“It’s not a time to overthink the situation, it’s a time to take emotional control.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“She realises that she is overthinking things. She follows her three-breath routine to settle her nerves, calm her body and clear her mind.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“She notices that she’s tense and has gone over to the RED side – lost in ‘What if?’s, overthinking. To get a grip on her emotions, she quietly runs through her basic three breaths routine while she drives. She imagines breathing energy and calm deep into her belly – and breathing out tension and stress.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure

“He breathes in and visualises a piece of play where his team get the ball and break forward on the counter-attack.”
― Ceri Evans, Perform Under Pressure: Change the Way You Feel, Think and Act Under Pressure