Close your eyes and no matter what you do, don't think of a pink elephant.

Go ahead and try it. Close your eyes and tell yourself not to think of a pink elephant.

I bet you just had the image of a pink elephant pop into your head. The word "don't" has no meaning to our brains - all we hear is whatever follows. This simple concept has BIG implications on the diamond.

Last week's blog started to dig a little deeper into the mental side of baseball for Little Leaguers and focused on some of the fears that cause young players to perform well in practices but struggle in games.

Besides fear of the results, focusing on the negatives during competition can make reaching their full potential really difficult for young athletes. Here's what I mean: when a batter is afraid of striking out, his brain is saying "don't strike out, don't strike out, don't strike out." Using the pink elephant example above, all he really is telling himself is "strike out, strike out, strike out" Now, he is completely preoccupied by that negative thought which means he is not thinking about the task at hand, which is hitting the ball hard.

This hitter should be thinking, "I'm going to crush this pitch, I'm going to crush this pitch, I'm going to crush this pitch" Focusing on what you do want to have happen, rather than what you do not want to have happen will greatly increase confidence, concentration, and results.

For pitchers, when they say to themselves (or worse, hear a coach or parent yell), "Don't walk this guy!" what's the only thing their ears really heard? That's right: "walk this guy" And now, by painting that negative picture in their mind before the pitch, it is much more likely that they throw a ball - either because they listen to themselves and throw a ball or because now their mind is focusing on something other than exactly what they want to have happen.

This is what all professional golfers do during their practice swings before hitting a shot, and NBA players do at the free throw line before shooting - they picture success, not failure.

If you've ever played golf and told yourself "don't hit it left" only to then immediately hit it exactly where you just told yourself not to, then you know what precisely what I'm talking about here.

Before every pitch, hitters, pitchers, and positions players should be painting a positive painting in their head about what is about to happen.

When I'm coaching, "don't" is definitely a 4 letter word!

In the next game, focus on the positives and watch the results improve.

Good luck!