Tips to Help You Break Out of a Slump

Are you in a slump at work? Then think like a pro athlete! That’s the simple message from a team of sports psychologists we read about in the Wall Street Journal. Whether your job involves sitting at a desk, or playing in front of thousands of fans, everyone goes through slumps at work. As you’ve probably seen, long slumps can easily lead to a loss of confidence, and poor job performance! So how do pro athletes break out of slumps?

•The most common trick is: Positive visualization. For example: In 1991, former Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz was in the worst slump of his career. So he hired a sports psychologist, who made a videotape of some of Smolt’z best pitches. After Smoltz watched that video over and over, he had one of the best winning streaks of his career! He says it’s because he never made another pitch until he pulled up one of those positive images in his mind. Experts say you can do the same thing at work by keeping videos of your best sales presentations, or photos of your top clients, to remind yourself of past successes.
•Another trick: Step back and refocus. Golfer Jack Nicklaus says anytime he feels stressed about a bad golf shot, he takes a moment to pull up some grass, and scatter it in the wind, while he visualizes the next perfect golf shot. You could apply that same strategy at work by stepping away from your desk, and going for a 10 minute walk - just to clear your mind and refocus.
•The last tip for breaking out of a slump: Stop thinking about it. That advice comes from sports psychologist Dr. Tom Ferraro. He says when you’re in a slump, the worst thing you can do is beat yourself up about it. The sooner you move on to the next project, the sooner you’ll recapture the strengths that made you successful in the first place! As any pro athlete can tell you: No slump lasts forever.