Flush it. Use a physical cue (e.g., swipe your hand, step off, deep exhale) to signal it's in the past.

Refocus on your next role. Ask: What’s my job right now? Then lock in on just that.

Talk forward, not backward. “Next pitch.” “Next play.” “Next chance.” Keep your language future-focused.

“A mistake is just data. Use it.”

Kobe Bryant: “It’s not a matter of making mistakes, it’s how you deal with it.”

Don’t react visibly to mistakes. Your face can speak louder than your words.

Focus post-game on growth, not guilt. Ask, “What’d you learn? What’s your next step?”

Normalize errors as part of the process. Use phrases like, “Every athlete makes mistakes — champions just move on quicker.”

“You’re not raising a perfect player. You’re raising a resilient one.”

“Composure is caught, not taught.”

Install a “reset ritual.” Make it a norm in practice so it's automatic under pressure.

Use mistakes as teaching moments — not tension traps. Calm feedback gets heard. Harsh feedback gets feared.

Catch a bounce-back moment. Reinforce the recovery, not just the initial error.

“Mistakes are inevitable. Recovery is coachable.”

John Wooden: “A mistake is valuable if you do four things with it: recognize it, admit it, learn from it, and forget it.”