Athletes and Motivation during a Pandemic

By Dr. Leann Lapp

Practices and competitions have been put on hold for most sports, and in many cases, cancelled altogether, so it’s safe to say that many athletes are struggling with motivation.  And while some are taking this challenge in stride, others are starting to question what this decrease in motivation means about their relationship to their sport.  They might be asking themselves questions such as “Do I really want to be doing this anymore if I’m not as motivated?” Others might assume this drop in motivation means something about them, like they are lazy, lacking drive, or even that they should quit.  I want to propose a more complex view of motivation that might help reinterpret these struggles, especially in the current context.

Motivation has often been carved into two types:  intrinsic (i.e., motivated to do a thing because you find it enjoyable or because you value achievement) versus extrinsic (i.e., motivated to do a thing because of some outside reward or condition).  Athletes and coaches tend to focus on the former, and there is a rationale to this:  it is true that motivation coming from within is typically more durable.  Being mainly motivated by external rewards can be precarious; if you don’t win the trophy, and that was your key motivator, then you might have trouble being resilient after unsuccessful performances. 

The problem is that the two types of motivation frequently get reduced into simplistic traits that an athlete has or doesn’t have.  And in some circles, there is strong negative judgment about being primarily extrinsically motivated.   For example, coaches might give up on athletes who don’t appear to be intrinsically motivated, concluding that they are lazy, just care about their friends (as if that’s a bad thing), or are “in it for the wrong reasons.”   In reality, motivation isn’t an immutable, black and white trait.  Rather, it is a changeable thing, more dependent on outside factors than many like to think. 

How does this relate to the current context?  Athletes might not have lost intrinsic motivators, such as drive to achieve, enjoyment of their sport, or sense of identity as an athlete.  But most have lost extrinsic motivators, such as achievement opportunities, engagement with friends and coaches, structure, routine, or mastery of clear goals.  On top of this, many are experiencing legitimate anxiety about loved ones falling ill, contracting the virus themselves, and uncertainty about the future.  Others might be grieving the loss of once in a lifetime opportunities, such as specific training camps, selection windows, or competitions.  Athletes may underappreciate how anxiety, sadness, and grief impact motivation and instead view these feelings as weakness.  Many athletes experience great joy and motivation through training with people and having relationships with coaches; this is a very real and justified reason to love your sport.  But because of a tendency to overvalue intrinsic motivation and devalue extrinsic motivators, many athletes may be worrying about what their struggle with motivation means about them.  They may find themselves dreading and procrastinating their daily workouts, and feeling apprehension about admitting to coaches that they haven’t completed their training again.  They may feel increasingly dejected and start thinking “If I really loved my sport, then I should be motivated to do it, even now!”

Consider instead: this period of doubting and questioning is somewhat unavoidable right now, and may even be a chance to learn a lot more about yourself.  You might discover that at the heart of this, your enjoyment of sport hinges on feeling a sense of achievement, getting external recognition, or having shared experiences with others.  These are all completely valid reasons to love your sport.  And if those opportunities are not present right now, of course you will feel less motivated.

So what to do?

First:  Reflection and Examination

• Spend time listing what is different about your environment right now.  For example:  no more set practices?,  Less/no time with teammates?,  No big competitions to prepare for?,  Less positive reinforcement from coaches, teammates, and others?.
• Look over your list.  What do you miss most?
• Consider what this tells you about your motivators and values around sport.  What have they been up until now?

Second:  Drop Self-Judgments and Practice Acceptance

• Appreciate that motivation is complex; sources come from intrinsic and extrinsic sources and that is OK.
• Recognize that circumstances are different right now and it’s possible that you simply will not enjoy your sport as much for the time being.
• Decide if you want to ease up or take a break, looking at it like an early, unplanned offseason. Try to talk about this with your coach.
• Are you experiencing anxiety, grief or other emotions?  How do they make sense right now?

Third:  Make an Action Plan

Motivation can be a tricky; we usually only notice it when it’s declining. Intrinsic motivation is often held up as the “gold standard,” and that can lead us to dismiss or judge other motivators.  But in truth, all of these pieces work together; moreover, intrinsic and extrinsic motivations are just labels we’ve put on reasons why we like something.  Often, the extrinsic motivators provide the opportunity for the intrinsic motivators to work, and intrinsic motivators can drive us to reach even harder for those extrinsic motivators.  When motivation changes, it doesn’t need to mean anything immutable or final about you as an athlete.  Like anything else in your training, it can peak and slump, rise and fall.  And just like other aspects of your training, you can work on it in a purposeful way.  This may be the opportunity for you to find the piece of your game that you’ve been missing all along.

Images

Tuzco, S. (2017). Spalding Basketball. UnSplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/dVhM3o9BVeg.