Maintaining calm during gaming competitions can be challenging, especially if you’re new to competitive gaming. Anxious minds tend to make poor decisions, and in the esports world, every play counts. You wish to put your best foot forward, which means learning to stay calm during gaming competitions. Then we’ve got the ultimate guide for you. 

The subsequent paragraphs reveal everything you need to know about, maintaining that fabled calm like you have ice in your veins. Let’s get started. 

Develop and Maintain a Pre-Game Routine

A pre-routine refers to a set of actions taken in the build-up to performing a task. As a pro gamer, having a well-developed pre-game routine can help you stay calm in gaming competitions and improve your in-game performance.

Create your pre-game routine according to your preference. It can contain actions like deep breathing exercises, reading inspirational quotes, listening to music, and mental visualization. Allocate time to each activity in the days or even hours leading up to the game.

A functional pre-game routine can help reduce stress and anxiety, boost confidence, enhance focus and concentration, and develop mental resilience. 

Identify the Source of Your Anxiety

Esports competitions can get very tense, and this tension will only get worse if you don’t find a way to mitigate your anxiety. In the build-up to a competition, it’s essential to identify and address specific stress triggers that can cause anxiety.

Some of the most common sources of anxiety include fear of failure, perfectionism, and, most importantly, past experiences. You can identify situations that trigger your anxiety by reflecting on your thoughts and feelings. Attempt to single out your biggest fears going into a competition; knowledge of these triggers can help you deal with your anxiety. 

Once you’ve identified these triggers, you can mitigate them by accepting the possibility of failure, avoiding perfectionism through self-compassion, and attempting to eliminate negative thoughts in your mind. 

Build and Keep a Positive Mindset

Heading into a competitive environment with the wrong mindset can set you up for failure. You have to believe in your abilities to have any shot at winning,

Positive affirmations are an effective gaming performance psychology technique that can give you a competitive edge over your rivals. They rewire the brain by replacing negative thoughts with positive ones, build confidence, and help reduce stress and anxiety. Repeating positive affirmations empowers your thoughts and confidence to give you the edge you need to compete professionally.

Examples of positive mindset practices include positive self-talk, reflection on past successes and strengths, gratitude journaling, and many more. If you want to maintain calm during a competition, try to keep a positive and upbeat attitude.

Stay in the Moment

Staying calm during a gaming competition requires total focus and concentration. It’s essential to focus on the current task rather than dwelling on the potential outcomes of the tournament.

During the entire duration of the tourney, you must focus on the task and let go of distractions. You should be focused on immediate tasks, in-game goals, objectives, strategies, etc. while trying to eliminate distractions.

Devoting your total attention to your current tasks helps improve your productivity, alertness, reaction time, and accuracy, contributing to the overall in-game performance during a tournament.

Maintain Your Principles

People generally live in accordance with their principles regardless of their situation. As a pro gamer, aligning your gaming behavior with your values and principles is essential. 

You’ll need to maintain integrity and sportsmanship to stay true to your values. This involves treating opponents with respect(in defeat or victory), avoiding cheating or using hacks, and refraining from toxic behavior such as trolling or harassment. 

Competing with integrity makes the game much more fun, which, in turn, helps reduce performance anxiety. It also cultivates a positive reputation within the gaming community.

Focus on Areas Under Your Control

You’ll encounter situations beyond your control in every facet of life. The best way to deal with such situations is to let them be and focus on what you can control.

In a gaming competition, you cannot control aspects like game mechanics(balance, bugs, glitches), other player’s actions, random chances or luck, connection problems, server issues, etc. However, what you can control involves your team‘s communication, strategy, focus, attitude, movements, decisions, and coordination.

It would help if you spent every available time developing the aspects in your control. For instance, improve your gameplay by reviewing footage to identify areas for development, engage in deep breathing exercises to calm your mind, and encourage yourself with positive affirmations to stay focused and motivated. 

Trust Yourself

All the encouragement and motivation you receive from friends and family will do you no good if you don’t trust yourself. Believe you have what it takes to compete on that stage.

Self-trust is a powerful antidote to doubt. It fosters a sense of inner confidence by helping you believe in your abilities. This reduces second-guessing, as you’re less likely to ponder your decisions and actions. 

Trusting your skills and preparation helps build confidence; belief in your abilities enhances performance and in-game decision-making. It also improves your focus, allowing you to stay present in the moment while reducing anxiety and pressure. 

Accept the Possibility of Failure

Regardless of your gaming skills or the level of opponents you’re facing in a competition, accepting the possibility of failure is essential. 

The fear of failure is one of the most impactful sources of fear and anxiety. If you feed into that fear, you’ll end up maximizing your anxiety in the build-up to a competition. 

On the other hand, accepting the fact that you could lose will help reduce fear and anxiety. It eliminates the fear of failure and can catalyze staying calm in gaming competitions. 

Reflecting on previous failures you’ve experienced in the past can help you accept the possibility of failure. Analyze what went wrong during those failures and the lessons, and avoid self-blame. Minimizing your fear of failure would help you compete with a less agitated and more at ease mind.

Talk to Friends and Family Before a Game

The build-up to a competition can get very tense and nerve-racking. A little “distraction” might help you manage your pre-game nerves in times like this. 

Talking to friends and family before a game can provide a helpful “distraction” by diverting your attention away from anxiety and nerves. A simple conversation with a loved one can help you feel at ease and act as a confidence booster during self-doubt.

You can schedule a pre-game call or chat with your friends and family, host a pre-game meet-up to socialize or invite your friends and family to watch you compete live. This way, you’ll share the experience with them while having their support.

Have Fun

The primary purpose behind game development was to provide entertainment. Many pro gamers have forgotten what it means to have fun, and you shouldn’t follow that path. 

If you’re focused entirely on the prize or the outcome of the competition, you’ll find yourself having little to no fun and getting stressed in the process. However, if you approach gaming competitions intending to have fun, you’ll have better in-game performance and collaboration while reducing stress and pressure.

Having fun is one of the most effective gaming anxiety tips you can practice to stay calm during gaming competitions. When it seems the competition is getting tense and stressful, it’s time to reconnect with the one thing that made you fall in love with gaming—FUN.

Parting Shot

The build-up to a gaming tournament can be taut and nerve-racking; if you need to be in the right frame of mind, the game might be over before it even starts. However, Training your mind and emotions to stay calm during moments of stress can catalyze success in any competition. 

Your ability to stay calm during a competition will define how well you perform during such competitions. If you need help keeping cool during a gaming competition, take this guide to heart by implementing the strategies we’ve shown you in your next competition.