This may be the first Mental Tip you actually read, simply based on the title. Coaches spend a lot of time telling athletes to "Focus". The problem is that coaches are telling and not teaching focus and most athletes don't know what that focusing actually means. Focusing refers to "attending to the task at hand". Instead of talking about focus, coaches and athletes should spend more time discussing the elimination of distractions. I repeatedly warn students to not study in their dorm rooms. There are too many distractions. Besides the normal college fun that can get in the way, even tasks like laundry are more attractive and tempting when confronted with the chore of studying. I encourage students to go to the library ... alone ... and find a quiet floor/room/corner where no one else will see them and then only bring with them the one or two books that they need to read or the notes they need to study. Eliminating distractions is the first step to focusing. The same advice can be used for many areas in our life, including training. Only bring to practice those things that will allow you to be successful at practice (positive attitude, excitement to improve, coachability, the desire to be uncomfortable, work ethic, mental toughness, etc) and leave all of the other things (school, worries, social life, lack of confidence, distress, laziness, comfort, financial issues, etc) behind in your dorm/apartment/house. There is enough work to be done at practice that we don't need to bring extra distractions. And you can spend the other 22 hours of your day on those other things that you left in your living space if you want. They will be there later if you still want them.
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