When you put a lot of time and energy into preparing for something that’s important to you, and things don’t go the way you hoped, it’s pretty natural to feel deflated or discouraged afterwards. And you might even have difficulty getting back into the flow of things, or finding the confidence to try again.

Heck, we can experience some version of this even a spectator. Believe it or not, researchers have found that we eat more unhealthily (e.g. 10% more calories and 16% more saturated fat than normal) the day after our favorite team has a tough loss, and we eat more healthily on days after a big win (5% fewer calories and 9% less saturated fat than normal).

But while some athletes respond to a subpar performances with more subpar performances, others bounce back and perform even better.

How do they do this?

A 2003 study provides some important clues. Get all the nerdy details here:

A Mindset Shift That Can Help You Respond to Setbacks With Even Better Performances

More from The Bulletproof Musician

• Get the free weekly newsletter, for more nerdy details and bonus subscriber-only content.
• Pressure Proof: A free 7-day performance practice crash course that will help you shrink the gap between the practice room and the stage.
• Learning Lab: A continuing education community where musicians and learners are putting research into practice.
• Live and self-paced courses