At every level of the game, there will be plenty of outside noise that you must learn to tune out.

When we say tuning out the noise, that is meant to be taken both literally and figuratively. There will be literal noise in the form of opponents jawing at you, harsh words from the stands, and encouragement. The figurative noise can come in many forms: online chatter, the media (for the higher tiers of the sport), and other off-court words from teammates, peers, and more.

For any players worth his or her salt, the literal noise is much easier to tune out. When on the court, locking in and focusing on the task at hand should be fairly natural.

That said, it doesn’t hurt to be reminded to not get sucked into the pettiness of on-court chatter. You have no business getting dragged into chatting with your opponents. Focus on yourself and your team. When the chatter is coming from fans, you have even less business engaging the crowd. Just allow the crowd to be white noise. You will still be able to register the roar when your team is doing well at home or relish in the silence that comes with success on the road. Even words of encouragement, which are definitely not a bad thing, can be a bit distracting. Just focus on the game and wait until the end for your pats on the back.

Keep an ear open for your coach and teammates. Their words are the only ones you must focus on. Any other noise during a game is just that - noise.

Off the court, you don’t have the heat of the moment to distract you. You may be told you’re no good. You may be told you’re the best. You may be told your shot is ugly. You may hear your team is going to win it all. It is nearly impossible to tune out all of the outside noise you will hear over your playing career.

While you may not be able to control what you hear, you will always be in control of what comes next. Do you worry about how your shot looks? Do you hang your head or puff your chest? The thing to do is to remember that you are the only one that can control your destiny on the court. Do you, only take advice from those you trust the most, and focus on doing whatever it takes to improve and help your team.

No one knows you and your game better than yourself. Control what you can control and let the flow of the game take care of the rest. Ignore the haters and make sure your circle consists of honest individuals that truly want to see you succeed.

The noise will always be there, but it is up to you to filter as much as possible and don’t let the rest affect your game. If you must hear it, use it as fuel as you pursue the path that YOU determine is best. Many of the top players have unique styles that probably garnered some hate more than once on their journey. The best thing you can do is trust yourself, work hard, and silence the noise with your play.