Your aim is on point, your game awareness is sharper than ever, your map knowledge is strong... yet you still lost the game. You did more than you were asked for. But your teammates weren’t at the same level, their timings were off, and their aim was shaky. It’s their fault you lost the game. You should blame them, right? Make them know if it wasn’t for their poor playing you would have won the game, right? Wrong.

Competitive Counter Strike has a big psychological impact on a player. Winning a game can make you play the next one with more confidence, while losing can have the opposite effect. You’re playing with a goal in mind: get better, defeat better opponents, maybe even prove yourself to your friends. For the majority of the player base, there exists a very simple indicator to show just that: your competitive rank and/or Elo. Your immediate goal is to reach the next tier, while dreaming on reaching the very best – the Global Elite (regarding Matchmaking).

Such goals can get you very frustrated when losing a game. There will be those times where you seem to be unable to win a single game, accumulating loss after loss, making you lose Elo points, which eventually leads to lower ranks. You start getting infuriated, confronting your teammates with their mistakes in a non-constructive way, sometimes even blaming them for your own mistakes. You get less focused on your own gameplay, focusing on your teammates’ mistakes – so you can blame them even more when losing.

You may not notice, but that attitude may be the main reason you’re losing game after game. So, let’s work on that!

Always have a positive attitude, despite the score.

Having a positive attitude towards the game, even when losing, can make you win a round or game that otherwise seemed lost. Even when losing, you need to remember that it is still possible to win, even if you end the half 2-13 or 1-14. Even 0-15, if playing on another service that is not Matchmaking and allows Overtime.

Everyone has bad games, even the best players. Even you can’t carry your team to victory every single time. Just because a player is not doing very well does not mean that they’re awful players and shouldn’t be playing with you. You’re playing a single game with them, maybe they even have a better aim than you and it’s just not their day.

A bad attitude towards them can be the start of a snowball effect that only ends in unnecessary insults, kicks, or temporary bans. Don’t forget behind every character there is a real person. Just as you don’t like to be bullied or insulted, they don’t like it either. Sometimes it’s easy to forget they’re real people because you only hear a voice on a character, but that is something you should always remember.

Always give the calls you need to make, give any information you think it’s pertinent at that moment, and make yourself useful. They will appreciate it because you’re helping them play their game. You’re also helping them win the game. If you’re helpful, despite the score being good or bad, they’re more inclined to help everyone as much as they can, lifting the team's spirits.

It also helps your mood. Playing more relaxed will not get you angry every time you play a game. It will also help you avoid getting tilted, which would end up as an unpleasant experience for everyone on the team. Remember to always treat other players with the respect you would like them to treat you with.

Not everyone will be pleasant to play with.

Remember that you’re playing an online game and there will always be people who think they’re better than everyone else, despite being placed in the same Rank or having the same Elo points. They will point out your mistakes since the beginning of the game, give excuses on why they couldn’t do this or that – pretty much what I’ve been talking about since the beginning.

Remember – there is a Mute option in the game. It is easy to get tilted when someone is bashing on you every two minutes. Ignore them, play your game, keep being useful to your teammates as much as you can. Yes, even the guy who has been flaming you since the first round. You muted them, so you won’t hear them, but they will still be trying to win the game, so any information you give them is useful to the entire team and outcome of the match.

You also have the option to Report them. If what they’re doing or saying is really upsetting you, use it after you mute them. After that, just get your mind back in the game and keep that positive attitude. After a few rounds, you won’t even remember them.

Don’t play if you’re angry.

If you’re angry because of that last game or even something that happened in your life, my advice is that you give it some time before playing another competitive match. Yes, we’re talking about a game – and games are supposed to be fun – and although everyone that plays Counter Strike has fun playing a competitive match, sometimes the fun factor is forgotten, giving way to your competitive self that does not like to lose, especially when you’re mad or angry at something. It will be an unpleasant experience for you and your teammates, so just avoid it and return to it when you’re feeling better and ready to have that positive attitude.

Don’t get discouraged because you lost a game – instead, learn from it.

Even when you have the perfect team, you won’t get a guaranteed win. You will still lose games. But don’t let that bring you down. Instead, focus on your game and try to understand why you lost the game. Watch the demo, understand what you could have done differently in that round where you died unexpectedly, and learn from your mistakes. Pay attention to your teammates positions and see where they could have done better, so you can help other players in the future that you notice making the same mistakes – but remember to always give that advice in a constructive way.

As you’re getting better, you will eventually win.

No one can lose forever. Every time you play, you will get better. As you get better, you’ll become a more impactful player inside the server, leading you to win games. As you win games, you win Elo points, which will lead to you getting players with higher Elo in your queues. Playing solo queue can be a painful experience sometimes but, in my opinion, “Elo Hell” is just something that your mind creates and not something that really exists. Yes, you will sometimes see other players ranking up fast, while your path always seems excruciatingly slow. But don’t give up, be helpful and pleasant to your teammates, and you’ll rank up eventually if your skill is high enough for the next level.

In the end, you must remember – CS:GO is just a game and games are supposed to be fun. Don’t let your goal of becoming better get in the way of your fun. Remember that time you waste having fun is not wasted time. If you’re not having fun, it will start to feel like a chore. The fun part is not just reaching the goal – it is also the path it takes until you get there.

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