What is a “slump”?

You can say you are in a slump when you are playing worse than you normally do. It happens to everyone though, even professional players and teams go through slumps where they play nowhere near their actual skill level.

There can be a lot of reasons that make you go through a slump. You might be feeling a bit sick, you might be demoralized, or there might be something that's bothering you. The common point of all the reasons behind a slump is that they don’t let you concentrate on the game, but they also go away after some time, which is good.

There is nothing to worry about with going through a slump. If you can manage the situation correctly, slumps will be no more than one or two bad games for you, and they will actually help you improve your gameplay in the long term.

So how do I push past a slump?

The easiest way to push past a slump is to take a break. Simply stop playing the game and do something else. Play your second favorite game, read a book, watch a movie… Just do something that stops your mind from thinking about CS:GO. The more you think about the game, longer your slump will last.

You won’t push through a slump if you just keep playing more and more matchmaking games. The point is that slumps happen when the game gives you more stress than it makes you have fun, and the point of playing a game is to have fun, right? When you desperately queue again and again seeking for the one win that you think will save you from the slump (it won’t), the game is no longer any fun.

If you tried to take a break, but realized that you cannot live without your daily dose of CS:GO, then try to have fun with the game. As I said above, slumps happen when the game gives you more stress than fun, and competitive matchmaking is undoubtedly the most stressful game mode in CS:GO since you actually have a goal - to move up the ladder.

Give other game modes that are less stressful than matchmaking a chance. You can try the classic deathmatch, arms race, demolition, or casual game modes where you will be under less pressure, playing solely for the fun of it.

If you are bored of the default game modes above offered by Valve, then give a try to community servers. You fill find dozens of new game modes and maps you haven’t seen before. The three most common unique game modes you can find with community servers are 1v1’s, retake servers, and surf maps. 1v1 servers and retake servers work quite expectedly, you simply play 1v1’s with different enemies on maps designed for 1v1 gameplay, and you play specific retake scenarios on official maps. I would deeply recommend playing surf servers though, as I see surfing as the best way to calm down while playing CS:GO. Definitely give it a try if you are feeling down, or just to relax between two games.

It has been a week since my last matchmaking game. Now what?

Great! You took a break, played some casual CS:GO, and now you are ready to continue the ultimate journey from where you left off. The journey to the highest level, the rank achievable by those who fought hard to hone their skills under extreme conditions… the Global Elite!

Don’t get excited too quickly though. You probably pushed past your slump, but there are a lot of other things to consider. To give a real life example, think about walking. After a point, everything you do feels autonomous. You don’t think like “OK, now I step up with the left foot, now with the right..” and so on, you do it instinctively. The same thing goes with CS:GO. You start doing things by instinct, such as checking corners, or your muscles just memorize the spray pattern such that you can spray down with complete perfection.

This is where you start making mistakes. Look at the walking example again, you sometimes trip because of an obstacle standing on your way. Do you think you would step on something on your way if you were constantly looking on the ground and watching for obstacles? The answer is simple, no. Then why not do the same thing with CS:GO? Think about where you are placing your crosshair, think about what will you do after peeking out the door, think about everything you do, and the number of mistakes you do will keep going down and down like a slump. Good luck, and have fun!

Please feel free to contact me with any feedback or suggestions. Check my profile for contact info. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it and it was helpful.

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