Here are some examples from other games :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2nyWIlA_CY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3WCoU_li_c

you can also read this :
https://mentoringgroup.com/books/the-inner-game-of-tennis.pdf

or this :
http://www.sirlin.net/ptw

play the game
think a lot
be healthy

That last point has helped me the most. Started going to the gym and eating better and I have seen improvements in how I feel, and play.

message me on tftv / steam for a more definitive answer to no.3

Keep PMA even when the game you might be playing is utter despair, realize when you are tilting and use that to learn what makes you tilt to try to counteract it, take risks in game and learn from them if they fail (what caused it to fail) or succeed (what caused it to succeed).

Try to learn as much as possible and play as much as possible, but at the same time make sure to pace yourself to avoid burnout.

WHILE my ability to be good at the game could be questioned currently, back in the day when I was a grinder I would watch my own gameplay a lot. I also used to watch casts of my games and no matter how big my ego got I would always take outside criticism no matter how harsh it felt (even if in the moment I would be giving backlash).

One mistake I see newbie players make a mistake of is thinking that watching the highest level of gameplay and comparing it to your own is the best way to improve. I think it's practically pointless. You may learn one or two really cool things, but typically in most games (and including tf2) the highest level of play is a different game you're playing at the lower levels. I found myself improving at a much faster pace when I was watching competitive games that were around my skill level. For example when I was an Iron HL medic I was watching steel medic vods. My mindset was it's way easier to compare your gameplay to someone who's considered barely better than you.

Another big thing is a healthy mindset. Every player I've ever seen plateau has always been for the stupidest reasons. "I'm not as good as I used to be" "My class sucks", etc. These players were literally better than they were before, but they always get in their own heads and play awful because of it. This is just an example of don't get in your own head. You're gonna make mistakes and you will have bad days. It is something that probably happens, it WILL happen.

This is a scenario I think is really relatable with a lot of people, from lower level to top level. You are playing absolutely amazing and you're even impressing yourself, then you make one random blunder and suddenly you feel like you aren't performing as well you just were. This causing an avalanche of you just making random mistake after mistake and it kind of demotivates you. This is a prime example of what getting in your own head feels like and the effects of it.

TL;DR Have a healthy mindset and don't get to yourself. Watch gameplay relatable to your own for easier understandings to adapt your gameplay to higher levels.

watch streams of good players especially when they scrim

Make sure you watch your own game play. These days in professional sports film is a key tool to improving

start streaming :(

Main call.

vhalin helped me a lot when i was learning and the two points he always drove home were

1. tf2 becomes easy when you learn from your deaths
2. back up until u have an advantage and push forward til u dont

dont play scrims to win scrims

dont play the game if youre just going to autopilot

have a point and a purpose to what you want to practice

find somebody better than you who doesnt mind answering your questions

also every time i turn on a tf2 stream now im amazed at how many people dont react to something thats called/cant deduce or figure out what is happening based on comms

you dont have to be a motormouth to play this game and a lot of people talk way too much while saying too little

you do have to be able to constantly intake information and figure out how to use it to your advantage

a lot of athletes have strange superstitions or rituals that they do before big games. e-athletes are no different. did you know that b4nny leaves his mouse in the microwave(off) while he sleeps the night before important matches? or that kaptain brushes his teeth between maps? its pretty zany, but if you find something that works you ideally dont want to lose your mojo.

speak up and maincall

grind your dm/movement until you feel fully in control of your character (anything further is fine but anything less isnt acceptable)
listen to everything you can and try to mostly only say what your team isnt calling
always try to think about where the enemy is, what classes they have, and which team has advantage + by how much
download configs and whatnot to ensure your game performs as smoothly as possible

[21:05]
matthe:

keep up a schedule
and ur gonna nut

friendly reminder to make sure to take a break to avoid burnout :)

Reach just barely beyond your current ability as often as possible. If you are comfortable and just doing what you already know you aren't learning.

Practice your mechanics every day for whatever duration you need to retain/build on them. Break everything you see good players do into components and work at it incrementally until you can imitate what you see.

Every death you should be reflecting on what decisions you could have made to avoid it if possible. Every lost fight you should be able to explain why it occurred and what should be done differently in the future. If you aren't thinking and adjusting your gameplay, you will maintain the same flaws.

Think about the game a lot. Play out scenarios in your head. Basically shadow box to learn without having to experience it firsthand, or to find new ideas to test ingame.

2nd.

.

only play the game if you really want to, playing just to play will result in plateauing from my exp