Articles for mental performance coaches who are interested in the MGCP sports psychology certification program.
Helping Athletes Improve Consistency A current MGCP student asked the following question: “When an athlete says he lacks consistency in his game, do you investigate this by drilling down to find out more or assume it must be due to a focus/concentration issue?” When athletes perform inconsistently, it’s not always due to a lack of focus. However, coaches and parents …
Use Preshot Routines to Improve Consistency I was asked the following question by a recent MGCP graduate about routines… “How do you explain, in concrete words to athletes, how a preshot routine helps performance versus superstitions?” Do your athletes have to eat the exact same meal for good luck prior to competition like Wade Boggs did? Do you athletes have …
How to Improve Credibility As a Mental Coach I just finished reviewing a video of Ken Ravizza speaking at the 2017 AASP conference on gaining entry with teams… Ken said that you must know the culture and history of the team. Is it a winning team? Do they have a losing history? Have there been a lot of coaching changes? …
How to Find the Teachable Moment How can you convince potential clients that it is worthwhile for them to spend time and money working with a mental coach to improve their game? This is a question an MGCP asked recently…. My answer: It’s hard to “convince” athletes and coaches they need mental game coaching unless they see a need for …
How to Understand Your Athletes’ Needs A mental game coach trying to establish himself recently asked me this question: “What is the number one mistake mental coaches make on the first session with an athlete?” I’ll give two answers to this question today because I think the answer depends on your philosophy about how to do mental coaching… First, I …
How to Help Athletes Apply Skills If you work with athletes on their mental game, you know most of your clients can understand the mental strategies you teach. But the big question is: Can they apply what they learn to practice and competition? My #1 challenge as a mental coach is helping my athletes apply what they learn to practice …