Coaches like you are constantly looking for a new competitive advantage. You are always on the lookout for new advances in equipment, physical training, or software to give your players better insights. One place that can be easily overlooked is the six inches between an athlete’s ears: their brain. Find out why mental training is going mainstream.
Unreached Potential
As a high school and college athlete I did not fulfill my potential. I tell athletes that I left potential on the table. That wasn’t necessarily a choice, I just didn’t have the tools I needed. I had what it took physically and technically, but my mental game was a mess.
My experience led me to discover mental training – it was just too little too late.
Help your athletes avoid this same storyline by educating them about the value of mental training.
Train Like the Pros
As the Chicago Cubs Manager, Joe Maddon, told the entire organization during his first remarks after taking the helm, “If you’re not talking to a mental skills guy to get better, you’re crazy. I do it, you do it, the best players in the game do it. There’s a stigma to not doing it. If you’re not doing it, you’re not trying to get better.”
Other top tier coaches share this sentiment:
Mike Sullivan, Head Coach of the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins, shared his perspective on mental training in the forward of the newly released book, The Playmaker’s Advantage, “Now we have a pretty good understanding of how to train athletes physiologically. The next frontier is how to get players to better understand anticipation skills, recognition skills, and decision-making. How to deal with high-stakes environments. How to handle pressure…Any coach who isn’t tuned in to this stuff, in my opinion, is going to fall behind.”
In his recent book, Above the Line, Ohio State Head Coach, Urban Meyer gave his perspective, “I believe most people want to give the best they have but don’t have the necessary tools and mindset to get there.” He goes on to say, “You won’t achieve excellence until you train your mind to take you there.” To emphasize the importance of mental training to his team, Ohio State football has been integrating a six-part program since 2013.
Mental Training is growing by popular demand:
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Every MLB team to make the playoffs last year has a mental training professional on staff. In fact, only a few clubs don’t have a mental coach.
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In the latest MLB Collective Bargaining Agreement players negotiated for Sport Psychology services to be offered by every club.
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Half of NBA teams employ or consult with a mental training professional (as of 2015).
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5 NHL teams use mental training services (as of 2014).
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Most NCAA Division 1 programs have access to mental training services.
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Many European Soccer teams have a mental training professional. Many football associations are requiring mental training with their academies.
While mental training is becoming mainstream at the professional levels, there’s no reason for athletes to wait. The sooner young athletes start to train the mental game the better.
Get Started with Mental Training
Don’t get left behind. Make mental training part of your team’s daily battle rhythm. Here are 3 ways to get started:
1. Help Your Athletes Become Self-Aware
Are your athletes aware of how much their performance is impacted by their mental game? I often ask teams how much of their sport is mental. Responses usually range from 50-90%. As Yogi Barra said, “Half of baseball is 90% mental.”
Check my Internal Signal Light as a free resource to help your team build awareness about their mental game.
2. Encourage Athletes to Evaluate their Mental Game Daily
You can’t improve what you don’t assess. This is just as true of an athlete’s mental game as it is their performance stats.
I encourage athletes to set and evaluate goals for every practice. Check out my Daily Practice Analysis as tool you can easily plug and play into your battle rhythm.
3. Help Your Athletes Access Mental Training
My college coach eventually referred me to a book on mental tennis. That was the beginning of my journey with sport psychology and eventually becoming a Mental Performance Coach.
While books are great resources and introductions to the mental game, referring athletes to a Mental Coach like me can be far more helpful. A Mental Coach can work with your team or designated individuals. There is likely a qualified professional in your area. Many offer virtual coaching like I do for athletes outside my local area and those who travel a lot for their sport.
Coming Soon!
To make mental training more accessible for athletes, teams, and even coaches I am launching The Excelling Edge Courses – online training for athletes and coaches! To be the first to know when new courses launch and to get early bird discounts click the button below and sign up to become a Course Insider.
No Longer a Secret Weapon
Whether you choose to become a Course Insider or not, don’t let your athletes get left behind when it comes to mental training. It is the latest frontier in sport science and athlete development. The secret is out. The best athletes in the world are training their minds to help them perform their best when it matters most.
Mental training can help your athletes get more out of practice and perform better under pressure. When the talent gap is small (competing at any level) the importance of the mental game is amplified. Help your athletes gain the mental advantage that others are overlooking.
Question: What are other ways to introduce your athletes to mental training?
I’d love to hear from you in the comments below, or on Facebook or Twitter.
- Book: The Cubs Way: The Zen of Building the Best Team in Baseball and Breaking the Curse by Tom Verducci
- Book: Above the Line: Lessons in Leadership and Life from a Championship Program by Urban Meyer
- Book: The Playmaker’s Advantage: How to Raise Your Mental Game to the Next Level by Leonard Zaichkowsky and Daniel Peterson
- Post: How to Improve Your Athlete’s In the Moment Self-Awareness
- Post: How To Guarantee Your Athletes Get Better Everyday