Holistic Player Development
The importance of proactive mental training and how to start
It has been a minute. I’ve devoted most of my time this past year to working with athletes, teams, and coaches and less time writing about it. And most recently, I have been fortunate enough to be a part of building something that I am excited to share with you all. I plan to write here more frequently, however I likely will not commit to a schedule. Instead, I think we all benefit when it is written because it is important and adds value, not because the calendar says I have to!
In this 3 Point's, we'll take a closer look at holistic player development in action, how coaches are using it to their advantage, and how you can too.
1. First, a story:
Lauren Betts, a former McDonalds All-American and no. 1 recruit in the country, found herself at a crossroads this past offseason. After struggling to live up to the potential as a freshman at Stanford, she found herself in the transfer portal and struggling to find her confidence. During her recruitment process, crosstown rival, UCLA knew the potential of Betts, but also saw her confidence lacking, “I knew that her potential was a 10,” Head Coach Cori Close said, “but I knew that her confidence was not a 10 yet.”
So what did they do? They pitched her on their Mind Gym, UCLA's very own 9-month proactive and comprehensive mental training program aimed at helping players develop confidence, learn to refocus after mistakes, and enhance their mental toughness. Head coach Cori Close, sees mental skills and abilities as a critical part of a players’ development. They embrace holistic player development that includes teaching and training mental skills and abilities just like they do with weight training and on-court skill development.
“Like the repetition needed to hone the perfect jump shot, mental training is a daily necessity for the Bruins.”
Betts decided on UCLA and, as a sophomore, enjoyed an All-Conference season en route to UCLA making the Sweet 16. The program’s comprehensive mental conditioning regimen has been credited as a key to the sophomore center’s full potential after a disappointing freshman season crushed her confidence.
You can learn more here:
2. The case for holistic player development
I am not naïve enough to believe that the Mind Gym made Lauren Betts. She has had a track record of success; after all, she was the number one recruit in the country for a reason. And yet, I believe it does make a difference.
Think of it this way: What percentage of your sport is mental? The answer probably depends on the sport, but chances are, a chunk of it is.
Now, what percentage of your team’s training is currently allotted to training the mental aspect of performance?
If these two answers sync up, well done! In my experience, they rarely do. When they don’t, there is an opportunity. Often, as renown mental performance coach Aaron Walsh puts it, coaches and athletes over-index the mental side and under-train it. This can lead athletes to feel like they are on a hamster wheel waiting for the mental skills they need to come find them. We wouldn’t take this approach with any other aspect of player development, yet the mental side often gets left to chance.
3. What we’re doing about it!
We have built Fortitude Mental Performance under two core beliefs and heavily influenced by Team Denmark’s holistic approach to sport psychology:
First, difficult situations and experiencing pressure, doubt, worry, and adversity are natural and unavoidable parts of sport. These challenges should be accepted and create growth opportunities.
We also believe there are no shortcuts. Effective mental performance demands consistent training that is a natural part of an athlete’s daily routine.
Rather than waiting for athletes to struggle, we believe in a proactive approach to player development that is accessible to teams and athletes of all levels.
Here's how we do it:
Assess
Each athlete is assessed using highly validated psychology assessments (OMSAT-3 and ASCI-28) that measure an athlete’s psychological coping skills. These assessments generate individualized feedback with specific advice and action steps to improve. This helps increase athlete’s self-awareness and understanding of their strengths and potential areas for improvement. They can also help coaches understand the psychological coping skills of their athletes and teams.
Coach
We believe there are the fundamental skills at the intersection of performance and well-being. We also believe these skills can and should be coached proactively, instead waiting for athletes to struggle.
“Direction, feedback, and support. Performance excellence is impossible without these things.” - Dr. Sean McCann.
The role of the mental performance coach (and any coach, really) is to do just that: provide direction, feedback, and support in the teaching, training, and utilization of these critical skills in pursuit of athletes being at their best!
Customized Training Program
Our proactive approach focuses on equipping athletes and teams with the mental skills and tools they need to enhance their athletic performance and well-being. Utilizing the MindBuilder software system, every team is given weekly customized mental training workouts built around their schedule, engineered for your athletes to perform at their best when it matters most.
If you want to learn more about how your teams and athletes may benefit from proactive mental performance training, reach out!