"Mindsets"

The context behind all of our training

May 06, 2024

Fixed vs. Growth
Task vs. Ego
Training vs. Trusting
Deliberate Practice
Mental Toughness
Resilience

Regardless of our graduate education (licensed or unlicensed), our philosophy towards mindset matters.

I mean really — “What does it take for someone to have a high performing mindset?”

Each of the frameworks above provide some sort of educational background that can accompany skills training. It literally represents the beliefs we take towards helping individuals manage their “mindset”. For those of you reading this who are licensed, you often get at these concepts through traditional counseling theories such as CBT, REBT, and others.

THE STORY OF TIMMY

For those of you who don’t know, Timmy is my go to fake name who represents individuals and teams. Don’t ask me why Timmy stuck, but I used it back during a military training years ago and I’ve used it ever since.

- Okay…back to the story -

So, Timmy represents many of our clients that come to see us. They want quick fixes. This is fair. After all, if something can help, then lets do it. The challenge is that we are a product of what we know. Years of learning from our parents, friends, teammates, and other environmental factors. Some of this is in our awareness and some of it is not. This concept is really important in both individual and team consulting. It helps us identify how we want to address the idea of “mindset” around the skills we are training. Because everyone has different backgrounds, we need an even footing. Context to help ensure we are all on the same page with how we view training, competition, and human nature.

This is where Mindset Education comes into play.

What type of mindset and thought process should I have while training?
What type of mindset and thought process should I have while competing?

This seems so trivial, but if high performance is our area of expertise, how do we help athletes and coaches understand this dynamic? As mentioned in the opening paragraph, there are different approaches to this. Most recently, I’ve adopted much of the literature behind deliberate practice and have a training vs. trusting mindset. But that is also due to some refinement in my overall training philosophy:

Slow down and set intentions.

This evolution of training has come from over a decade of observations and a desire to continue to distill things down to its most basic element. What is the biggest challenge around competition today? I find it is a common challenge for most people today, but for competitors - it’s exacerbated.

“Autopilot”

Not only are we living in an age of instant everything and distractions, but - you are now compounding modern living with the common challenges to athletics. Athletes train like they always have, using traditional approaches that leave the same blind spots (attention control, emotional regulation, etc.) and even more to the point - athletes just go through the motions. They do what they are told, with little thought to establishing their own goals and intentions for drill work and practice.

This is what separates high performance from everything else. The idea of deliberate training and competition.

If I understand the mindsets I want to have during training, then my routines can help support that mindset.
If I understand the mindset I want to have while competing, then my routines can help support that mindset.

By adopting this approach to training, athletes and coaches can better address common performance demands/challenges:

Emotions/Mistake Management
Fatigue
Confidence
Learning
Motivation

This is just one example of many that we can take in the quest to support athletes and coaches. The mindset education we deliver can provide the necessary context to further amplify the effectiveness of the techniques we teach.

THE PATH AHEAD

As you look at how you approach mental performance training, keep perspective on the education you provide that influences the athletes “Mindset”. This may continue to evolve (and it should) over time, but starting to make this part of your reflective practice can really help elevate your impact. Use the following reflection questions to help guide this:

What type of mentality do high performers need to have?
- Think about the common challenges/needs and opportunities you see
What literature (or bodies of literature) can help you teach this?
- Think about what inspires you.
How would this perspective compliment skills training?