what is mental performance?

“It’s not a case of getting rid of the butterflies, it’s a question of getting them to fly in formation.”

— Jack Donohue, Canadian men’s national basketball team (1972-1988)

Maybe you’ve heard the term “sport psychologist” before. Or maybe you know of professional athletes who have spoken of working with a sport psychologist. But you’ve probably thought to yourself something like, “I’m not in a slump, why do I need to talk to someone?” or “I don’t need a psychologist, I’m fine, I just need to figure out my game.” or even “I’m just someone who runs for fun, how could a sport psychologist help me?” Let me explain why you, yes you, could benefit from working with a mental performance consultant.

February 9th, 2024

I went to college to play basketball. I had known for a long time that I wanted to play college ball, so when I was offered a full scholarship to play at the Division 1 level, I leapt at the chance. But it never felt right. It never clicked. I struggled that first preseason with injuries and illnesses and just the stress of being away from home and in college. It didn’t help that I felt like no one understood what I was going through. Basketball was supposed to be fun, right? Why would I complain?

I didn’t get the help or support I needed during that first semester, and after limping around on crutches for months, I transferred to a university closer to home. I picked up club softball and adjusted, as best I could, to my life without basketball. And even now, I question that decision. How would my life be different if I had stuck it out? If I had found someone who understood?

I did, however, start studying psychology at this new university and became really interested in the different theoretical approaches to helping people. How different people need different things and respond to different approaches. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do after graduation, but I had found something that interested me. Then I learned I could do this psychology thing with sports, with athletes. So maybe, 18-year old me (or more appropriately someone like me), would have someone to talk to. During my master’s program, I started working with a sport psychology research group. We looked at things like anxiety and performance. How to help an athlete from “choking.” And I still had no idea what I wanted to do, but I was narrowing in on it. During my doctoral program, I began studying injuries and the psychology around them. Why do some athletes fear being reinjured? I worked with one of the teams on campus, talking with the athletes on ways to improve their performances, overcoming anxiety or fear of injury, and letting go of past performance. I enjoyed it. But I wasn’t sure how good at it I truly was. So I thought I could always stick to teaching and research.

But then, somewhere a long the way, I started working with more and more athletes. Individually and in teams. And it was helping. I worked with collegiate athletes and grade school athletes, even recreational athletes (the mom with lofty running goals trying to balance it all, the guy who just wanted to break through and get stronger). And each time I realized that no matter the person, the athlete, the exerciser, I could give them something they needed.

So yes, I can help the 12-year old gymnast get back up on the beam after suffering an injury, but also the high school baseball player who knows he has to improve his mental game if he wants to be his best, or the collegiate soccer player who is away from home and needs help balancing sports with school and adapting to a new life, and the woman who got into running later in life to show her kids it can still be done. Because the mental side of the game is important. For everyone. No matter the sport, no matter the age, no matter the goals or the reasons. You would never show up on race day without physically training your body, so why would you put yourself at a disadvantage by not training your mind?