Performance anxiety, the enemy of so many athletes who are striving for greatness, takes the confidence, and ultimately, fun, out of anyone’s sport.

Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to chip away at this detrimental consequence of the mind.

Dr. Jim Taylor is here to provide an abundance of tangible ways to reduce performance anxiety. Before that, we discuss the ways in which the mind is susceptible to performance anxiety.

Dr. Jim Taylor is considered one of the world’s leading authorities on the psychology of sports performance. He holds a PhD in Psychology and works with professional, collegiate, junior, and age-group athletes in many sports. He is the author of 19 books, including Train Your Mind for Athletic Success, and his blog posts have been viewed by more than 10 million people.

To learn more, you can visit his website, www.drjimtaylor.com, or follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

You can also head to my website, www.zelicoperformance.com if you’re interested in mental performance consulting for individuals or teams.

Timestamps are below, enjoy!

(00:00) Introduction

(01:45) Introduction to Dr. Jim Taylor

(05:22) What is anxiety?

(10:03) The mind is not tangible

(13:40) Toolbox for the mind

(17:31) Mental training tools to relax; “psych-down” tools

(23:02) Unhealthy attitudes, perfectionism, and expectations; losing before you’ve begun

(36:09) Difficulty changing attitudes

(39:15) Coaches’ influence on performance anxiety

(41:05) Training/performance environment’s influence on performance anxiety

(47:29) Journaling

(51:55) Dr. Taylor’s non-negotiables in mental training

(53:30 Practicing imagery/visualization

(01:04:51) Self-talk best practices

(01:19:39) Awareness over mindfulness

(01:22:42) Routines

(01:30:39) Closing notes on performance anxiety

(01:31:57) Outro

--

See highlights from every episode on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and stay up to date by following The Sport Psychology Of on your podcast platform.

If you want to start working on your mental game, try out 1 on 1 sport psychology coaching with me, Gabe Zelico, by visiting my website ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.zelicoperformance.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠schedule a free introductory call⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where we’ll discuss your goals, obstacles to success, and determine if we’d be a good fit to move forward.

You can also email me directly at gabriel@zelicoperformance.com regarding private coaching or the podcast.

Music by Ben Zelico.

Disclaimer: The Sport Psychology Of podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not represent mental health care services, including the giving of mental health care advice. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional mental health care advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining mental health care for any condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has entered the world of many careers, but few understand its impact in sports, particularly, mental performance. With AI increasing efficiency all over the workplace, how can AI be leveraged to help athletes optimize their mental game?

Joining me today is the perfect guest for this topic, Dr. Ford Dyke, a Human Performance Optimization subject-matter expert.

Dr. Dyke collaborates globally with high-level performers such as corporate executives, elite athletes, physicians, first responders, and military personnel. His methodology integrates components of his Professorship, 7-year career as a Team USA Athlete, and experience as a Performance Coach for Auburn Wheelchair Basketball and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee.

Dr. Dyke's education, professional experience, and personal journey led to the creation of perfor[Hu]mance.® | A multidimensional space for The Human Experience.

In this episode, You’ll hear about the pros and cons of AI mental performance coaching and how it specifically works.

To learn more about Dr. Ford Dyke and his contact information, visit https://www.forddyke.com/

Dr. Dyke's LinkedIn

Enjoy!

--

See highlights from every episode on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and stay up to date by following The Sport Psychology Of on your podcast platform.

If you want to start working on your mental game, try out 1 on 1 sport psychology coaching with me, Gabe Zelico, by visiting my website ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.zelicoperformance.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠schedule a free introductory call⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where we’ll discuss your goals, obstacles to success, and determine if we’d be a good fit to move forward.

You can also email me directly at gabriel@zelicoperformance.com regarding private coaching or the podcast.

Music by Ben Zelico.

Disclaimer: The Sport Psychology Of podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not represent mental health care services, including the giving of mental health care advice. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional mental health care advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining mental health care for any condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.

Athletes, Coaches and scouts agree that being a gritty player bumps up their value as an athlete.

What remains then, is whether or not grit is something athletes are born with or is it a quality they can train, and if so, what specific techniques are effective?

Joining me today is Will Johnston, a former basketball player for Virginia Tech, a retired US Navy SEAL, and a mental performance coach. The perfect background in a guest to talk all things grit.

He’s passionate about using his background/personal experiences as an athlete & a military special operator, along with his Master’s degree in Sport & Performance Psychology, to equip athletes, working professionals, and performers across all domains with the mental tools and strategies that lead to success and fulfillment.In this episode, you’ll come to understand grit more clearly and learn concrete ways to enhance it.

Enjoy!

Connect with Will through his LinkedIn

--

See highlights from every episode on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and stay up to date by following The Sport Psychology Of on your podcast platform.

If you want to start working on your mental game, try out 1 on 1 sport psychology coaching with me, Gabe Zelico, by visiting my website ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.zelicoperformance.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠schedule a free introductory call⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where we’ll discuss your goals, obstacles to success, and determine if we’d be a good fit to move forward.

You can also email me directly at gabriel@zelicoperformance.com regarding private coaching or the podcast.

Music by Ben Zelico.

Disclaimer: The Sport Psychology Of podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not represent mental health care services, including the giving of mental health care advice. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional mental health care advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining mental health care for any condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.

Every sport has its own version of a shot clock to induce stress and anxiety, or focus and a flow state.

Whether you sink or swim under that pressure largely depends on the strength of your mental game.

Welcome to the sport psychology of, I’m Gabe Zelico. Today, we’re breaking down the sport psychology of shot clocks.

For the first time, 2 guests will be joining me today - Aren Ulmer and Dave Laughlin, who work at Courtex Performance.

Aren, a former collegiate athlete and coach, delivers training and coaching to boost personal empowerment and drive team performance. He specializes in the development of the whole person to enhance wellness and human performance. His client list includes NCAA and NBA athletes and coaches, international professionals, executives, and educators.

Aren earned his Master’s in Applied Sport and Performance Psychology from Holy Names University and is pursuing a Doctorate of Psychology with an emphasis in Sports and Performance from the University of Arizona Global Campus.

Dave is currently the director of assessment and skill acquisition for Courtex Performance, where he helps athletes, coaches, and organizations perform to their potential more consistently. In his role with Courtex, Dave has worked with clients in the MLB, NBA, OLY, and NCAA. His specialties include athlete profiling, mental skills training, and practice design to improve learning and performance.

Dave has a Ph.D in sport psychology and motor behavior from the University of Tennessee and spent a decade as a university professor prior to his current roles. Prior to his work within the field of mental performance, he played college baseball at William Jewell College (Liberty, Missouri) and coached baseball at the youth, high school, and collegiate levels.

Links are below. Enjoy!

http://www.courtexperformance.com/

@courtexperformance

Aren's Instagram

Aren's LinkedIn

Dave's Email: dave@courtexperformance.com

Dave's LinkedIn

--

See highlights from every episode on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and stay up to date by following The Sport Psychology Of on your podcast platform.

If you want to start working on your mental game, try out 1 on 1 sport psychology coaching with me, Gabe Zelico, by visiting my website ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.zelicoperformance.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠schedule a free introductory call⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where we’ll discuss your goals, obstacles to success, and determine if we’d be a good fit to move forward.

You can also email me directly at gabriel@zelicoperformance.com regarding private coaching or the podcast.

Music by Ben Zelico.

Disclaimer: The Sport Psychology Of podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not represent mental health care services, including the giving of mental health care advice. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional mental health care advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining mental health care for any condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.

What exercise takes the prize for being most frequently suggested to reduce stress, and so abstract most people don’t understand how it impacts the brain?

Welcome to the sport psychology of - today, we’re talking about the sport psychology of meditation.

Pete Kadushin, Ph.D., CMPC, is the mental performance coach for the Chicago Blackhawks.

Pete’s work focuses on two key areas of growth: helping people dial in their ability to learn and refine lessons quickly, and increasing their capacity to apply those lessons under pressure, and he believes that tools like self-reflection, breath work, and meditation are invaluable as people walk this path.

Timestamps are below, enjoy!

(00:00) Episode Introduction

(01:34) Introduction to Dr. Pete Kadushin

(05:15) What is meditation, and why do it?

(13:42) Meditation trains your awareness of performance damaging thoughts

(19:58) Can humans multitask?

(23:00) Different ways to meditate through the senses

(49:45) Examples of pro athletes meditating

(54:21) How to start meditating

(01:03:34) How coaches can implement meditation into team training

(01:08:04) Outro

Follow @thesportpsychologyof on ⁠Instagram⁠, ⁠Twitter⁠, and ⁠TikTok⁠. Find us on ⁠Youtube⁠ to watch clips from each episode, including video.

Email Gabe at gabriel@zelicoperformance.com for any feedback or questions regarding the podcast.

Interested in taking your mental game to the next level? Try out 1 on 1 sport psychology coaching with me, Gabe Zelico, by visiting my website: ⁠www.zelicoperformance.com⁠ and sign up for a free introductory call.

Disclaimer: The Sport Psychology Of podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not represent mental health care services, including the giving of mental health care advice. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional mental health care advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining mental health care for any condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.

Do you ever have a loud inner critic that constantly wears down your self-esteem, and increases your self-doubt? 

Is an athlete’s ability to talk themselves down from a negative, erratic mindset a sign of weakness, or evidence of mental toughness? 

Welcome to the sport psychology of, I’m Gabe Zelico. Today, we’re breaking down the sport psychology of self-compassion.

One of the researchers contributing to the literature on self-compassion is Dr Zoi Zompopoulou, a sport and exercise psychologist based in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. She completed her doctoral studies at Glasgow Caledonian University. She is currently running her own sport & exercise psychology support business, Creative Sport Mind, and working as a psychology lecturer at Newbattle Academy College.

In this episode, you’ll hear discussions around whether or not self-compassion can lead to complacency, tangible methods to develop self-compassion, Zoi’s doctoral research, and more.

Enjoy!

Timestamps:

(00:00) Episode introduction

(01:30) What is self-compassion?

(06:24) Team culture amplifying inner critics

(08:10) The difficulty of self-compassion

(12:50) Does self-compassion equal weak-minded or soft?

(16:43) Self-compassion and complacency 

(21:23) Why are we more compassionate toward others than ourselves?

(25:12) Positivity among teammates - team contract

(27:57) Wrong ways to be self-compassionate

(31:27) How self-compassion leads to mental toughness

(32:58) Self-compassion reducing burnout symptoms

(37:17) Self-compassionate athletes handling adversity

(42:01) Self-compassion and motivation

(43:51) Self-compassion as a life skill

(46:56) Meditation, mindfulness, and visualizing

(55:30) Reframing

(01:02:28) Self-reflection and journaling

(01:05:03) Client success: psychoeducation and evolutionary psychology

(01:10:46) Outro

Instagram @creativesportmind

Website www.creativesportmind.com

LinkedIn Dr Zoi Zompopoulou

--

See highlights from every episode on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and stay up to date by following The Sport Psychology Of on your podcast platform.

If you want to start working on your mental game, try out 1 on 1 sport psychology coaching with me, Gabe Zelico, by visiting my website ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.zelicoperformance.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠schedule a free introductory call⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where we’ll discuss your goals, obstacles to success, and determine if we’d be a good fit to move forward. 

You can also email me directly at gabriel@zelicoperformance.com regarding private coaching or the podcast.

Music by Ben Zelico.

Disclaimer: The Sport Psychology Of podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not represent mental health care services, including the giving of mental health care advice. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional mental health care advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining mental health care for any condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.

In the NFL, you have an average of 18 million viewers watching you every game. Couple that with ample time in between opportunities to make an impact and the fate of the game oftentimes coming down to you, kickers feel the weight of the world on their shoulders.

Trying to execute a field goal they’ve done hundreds, if not thousands of times, leaves the mental game an essential ingredient to their success.

Welcome to the sport psychology of, I’m Gabe Zelico. Today, we’re breaking down the sport psychology of kicking field goals. Although we’ll discuss field goals for the duration of the episode, the same logic goes for PATs (point after touchdown). 

I’m excited to introduce the guest for this episode, Austin Errthum, who double dips in experience both as a kicker and mental performance coach. Austin grew up in Kalona, a small town in southeast Iowa. He played division 1 soccer at Drake University and ended up transferring and trying out for the football team at the University of Northern Iowa (FCS). After a senior season where he lead the country in FG’s and touchbacks to become an All-American, he went to a mini-camp with KC Chiefs in 2019. He then went back to school and got a masters degree in Sport and Exercise Psychology. He opened his own mental training business called Errthum Performance to help others reach their goals and become 1% better in the mental game. He’s also the host of the podcast, The Kitchen Table.

In this episode, you’ll hear the specific ways kickers’ anxiety is fueled, what to do if you’re feeling low in confidence, and tangible ways to apply mental skills. I also share a story of how the podcast was first thought up when we talk about the psychology of icing a kicker.

Timestamps are below. Enjoy!

(01:58) Introduction to Austin Errthum

(11:19) Episode introduction

(12:06) Anxiety of game-deciding field goals

(19:11) Crowd distractions

(22:41) Low confidence before a kick

(28:46) Control

(35:19) Icing the kicker

(39:43) Justin Tucker post game-winning field goal interview break-down

(42:34) Awareness

(46:20) Visualization

(52:50) Relaxation techniques; breathing

(56:03) Routines

(01:00:04) Handling the emotions of high-stakes misses

(01:02:06) Outro

Errthum Performance Website
Errthum Performance Facebook Page
The Kitchen Table on Spotify

--

See highlights from every episode on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and stay up to date by following The Sport Psychology Of on your podcast platform.

If you want to start working on your mental game, try out 1 on 1 sport psychology coaching with me, Gabe Zelico, by visiting my website ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.zelicoperformance.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠schedule a free introductory call⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where we’ll discuss your goals, obstacles to success, and determine if we’d be a good fit to move forward. 

You can also email me directly at gabriel@zelicoperformance.com regarding private coaching or the podcast.

Music by Ben Zelico.

Disclaimer: The Sport Psychology Of podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not represent mental health care services, including the giving of mental health care advice. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional mental health care advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining mental health care for any condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.