What if worry, frustration, or feeling down are not the problem? Instead, they are symptoms based on your approach to sport and even life. In our society, the way we talk about emotions is backward. We label ourselves and others as anxious, sad, or frustrated. That is not who we are—it is what we are feeling, and the distinction matters. When you identify with an emotion, you've got a self-perpetuating problem. More importantly, it's not true. Emotions are a feedback tool, specifically...

Do you feel stuck in your own head, or is your mindset holding you back? It's normal and okay to get stuck. We can't avoid challenges, pressures, and distractions in sports or life. But we can learn how to use these events as growing opportunities. Specifically, this post will show you the 3 phases to transform your mindset. I've been using this concept with many of my one-on-one clients because of the simplicity, clarity, and power it gives them.   The 3 Phases First - in phase one,...

Winning versus enjoyment: what matters more? The tension between the two is one that many high performers struggle with. I got this question recently, and the person said, “it's not just about winning - but it's ultimately all about winning.” This conundrum can create a lot of inner conflict without the mental model to resolve it. You can be left oscillating between an unhealthy win-at-all-costs mentality that leaves you frustrated and consumed with the results. Or on the other end, you...

For most athletes, traditional goal setting is holding them back. Yes you read that right. Goal setting itself is not the problem. The problem is being obsessed with results.  You can want and care about results, but the best athletes in the world are more obsessed with the process than results. This can be easier said than done. I learned how big of a problem this is first hand. As a junior hockey player, I obsessed about points and my spot in the lineup. The more I obsessed about...

If you want a sure fire way to quickly transform your mental game - you need to develop a personalized Alter Ego.  This strategy is not about putting fixed labels on who you are as a person. Rather it is about creating a narrative about how you want to show up on the field of play.  The Power of Simplicity and Creativity Credit to my coach and mentor Todd Herman for writing the book: The Alter Ego Effect and helping bring more simplicity and creativity to the mental game.  Unfortunately...

Noah Cavanaugh is a professional soccer player from Seattle, WA, who currently plays for Flower City Union in New York. Over the past year, he's worked with Dr. Cassidy Preston to help give him a mental edge on and off the pitch as he continues to push up the ranks of pro soccer in the US. In this interview Noah discusses how he has personalized his mental game to work for him. He touches on the challenges he has had to overcome as a professional soccer player - some of the key takeaways...

The ability to block out the ‘noise’ is key to having a clear mind and playing free.  But this is easier said than done - many athletes have trouble blocking out the ‘noise’ and end up: Overthinking Doubting their abilities Worrying about things out of their control When you lack alignment within your thoughts, feelings, and actions, you end up losing the ability to play in the flow state. The best strategy to clear and block out the noise is a Reset Routine. The magic is not in the...

Confidence is arguably the most important ingredient in succeeding as an athlete, but athletes often struggle to find and keep this elusive trait. The problem lies in that they have a skewed understanding of what confidence actually is and where it comes from. Here are the 4 main reasons why athletes struggle with self-confidence: Yo-Yo Confidence: Tying their self-image to external results or praise Imposter Syndrome: Believing they are not worthy and/or don’t belong Victim...

The outline of my first book is complete - check out the caption below to see the outline! I’ve gained some great insights while starting the writing process - you can find those in the summary below. The working title is - Play with Confidence: A New Way for Athletes to Mentally Prepare The purpose of the book is to challenge the status quo on mental preparation and question the ‘accepted’ ways of thinking about confidence. It will debunk the fluffy clichés, cookie-cutter strategies, and...

Performance anxiety is one the leading reasons athletes struggle to consistently perform at their capabilities. Learning how to channel your nerves is key to performing at your best when it matters most. Unfortunately most athletes focus on the threats of high-pressure situations.  Pressure can Provoke a State of Fear As a result the pressure provokes a fear state that leaves the athlete tense, overthinking, and underperforming. Here are 3 other common reasons athletes don’t perform under...

Getting injured is one of the biggest challenges in sport. So having the mental strategies to overcome this adversity will help you: ● Stay motivated despite not being able to play or train within the sport you love. ● Have the resilience & grit to persevere through the recovery process. ● Remain confident in your abilities and trust yourself as you return to play. ● Focus on being a great teammate and becoming a better leader as you look to contribute to the team in other ways.  ...

You wouldn’t build a house without a blueprint – and in the same manner you shouldn’t work on your mental game without doing an assessment. Here are the 3 steps to using the CEP Assessment to build your Mental Game blueprint: STEP 1: Identify the Mental Skills to Build One of the biggest problems with working on your mental game is that it’s hard to make tangible progress - so in our assessment we break it down into 7 Mental Skills to make it clear what you are working on. We assess each...

As an elite athlete, you have put in a ton of hard work to develop your capabilities, but until you develop a rock solid mental game, you won’t perform consistently when it matters most. You have probably tried the fluffy and cookie-cutter advice perpetuated by sport culture: - Be Positive - Forget about it - Don’t worry about it It is easy to promote these fluffy and cookie-cutter hacks. But when you build your mental game by patching together all these quick fixes - it’s like building...

Imagine someone on a dock, they are hesitating to jump in. They are worried that it is too cold, so they dip their toe in. The even jump in, but they get right back out. This person is not swimming and certainly not enjoying themselves. Alternatively, what you want to do is get on the dock, run full speed, jump in, and enjoy swimming. This is a relatable analogy that I use to simplify the mental game. Instead of being the person that is hesitating and has a head full of inner conflict,...

Elite performance comes from being fully immersed in process; It’s what we call being in the moment, dialed in, or in the zone. But the challenge is that the external scoreboards of sport and life can consume our focus and distract our attention from the process. We all know the cliché, “focus on what you can control,” but the problem is that it is a lot easier said than done. In fact, the root cause for most mental blocks stems from getting caught up in society’s definition of success –...

Fear can be paralyzing. Fear of mistakes, fear of failure, fear of letting others down, or fear of not meeting expectations; Whatever it is, it holds us back from just trusting our capabilities and attacking what we want. In most sports, and other areas of life, it pays to have an attacking mindset: In sports like hockey, soccer, and basketball, this often means taking the puck or ball and attacking the net While in tennis, golf, baseball, or softball, this means not being afraid to fail...

Confidence is a key to high performance. Unfortunately, confidence is often misunderstood and people overlook the most important part - self-worth. Most people struggle with self-confidence because the self-talk in their head is their own worst enemy. Here are 4 other reasons why people struggle with self-confidence: Yo-Yo Confidence: Tying their self-image to external results or praise Imposter Syndrome: Believing they are not worthy and/or don’t belong Victim Mentality: Blaming others...

Any draft day can be emotional! If you're an athlete (or parent/coach of one) who is entering a draft - then you're going to want to read below and watch the video. Be sure to use a “Critical Lens” when thinking about the draft. It is not a make or break moment in your career like you might think! The draft might be important, but the results (positive or negative) DO NOT predict the trajectory of your career. It's just a day, it's just a result, it does not determine your future. For...

We know how frustrating it’s being in yet another lockdown in Ontario & having to take a step back from the sports we love. However, we also know this doesn’t mean your progress should stop. For those of you that are in another lockdown - this is a mental challenge and it can make you mentally stronger, as long as you lean into it and make the most out of it. In fact, the mantra we adopted since lockdowns have begun is Obstacles Make Us Stronger! To help you lean in and to ensure...

On this episode of the Consistent Elite Performance podcast, Dr. Cassidy Preston is joined by Alexis Woloschuk. Alexis is part of the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association (PWHPA), formerly competing for Boston University in the NCAA.

On this episode of the Consistent Elite Performance podcast, Dr. Cassidy Preston is joined by Canadian Olympic gold medalist Robert Esmie. Robert won Olympic gold at the 1996 Olympic Games, while competing in the 4x100m relay event. Thumbnail via CP PHOTO/COA/Claus Andersen